PIONEERTOWN, Calif. — Most people go to the movies to escape reality, but Matt and Kristi Kautz’s reality is living in a movie or, more precisely, a movie set.

At the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, Matt — a digital marketer — and Kristi — an interior designer — left their home in Los Angeles in search of a more isolated place to settle.

They found it in Pioneertown, a sleepy desert hideaway about 30 miles north of Palm Springs.

Founded in 1946 by a group of Hollywood legends, including Roy Rogers and Gene Autry, Pioneertown was originally a Western movie set for non-union filmmaker. More than 70 years later, it is a living breathing town with a population of 400.