Super 8 blu-ray disc features tribute to Weirton
November 21, 2011
wtov-9.com

WEIRTON, W. VA. – The City of Weirton is forever etched in celluloid thanks to the award-winning filmmakers J.J. Abrams and Steven Spielberg, who were at the helm of this summer's blockbuster, "Super 8." And, thanks to Paramount Pictures, Weirton has been given the opportunity to screen a special featurette on Nov. 21. The featurette appears on the Blu-ray™ version of the film, which has a street date of Nov. 22.

Special advance screening of "Super 8" Blu-ray™ Bonus Material, plus movie
November 16, 2011
West Virginia Film Office

CHARLESTON, W. VA. – The City of Weirton is forever etched in celluloid thanks to the award-winning filmmakers J.J. Abrams and Steven Spielberg, who were at the helm of this summer's blockbuster, "Super 8." And, thanks to Paramount Pictures, Weirton has been given the opportunity to screen a special featurette on Nov. 21. The featurette appears on the Blu-ray™ version of the film, which has a street date of Nov. 22.

West Virginia Film Office kicks off contest in advance of Nov. 22 launch of "Super 8" DVD release
November 15, 2011
West Virginia Film Office

CHARLESTON, W. VA. – As the city of Weirton awaits the Blu-ray/DVD release of J.J. Abrams' summer blockbuster, "Super 8," the West Virginia Film Office is conducting an online campaign to promote the Nov. 22 release.

An Explosive Train Wreck and a Trick of the Light for Super 8

June 23, 2011
By Barbara Robertson, studiodaily.com

An enviable group of award-winning visual effects supervisors powered Super 8’s post-production. At Industrial Light & Magic, Kim Libreri (Oscar nomination, Poseidon; Academy Sci-Tech award) Russell Earl (two Oscar nominations, for Star Trek and Transformers) and Dennis Muren (six Oscars, 13 Oscar nominations, two special achievement awards from the Academy, and one Sci-Tech award). At Scanline, it was Stephan Trojansky (Oscar nomination for Hereafter). We talked with Kim Libreri about VFX production for what could be this summer’s favorite family film.

But beware ... SPOILERS follow!

GeekDad Exclusive: Interview With Ryan Lee of Super 8
June 16, 2011
By Tony Sims, GeekDad

I recently had a chance to have a quick interview with one of the stars of the J.J. Abrams/Steve Spielberg summer blockbuster Super 8: Ryan Lee, who plays Cary the mischievous pyromaniac who breaks up the thrilling tension as the comic relief of the group.

'Super 8': Meet the Kids!
June 13, 2011
By EW Staff

Get to know the bright young actors who play the wide-eyed filmmakers within the J.J. Abrams film

'Super 8': A pop-art masterpiece
June 10, 2011
By Colin Covert, Star Tribune

I haven't seen another studio release this year that jitterbugs with love for movies like "Super 8." As the title suggests, it's a valentine to filmmaking, especially the family-oriented science-fiction variety. J.J. Abrams, who directed the best entries in the "Mission: Impossible" and "Star Trek" franchises, delivers a phenomenal pop-art experience, dazzling the senses while aiming straight for the heart.

'Super 8' Shows West Virginians at Their Best
June 10, 2011
By Bray Cary, West Virginia Media

If you’re out and about this weekend, you should take some time to see the movie "Super 8."

All the reviews have been great and the movie was filmed in Weirton and a number of West Virginians worked on the production.

Super 8: Film Review
June 04, 2011
By Todd McCarthy, The Hollywood Reporter

Geek kids in small town America uncover alien life in writer-director J.J. Abrams’ sincere summer pic, writes Todd McCarthy.

Word of Mouth: 'Super 8' seeks an audience among the summer tent poles
June 09, 2011
By John Horn, Los Angeles Times

The new retro sci-fi film "Super 8" heads into the summer movie season with two of Hollywood's biggest marquee names above its mysterious title: writer-director J.J. Abrams and producer Steven Spielberg. Yet in an era of sequels, spinoffs, book adaptations and television show remakes, the movie stands as an anomaly: It's a wholly original project with no A-list actors in starring roles.

W.Va. plays major role in 'Super 8'
June 08, 2011
By Amy Robinson, The Charleston Gazette

CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- West Virginia hits the big screen in a big way Friday. Weirton, in the Northern Panhandle, has a starring role as the fictional Lillian, Ohio, in J.J. Abrams' supernatural thriller, "Super 8," one of the summer's most highly anticipated movies.

WV Film Office launches ‘Super 8’ promo site
June 08, 2011

CHARLESTON, W. VA. – “Super 8” is one of the most anticipated films of the summer, and the West Virginia Film Office is launching a dedicated website to celebrate the release of the film which was shot in and around Weirton.

The website, www.wvfilm.com/super8, will allow fans to get a look at some of the behind-the-scene elements of what is expected to be a blockbuster for Paramount Pictures. The film will open nationwide on June 10.

Filming of 'Super 8' creates a buzz in Weirton, W.Va.
June 08, 2011
By Jacqueline Feldman, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

WEIRTON, W.Va. -- In the 50 years he's lived in this former steel town, Paul Schultz had never seen anything so exciting as the woman in a stunt harness hoisted from his front yard by cranes that flung her across the street.

Steven Spielberg: ‘Super 8 is the first true J.J. Abrams film
June 02, 2011
By Geoff Boucher, herocomplex.latimes.com

There are plenty of stories with Hollywood endings — this is one with a Hollywood beginning. A new J.J. Abrams film called “Super 8” reaches theaters on June 10 with a coming-of-age story about young, amateur filmmakers who film a spidery space alien on the loose in Ohio during summer 1979. For people who know the 44-year-old Abrams, that plot seems only slightly more fantastic than the real-life, three-decade story that led to the film.

