Vintage cars, retro lamp posts, and repainted mailboxes were used to return 23rd Ave. in Park Hill to the 1960s for the filming of a movie.

Park Hill Community Bookstore was a temporary flower shop.

Denver’s Park Hill neighborhood was the set for a filming this week for the movie The Man Who Changed The World.

The businesses along the stretch of E. 23rd Ave., between Dahlia St. and Cherry St., were transformed to look like a different era. Park Hill Community Bookstore was temporarily Penny’s Florist and Honey Hill Café was the Corner Café.

On Monday, a business was being transformed into Gino’s Barber Shop, and workers were busily changing lights outside Spinelli’s Market, while props including a holiday tree and vintage bottles lined the sidewalk.

The Man Who Changed The World is a feature film that recently received a $1.8 million refundable tax credit incentive from the Colorado Office of Film, Television and Media, a division of the Colorado Office of Economic Development and International Trade (OEDIT).

OEDIT says this is the largest Colorado originating movie production to date to take advantage of the new refundable tax credit passed in 2024. It adds the anticipated economic impact of the film could reach up to $16.2 million based on multipliers provided by the Leeds School of Business at University of Colorado Boulder.

Storefronts along 23rd Ave. were recreated to match the 60s era of the movie being filmed there.

The film follows the real-life story of Bud Stoecker, described as a dreamer, self-made inventor and a father struggling to build a family business. The project has a $14.5 million budget and is providing dozens of jobs.

23rd Ave. was closed all day Tuesday except for the vintage cars that lined the street for the filming. It was 1969 in Denver again, as actors cruised the sidewalks visiting the ‘new’ shops.

Neighbors and film buffs showed up to watch. Front Porch stopped by to experience the atmosphere as the director managed the production.

No release date has been set for the film yet.

Front Porch photos by Linda Kotsaftis and Christie Gosch

It was a chance to step back in time to the 1960s. Storefronts, cars, and props transformed a popular block in Park Hill into a movie set for The Man Who Changed the World. The film has a $14.5 million budget and is providing dozens of local jobs.

The film crew transformed the interior of Spinelli’s Market.

Filmmaker Greg Pritikin (right) gives direction outside of “The Cherry Tomato.”