Facebook and Harvard University in Boston

By: Cindy Deng

When Mark Zuckerberg created Facebook, it led to later inventions of the smartphones and other social medias such as Twitter and Snapchat. Today, Facebook is widely used by people from all over the world to talk to one another, video chat, post pictures of their day, share how their feeling, and other similar updates to their lives. Aside from personal use, Facebook also provides profiles and information that ranges from news sources, to restaurants, to movies. Like Facebook, movies, are also a type of entertainment and can be used in an informative way. But have you ever wondered how a movie gets made, where it’s filmed, the making of the costumes, or the production behind it all? This post will tell you all about films made in Boston, including information such as the premise of the movie, its characters, and where it was filmed.

The Social Network (2010), directed by David Fincher, is about how Mark Zuckerberg, who created Facebook, came up with the concepts — chatting with people, becoming friends, and posting statuses online — that eventually led to the establishment of this social media platform. Jesse Eisenberg portrays Mark Zuckerberg, Andrew Garfield is Eduardo Saverin, and Justin Timberlake plays Sean Parker. The filming took place in various locations in Massachusetts and Los Angeles, while the film itself was set at Harvard University and later in California. In Boston; Wheelock College in the Fenway area and the South End Shop Posh – which is now closed — served as the Harvard campus and bookstore.

Wheelock College’s Quad, which serves as Harvard’s Campus.

The entrance of what use to be Posh, serves as Harvard’s bookstore.

At both locations, the buildings were made of bricks and showed a classy side of Boston. Tremont Street had small shops and restaurants with outdoor seating, and the buildings were rustic and elegant. The street gives off a vintage feel, reminding you of the olden times with its quiet atmosphere and aged buildings. The closest train stop to Tremont Street would be Tufts Medical Center on the Orange Line. From there, it’d be roughly a 15-minute walk. To get to Wheelock College, you’d have to take the Green Line Train D to Riverside, then get off at Fenway, and from there it’d be roughly a 10-minute walk.

Statue of John Harvard, also known as the “Statue of Three Lies.”

When asking about colleges in Boston, Harvard would be the first school to come in mind. Facebook was co-founded right in a Harvard dorm room, where Mark Zuckerberg was running it as one of his hobbies in his free time, along with his friend, Eduardo Saverin, who funded it. Being one of the eight Ivy League schools, Harvard — named after John Harvard — is one of the most well-known places in Boston. It was established in 1636, making it the oldest institution of education in the United States. Multiple U.S presidents were given Honorary Degrees from Harvard, the first one being George Washington, who was also the first U.S. president to visit the institute. Placed in front of the University Hall in Harvard Yard is a statue of John Harvard, which was shown in The Social Network, and referred to as the “Statue of Three Lies.” The three lies of the statue being: the statue is not John Harvard, John Harvard wasn’t the founder of the university, and Harvard wasn’t founded in 1638, but rather 1639.

The campus itself is large, with buildings not only in Cambridge, but also in Boston. To get to Harvard’s main campus, located in Cambridge, you’d have to take the Red Line in the direction of Alewife and get off at the Harvard stop. Harvard is in Harvard Square, a plaza where there are an abundance of restaurants and clothing shops. From the classy Tremont Street to Harvard, there’s a big difference in environment. There are more college students where Harvard is, and it’s more city-like with its modern buildings and crowds of people trying to reach their destinations. Between these two different locations, I’d probably rather go to Harvard Square, but that’s my personal preference, since I’m more of a city girl. I would recommend going to Tremont Street for a calmer feel of the city, and Harvard Square if you’re looking for a place bustling with life.