Twilight Movie is UK #1

The Twilight movie is #1 at the UK box office, after taking £2,508,422 in its opening weekend!

It's Stephenie Meyer's Birthday!

Happy 35th Birthday Stephenie!!

Twilight Convention!!!

The Salute to Twilight Convention just updated their guest list:

Today we are thrilled to welcome three additional guests (joining already announced KELLAN LUTZ -Emmet Cullen and ASHLEY GREENE-Alice Cullen)

TAYLOR LAUTNER (Jacob Black), PETER FACINELLI (Dr. Carlisle Cullen) and JACKSON RATHBONE (Jasper Hale)

Click below to order tickets NOW!

http://www.creationent.com/cal/twilight.htm

Dec 18 2008 8:01 AM EST MTV News' Woman Of The Year: Twilighters!

Your undying support for Edward and Bella left the movie's stars (and us!) awestruck.

By Larry Carroll

When Hollywood dismissed "Twilight" as a "one-quadrant" niche film, you responded by giving it a bigger opening than "WALL-E," "Chronicles of Narnia" or "Star Wars: Episode 1." When Harry Potter fans looked down their noses, you fired back by standing in midnight lines for hours to help "Breaking Dawn" rock the publishing industry. You took over Comic-Con, Westwood and the rest of the world.

If you're one of the millions of women who live and die by "Twilight," please take a quick glance into the nearest mirror — because MTV News' Woman of the Year is you.

Our sincerest apologies to male Stephenie Meyer lovers, Kaleb the Twilight Guy and, well, me. But even Forks fans of the testosterone persuasion have to admit that "Twilight" is a franchise driven by sincere, shrieking and borderline-stalker female fans.

Every list is controversial, and MTV News' Men and Women of the Year rankings are sure to get people talking. But ask yourself this: Can Britney Spears (#2) open a feature film at $70 million? Is Aubrey O'Day (#7) causing riots at your local Hot Topic? I don't think so.

On a personal note, I can say that the Twilighters deeply touched me and MTV News throughout 2008 as few fanbases have before. After I fell in love with the books at the beginning of the year, the fans embraced "Twilight" Tuesdays and our sincere commitment to bring you the very best coverage. We surprised you, named you and broke big news for you — and in exchange, you guys sent me into outer space.

Thanks for everything, Twilighters — and you can look forward to the much-anticipated return of "Twilight" Tuesdays sometime soon, as we officially begin the countdown to "New Moon." But first, let's look back at the notable moments that made you our 2008 MTV Woman of the Year.

'Twilight' Exclusive: Taylor Lautner Talks About His Campaign To Stay On 'New Moon'

'As far as I know, I haven't been told 'no' yet,' says the young star, who's put on 19 pounds to play Jacob Black.

By Larry Carroll

BEVERLY HILLS, California — Over the last few weeks "Twilight" Nation has been thrown into disarray, first over the appointment of a new director, Chris Weitz, for the sequel and then by rampant rumors that 16-year-old Taylor Lautner is going to be similarly replaced. (One bright light of the week: We just named Twilighters, collectively, the Woman of 2008.) On Wednesday night, Lautner spoke exclusively with MTV News and insisted that reports of his demise have been greatly exaggerated.

"I have been working out. I've been working out since the day we finished filming 'Twilight.' I just weighed myself today; I've put on 19 pounds," the noticeably larger Lautner told us, promising that he'll be big enough to fit Stephenie Meyer's physical description of Jacob Black in "New Moon" when cameras begin rolling in 12 weeks. "I'm guaranteeing Weitz 10 more [pounds] by filming. I get to meet Chris on Friday, in two days, so I'm excited. I'm going to have lunch with him."

The news of a Lautner-Weitz sit-down will undoubtedly launch a few thousand "OME!" exclamations, as Twilighters have spent the past few days launching Web sites, petitions and other shows of support for the young star. Speaking with us at Wednesday's Hollywood Foreign Press Association Salutes Young Hollywood event, Lautner also addressed actor Michael Copon's claims that he had landed the Jacob role, insisting that Copon's Facebook declarations might be a bit premature.

"I've heard a few things," he said of Copon. "I don't really know too much to comment on it. As far as I know, I haven't been told 'no' yet, so it's still all up in the air."

