Information
- BFI identifier46972
- Date1978 (Copyright)
1977-03-28 (Production)
1978-12-15 (Release) - Production countrySwitzerland, United Kingdom, Panama, USA
- Production company
- SynopsisBased on a comic strip. Knowing that the planet Krypton is doomed, Jor-El and his wife send their infant son to earth in a space capsule which lands in Kansas. The child is found and fostered by the Kents. At the age of 18 Clark Kent joins the Metropolis Daily Planet as a reporter and appears as Superman with amazing powers when Lois Lane and others are is in danger. He becomes a popular hero. MFB 46.33 (Synopsis)
- Work historyVarious longer versions emerged in the 1980s and for DVD release, reinserting scenes that were previously edited out - particularly at the beginning with Superman's parents, the destruction of Krypton, and the journey of the infant Superman to Earth and his discovery. The Special Achievement Award at the 1978 Academy Awards was for visual effects. Special effects team received Michael Balcon Award for outstanding contribution to British cinema at 1978 BAFTA Awards. "The extensive Shepperton shoot for Superman lasted 4 months or so but it is not recorded in books about Shepperton Studios as generally only Pinewood is credited since the whole movie moved studios in June/July 1977. But most of the Fortress flying on both films was shot on H stage at Shepperton, as were all the Brando sequences before Christopher Reeve was cast." [John Inglis, 2nd Unit Director (Flying) on the film].
- Genre
- Subject
- Credits
- CastMarlon Brando (Jor-El)
Gene Hackman (Lex Luthor)
Christopher Reeve (Clark Kent, 'Superman')
view full cast
Title
Superman (Original)
Superman The Movie (Help search)
Superman The Movie (Help search)
EIDR identifier
10.5240/14B0-27DF-51DB-E36A-EB35-GCategory
FictionThis work is included in the BFI Filmography.
- Collections
- Film / Video
35mm Colour Positive - Safety - Combined - Viewing
35mm Colour Positive - Safety - Combined - Viewing
view all - Scripts / DocumentsScript - Script type: Shooting Script - SCR-1950
Ephemera: publicity - PBS-46972
Superman - Science fiction fantasy featuring the super-hero who originated as a comic book character Director: Richard Donner; producer: Pierre Spengler; screenplay: Mario Puzo, Leslie Newman, Robert Benton; cast: Marlon Brando, Christopher Reeve, Gene Hackman, Margot Kidder, Trevor Howard [Lester possibly acquired this material as research for his direction of the sequel Superman II (1980)] - RLE-1-18
Script - Final screenplay with title 'Superman Part I' by David Newman, Leslie Newman and Robert Benton, 230 pages, no annotation July 1976 - RLE-1-18-1
Cast & unit lists - File containing: - 'Preliminary cast list', revised 12/8/1977 - unit list, 16 April 1977 - model unit list, 27 October 1977 - flying unit list, 27 October 1977 - second unit crew list, 10 October 1977 - RLE-1-18-2
See FILM AND TELEVISION EPHEMERA List and Ivor BEDDOES Collection: Items 7 - 9. Small Pressbook held.
view all - Posters / DesignsDesign: production - Design for Superman and Lois Lane's flight sequence. Twenty metre scroll of paper, assembled from thirteen individual sheets of artist’s paper, card and lining paper. Titled ‘Flying Ballet’ (artist’s title), it was created by sketch artist Ivor Beddoes to help the Director visualise the scene. - SPD-611288
Design: production - 2 cardboard boxes (originally containing A4 Xerox paper), containing continuity/set-up sketches. Some original pencil and/or felt pen, some with colouring, most Xerox photocopies. For various sequences. A number grouped by sequence, some bound with ACCO slide clips. Sequences often placed in boxes in no particular order. SUPERMAN and SUPERMAN 2 material may still be intermixed; someone needs to watch the 2 films and sort through all the sketches. (1) 1 box of xerox sketches, labelled in pencil on side: "SUPERMAN I / SKETCHES", and in felt pen: "XEROX DUPLICATES / SUPERMAN drawn on S.I." (2) 1 box of xerox sketches, labelled in felt pen: "SUPERMAN ORIGINAL DRAWINGS / XEROX COPIES". Original Acquisition Number BED-160 - BED160
Design: production - 1 dryline reproduction stage layout for Jor-El's Laboratory, with studio art dept. stamp, dated 26-1-77. Note in pencil, on reverse: "Brando / Lab, Set". - BED166
Poster: film - Single Sheet, Landscape, 1017mm X 763mm Poster - PD-2668
Poster: film - PD-11163
view all - StillsPhotograph: digital - Landscape - Black and White - bfi-00o-a80
Photograph: print - Portrait - Black and White - bfi-00o-5zs
Photograph: print - Portrait - Black and White - bfi-00o-5zr
Photograph: print - Portrait - Black and White - bfi-00o-5zq
Photograph: print - Portrait - Black and White - bfi-00o-5zp
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