The Making of Super 8: Weirton People Hanging Out on Porches Brought Together by Location Shoot
June 1, 2011
Special to HuntingtonNews.Net

At the heart of "Super 8," are six kids in a 1970s Ohio steel town whose summer dreams of making their first Super 8 monster movie masterpiece are suddenly interrupted. After witnessing a horrific train accident, the mysterious events surrounding the crash reverberates through their friendships, their families and forever alters the way they view their lives.

Filmmaker J. J. Abrams Is a Crowd Teaser
May 26, 2011
By FRANK BRUNI, nytimes.com

Soon after taking the stage at the TED conference, where specially anointed trailblazers and titans are asked to explain their inspiration, J. J. Abrams made a crack about the television sensation that branded him one of the entertainment industry’s most tenacious keepers of secrets, a purveyor of sustained ambiguity above all else.

America’s Top Summer Movie Getaways for 2011
May 26, 2011
By Harry Medved, fandango.com

With The Hangover – Part II in wide release today (and 74% of Fandango’s ticket sales), summer getaways are on everyone’s mind. (Much of the second Hangover was shot in Thailand.)

Fandango asked more than 2,000 of its filmgoers in a May survey which summer 2011 movie location-destinations they would most want to visit across America.

The top summer 2011 movie getaways in the U.S., as selected in our moviegoer poll, rank as follows: 

Out-of-This-World Event Set to Mark Movie Premiere
May 23, 2011
By IAN HICKS Staff Writer, The Intelligencer / Wheeling News-Register
There was something supernatural in the air in Weirton last fall - namely, the buzz created when Hollywood film crews invaded the city to film J.J. Abrams' sci-fi thriller "Super 8."
In an effort to rekindle that excitement in the days leading up to the movie's June 10 release, city leaders have announced plans for a special event, the "Celebr8 Weirton Summer Kickoff," to commemorate Weirton's moment in the limelight. The festival will take place June 5 along Main Street near the Thomas E. Millsop Community Center.

’70s film props for sale at Weirton Salvation Army
October 29, 2010
The Associated Press, Herald-Dispatch.com
WEIRTON, W.Va. (AP) — A Paramount Pictures crew that’s been shooting in Weirton is helping out the Salvation Army by donating vintage memorabilia for a benefit sale. 
Furniture and other items from the 1970s will be sold Friday and Saturday, from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. 
Salvation Army Captain Ed Long told the Weirton Daily Times most items were featured in the film. 
He says all are in good condition, from end tables, chairs and sofas to kitchen furniture and accessories.
The movie script is believed to revolve around a 14-year-old boy and is set in a steel town in 1979.
Pam Haynes of the West Virginia Film Office has said it’s the largest movie ever to be shot in West Virginia.
Some scenes from the classic Vietnam film “The Deer Hunter” also were shot in Weirton.

Words of gratitude
October 25, 2010
By ANGELINA DICKSON, Staff writer - Weirton Daily Times

Motorists traveling on Cove Road and in other areas of Weirton can catch a glimpse of some words of gratitude on an electrical road sign used during Paramount Pictures film productions in Weirton to advise travelers of detours and road closings associated with filming. The signs now read “Forged by steel, captured on film. Thank you Weirton.”

Weir Middle School benefits from movie production
October 24, 2010
By ANGELINA DICKSON, Staff writer - Weirton Daily Times

WEIRTON - Even though filming in Weirton has ceased, many locals are still seeing the benefits that came with having Paramount Pictures involved in movie productions in the area.
After participating in two days of filming, Weir Middle School received five iMac computers valued at nearly $1,500 a piece and six wardrobe screen partitions, which Principal Dan Enich said were already being used.

United Way prepping for second report
October 23, 2010
By ANGELINA DICKSON, Staff writer - Weirton Daily Times

WEIRTON - As the second report luncheon approaches, members of the Weirton United Way continue to look to the members of the community for support.
Executive Director Kristin Bowman-Cross stated the 2010 United Way campaign special events have reached record-breaking numbers and with the help of the local committees to promote support for the United Way on behalf of the 15 member agencies, she believes the goal will be met.

Spielberg & Abrams Come To Our Backyard
October 17, 2010
By Charlie Mitchell, Y108.radio.com

Ok, so they’re not exactly in Pittsburgh.

But close enough. They’re in Weirton.

And what, pray tell, are Steven Spielberg and JJ Abrams doing in West-by-gaw-Virginia?
Messrs. Spielberg & Abrams are filming a new motion picture for Summer 2011 release…and much of it’s being shot in and around Weirton.

Visual Effects Supervisor Shares Moviemaking Secrets With Local Students
October 14, 2010
wtov9.com

WEIRTON, W.Va. -- Filmmaker George Lucas once said, "A special effect without a story is pretty boring."
Kim Libreri's life has both a good story and plenty of special effects.
Libreri, who has done work on movies like "The Matrix" and "Speed Racer," took a break from his work Thursday to share his story with Weir High School students.

3:13 p.m. - Film producers searching for children for photo shoot
October 12, 2010
Weirton Daily Times

WEIRTON - Officials with the Paramount Pictures movie being filmed in Weirton are looking for 1-year-old and 5-year-old boys to cast as photo doubles for a still photo shoot to take place Wednesday.
The boys must have brown eyes, brown hair, caucasian light, non-freckled skin and a little wider nose.

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