The Cleveland Film Commission brought North Olmsted native, David Lester, to the Cleveland History Center on Friday, January 9th, 2026.
As a big fan of early sci-fi movies, and always having a dream of being in the movie industry, it was fun to hear the backstage stories from someone who has been working in the industry since before the Skywalker Ranch got its name.
Dave Lester shared stories about his production work on such films as Star Wars (filming miniature explosions with George Lucas), and selecting the Mansfield Penitentiary site for the “Shawshank Redemption” movie. He touched on some of the wind and lighting challenges of filming a parachuting scene over Severance Hall in Cleveland for the “Air Force One” movie .
He worked special effects on “Star Trek: The Motion Picture” and “TRON,” and leveled up to production manager on films such as “Broadcast News” and “Bull Durham.” Other movies include “Air Force One,” “Serenity,” and “Cobb.”
Stefanie Shaeffer of Fox 8 News did a wonderful job moderating the discussion and it was wonderful to hear why Cleveland makes such a great place to film movies. It was also fun to hear that Stefanie was in the Christmas Story movie as a child.
One thing I didn’t realize was that Cleveland was the original Hollywood. In 1897, The Giant Coal Dumper: A short documentary by the Thomas Edison Company showcasing coal loading at the Erie Railroad Docks, and that was considered the birth of filmmaking in the region.
Below are some photos from the event and some of the sci-fi props on display at the Cleveland History Center.
