In season 1 of 13 Reasons Why, Clay (Dylan Minnette) spends a great deal of time on his bike, riding around to all of the places that the late Hannah (Katherine Langford) starred on her map. Fans of the series may wonder if it's possible to do the same thing — can one really go around to the locations that Hannah listed on her 13 tapes? While one may not be able to find places like the Cresmont or Baker's Pharmacy, it is possible to approximate where 13 Reasons Why takes place — or, at least, the area it's supposed to.
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Jay Asher's book of the same name, which serves as the inspiration for Brian Yorkey's series, is set in Cresmont, which fans will note is the same name as the cinema Hannah and Clay worked at the summer they first bonded. The series, however, does not make it explicitly clear what the name of the town is, possibly because the show is not supposed to be about a specific time and place, but about the experiences many teenagers face on a grander scale.
While the town in 13 Reasons Why is not specified, its general location matches where the series is actually filmed. According to SF Gate, 13 Reasons Why was filmed in Northern California, with many shots located in the town of Vallejo. That's where the cinema (which isn't actually a cinema in reality, by the way) is located. Production of the series was temporarily halted in October of 2017 due to raging California wildfires, in that area. which may be why it took over a year for the second season to hit Netflix.
As for where Liberty High School is located? Both season 1 and season 2 used Analy High School in Sebastopol, California to represent Clay's school. Should 13 Reasons Why get renewed for a season 3, it will do so again, per Sonoma West Times & News.
Technically, 13 Reasons Why could take place anywhere in America — teens all over the country deal with many of the same troubles that the students at Liberty High do. However, filming in California does have a few advantages, like generally decent, consistent weather. Not only is Clay always able to ride his bike without fear of getting stuck in a snowstorm, the show can use flashbacks without having to reset the entire look of scenes between winter and summer.
Of course, the NoCal vibe is pretty low on the list for reasons to tune into the second season of the Netflix series. Season 2 of 13 Reasons Why arrives on the streaming service Friday 18th May.