Editor

The National Aviation Hall of Fame (NAHF) will host the First Annual Reel Stuff Film Festival of Aviation on April 24-26, 2008 in Dayton, Ohio. Reel Stuff screenings held at various theatre venues throughout the three-day festival will celebrate the diverse and colorful world of aviation as depicted through invited Hollywood studio productions and independent documentaries. The NAHF is a Congressionally chartered 501(c)(3) non-profit organization dedicated to honoring America’s outstanding air and space pioneers.

Projects to be screened are documentary, classic and contemporary theatrical releases in which aviation history or the passion for flight is the subject or instrumental to the storyline. Each movie will be introduced by an actor, producer, aerial coordinator or cinematographer associated with its production, and an audience question-and-answer session will follow each screening. This event is open to the public, with all Reel Stuff ticket and merchandise proceeds benefiting the Dayton-based NAHF Learning Center.

Among the seven presenters and eight films to be screened at the inaugural three-day Reel Stuff Film Festival of Aviation are Cliff Robertson/633 Squadron, Clay Lacy/Top Gun and the IMAX Fighter Pilot: Operation Red Flag, Brian J. Terwilliger/One Six Right, and Wilson "Connie" Edwards/Battle of Britain.

A complete schedule of Reel Stuff showtimes and locations, ticket prices and packages, presenters’ bios, hotel contacts, sponsors and other festival details are available on www.reelstufffilmfest.com. Ticket packages and merchandise can be ordered online or by calling the NAHF at (937) 256-0944 x11.

Cliff Robertson is an Academy Award-winning actor and pilot who was enshrined into the NAHF in 2006 for his advocacy of aviation and aerospace education. He stars as Royal Air Force Commander Roy Grant in the 1964 WWII action/drama, 633 Squadron, which utilized DeHavilland Mosquito bombers for its spectacular aerial sequences.

Clay Lacy, a nominee for enshrinement in the NAHF, is a renowned aviation entrepreneur and pilot instrumental in pioneering air-to-air cinematography utilizing the AstroVision camera system in his fleet of Learjets. Lacy’s work resulted in the stunning air-to-air footage seen in dozens of television shows, commercials and major motion pictures, such as the two he will present at Reel Stuff; the Academy Award-winning 1986 hit Top Gun, and the 2005 IMAX production of Fighter Pilot: Operation Red Flag.

Brian J. Terwilliger independently produced and distributed his first major High Definition documentary, One Six Right, in 2005, earning nationwide acclaim. One Six Right, soon to air nationally on public television, uniquely chronicles the rich history of Van Nuys Airport while paying homage to general aviation and the romance of flight. Terwilliger, who served as emcee for the 2007 NAHF enshrinement ceremony, will additionally screen a short teaser of test footage from an upcoming aviation project.

Wilson “Connie” Edwards is noted for a variety of globe-hopping aviation adventures and is a 2007 enshrinee of the EAA Warbird Hall of Fame. Edwards served as the principal stunt pilot for the 1969 aerial epic, Battle of Britain, which utilized one of the largest armadas of flyable WWII-era aircraft ever assembled for a contemporary major film. Edwards’ Reel Stuff presentation of Battle of Britain precedes his appearances in the U.K. planned for next year’s 40th anniversary of this classic’s release.

“What better place to host the Reel Stuff Film Festival than the Birthplace of Aviation?,” posed the festival’s founding director, Ron Kaplan. Kaplan also serves as the executive director of the NAHF, which was established in Dayton almost fifty years ago.

Explained Kaplan, “Each Reel Stuff screening was selected for its ability to take us to fascinating times and places we otherwise might not see, and for sharing the lives and stories of characters we might otherwise never know.”

“Whether you are a movie enthusiast, a student of the creative process, or simply love airplanes,” Kaplan points out, “the Reel Stuff festival offers a once in a lifetime opportunity to meet some very talented people that enable us to more richly experience the cultural, historical and emotional impact of powered flight.”

“Thanks to a seed-funding grant for Reel Stuff from the Gates Frontiers Fund, the Hall of Fame is privileged to bring aviation and cinema fans together with the skilled pilots and artists that work behind and in front of the camera, and all to benefit a great cause.”