The U.S. Space & Rocket Center® received news this week that one of the movies filmed on our location won top honors at the 21st Annual Movieguide Awards Gala in Los Angeles. The film, “A Smile as Big as the Moon,” was filmed, in part, at the U.S. Space & Rocket Center in the Fall of 2011. The movie aired on ABC Television and then the Hallmark Channel to more than 13 million viewers. The movie won in the FAITH AND FREEDOM—TELEVISION category. The movie beat out well-known shows such as Criminal Minds, Extreme Makeover and others.
“For more than 30 years, Space Camp has changed lives. This movie is a wonderful example of how children can be challenged and then rise to that challenge. We salute Mike Kersjes, Hallmark Hall of Fame and especially the children who came to Space Camp so many years ago to show the world it could be done,” stated Dr. Deborah Barnhart, CEO and Executive Director of the U.S. Space & Rocket Center.
Many scenes were filmed in the actual location where the first special needs students enjoyed Space Camp in the 1980’s.
Hallmark Hall of Fame produced the movie, which is based on a book written by Mike Kersjes, a coach from Michigan who brought the first special needs group of students to Space Camp in Huntsville, Alabama.