In regards to the series' recent musical-chairs situation, the affable actor offered nothing but kind words for both his past and possibly future directors. "I've seen a few of [Chris Weitz's] films, and he's really talented. The same thing with Catherine [Hardwicke]; I mean, Catherine had a really interesting mind," Lautner observed. "[Weitz] has that as well, and he's very talented. I've heard a lot of good stuff about him, so I'm excited to meet him. I heard he's like a surfer dude, and that he's really laid-back and friendly. It'll be fun."

The "Twilight" heartthrob also gave us his reaction to the studio's "New Moon" press release issued Saturday, which listed his co-stars Kristen Stewart and Robert Pattinson, but caused widespread speculation in its omission of Lautner's name.

"I think it's because, well, Rob and Kristen were the lead roles in 'Twilight,' so they've got to be back," he reasoned. "I don't even know if they're officially signed; maybe they are, I don't know. They just hired Weitz, and now they're just moving down the cast. All I can say is, I'm going to be ready if my number's called."

In all the chaos of the past few weeks, Lautner added, plenty of things have been exaggerated by the media. Entertainment Weekly reported this week that his agent is talking to the effects people behind "The Curious Case of Benjamin Button" about demonstrating how effectively Lautner could be transformed digitally. "Nothing [along those lines] has happened, and I don't know if it will," he told us. "I think there's a lot of things that have gotten blown up that haven't really occurred. That hasn't happened. I've just been working out for awhile, and I'm ready."

Sure enough, Lautner's partially unbuttoned shirt, larger physique and beginnings of a mustache sure seem to indicate that he's ready to show Weitz how he could effectively return as grown-up Jacob Black. And the actor said that in these uncertain times, he continues to surf the "Twilight" sites and take solace in the fans' support.

"Thank you, fans. Keep going, keep working hard, and we'll see soon," he said, addressing the recent MTV poll that had Twilighters choosing him over Copon (or anyone else) by a 12-1 margin. "That's good to hear. I appreciate all the fans who are doing stuff [to show their support].

"My job for 'Twilight' was to bring 'Twilight' Jacob to life — the friendly, happy-go-lucky little Jacob," Lautner explained, looking forward to the Friday lunch that will shape the future of his career. "And my job for 'New Moon' is completely different; I've been looking forward to that. I've been getting ready for it, and I can assure them that I will follow through with that job."

Check out everything we've got on "Twilight" and "New Moon."

Win a Special Greeting from Rob!

How many times have you seen Twilight? Let the official Twilight MySpace page know, and you could win a special greeting from our Edward, Robert Pattinson. Go to MySpace for all the details.

Stephenie Meyer is one of the Most Influential Women of 2008

MSN.com has named Stephenie Meyer one of the most influential women of 2008.

The former English major and Brigham Young grad claims that she never sought a career in writing. In fact, she was perfectly content being a full-time mother to three boys. But after penning “Twilight”, a book based a relationship between a male vampire and a high-school student, she was transformed into a literary luminary with a book debuting at number five on the New York Times bestseller list. Her fame rose in 2008 once Twilight was adapted for the big screen. The casting of English actor Robert Pattinson as Edward Cullen, the male vampire, sent female fans into hysterics and sold out theatres everywhere. The movie earned $72 million during opening weekend, giving Meyers a blood-sucking success any author would want to sink her teeth into.

Today was Twilight's original release date

Twilight fansites like Twilighters.org have been reaching out to fellow Twilight fans and urging them to go out and see Twilight again on its original due date, Dec 12. Fans are hoping to ban together to bring Twilight back up in the box office before it leaves theaters all together.

Here is the message they posted on their site

All we are asking is that people go see Twilight on December 12th, in honor of the original release date of the movie. The goal is to get all the Twilighters out to see Twilight again on the same day and give the movie a bit of a bump. Let’s make sure that they get the message loud and clear! That we are a powerful box office force. Pass the word on to anyone and everyone!! Let’s ROCK the Twilight box office… again! =]

[[BTW, exactly one year ago Robert Pattinson was officially cast as Edward!]]

Check back to see Twilight's box office numbers for Dec 12...and see if the plan worked

Twilight Worldwide Gross

TOTAL LIFETIME GROSSES

Domestic: $141,173,059 80.3% + Foreign: $34,578,536 19.7% = Worldwide: $175,751,595

Forbes Magazine honors Pattinson

The Breakout Stars Of 2008

#5 Robert Pattinson
Once little known for his supporting role as Cedric Diggory in the Harry Potter series, Pattinson is now drawing big crowds--and drooling ladies--of his own. In recent weeks, he's graced a slew of magazine covers and scored dozens of interviews for his starring role as Edward Cullen, the vampire in the silver screen's heavily hyped Twilight adaptation. Still more proof of his fan interest: The flick's opening weekend delivered a jaw-dropping $70 million at the U.S. box office.

Robert Pattinson's own Page on People.com!

Fans voted, the results had arrived and Robert Pattinson gets his own page on People.com! For those of you who don’t have a clue what this is about, this was from a poll I posted couple of weeks ago. Rob was against co-stars Kristen Stewart and Taylor Lautner for the spot. The People page have photos of Rob, “Snap shot,” five fun facts, biography, and special features. Congrats, Rob! Below are the five fun facts about Rob posted by People.

“Up until I was 12 my sisters used to dress me up as a girl and introduce me as ‘Claudia’!” the actor told the BBC.

Robert Pattinson became known to his fans as ‘Spunk Ransom’ after admitting he disliked his name. “I hate any reference to my name,” he told MTV. “I wish people would just completely invent a new one.” ‘Spunk Ransom’ was Pattinson’s suggested alternative.

Robert Pattinson, who plays piano and guitar, has two songs featured in Twilight. “I cried the first time I heard the two songs,” director Catherine Hardwicke told MTV. “They’re deep; they’re very soulful.”

While filming Twilight, Robert Pattinson injured himself on his very first shot. “I wasn’t even doing a stunt. I was just trying to pick up Kristen [Stewart] and I almost tore my hamstring because I hadn’t been doing enough squats,” the actor told the Los Angeles Times. “It was very embarrassing.”

While on the Twilight set, an enthusiastic fan asked a crew member to bring her baby on set and have Robert Pattinson take a photo with the child. “So there’s a photo of me like biting a baby’s head,” he said.

Go to Rob’s page here.

"New Moon" Director

'Twilight' sequel: 'New Moon' director will be Chris Weitz

Dec 11, 2008, 06:52 PM | by Nicole Sperling

Categories: Movie Biz

There will be a new director atop the Twilight franchise: and he'll be a man. Sources tell EW.com that Summit Entertainment is about to hire Chris Weitz (The Golden Compass) as the shepherd for New Moon, the second installment of Stephenie Meyer's best-selling Twilight series. Weitz is best-known for his work with his brother Paul. The two directed and produced American Pie and then were nominated for an Academy Award for best screenplay for About a Boy, which they also co-directed. Chris' first solo directing gig, The Golden Compass, didn't do well stateside but was a hit internationally.

Twilight, directed by Catherine Hardwicke, has grossed more than $141 million so far, but Hardwicke had clashed with the studio during production. It was announced early this week that she would not be making New Moon. Weitz has a solid relationship with Summit's top brass; he's considered easy to work with and has experience with special effects. "He's the quality-of-life-choice," says one source. While Summit insists "we have not yet signed Chris Weitz to do New Moon," and Weitz's agency says no deal has been signed, other sources say the deal is imminent, and that Summit has stopped negotiations with other potential Moon directors. Summit had planned to announce this hiring decision on Sunday, Dec. 14, and could have Weitz in Vancouver, B.C. as early as Monday to start pre-production on the film.

November 20, 2009, Tentative New Moon Release Date

'Twilight' sequel: New details on 'New Moon'

Dec 10, 2008, 01:00 PM | by Nicole Sperling

Categories: Movie Biz

Summit Entertainment has tentatively slated Nov. 20, 2009, as the release date for New Moon, the Twilight sequel, which means any director who signs on to replace Twilight director Catherine Hardwicke has to be in Vancouver by Dec. 15 to begin 12 weeks of preproduction before a mid-March start date. Reports have speculated that Hardwicke was fired for being difficult on set, but sources close to her suggest Summit's aggressive production schedule turned her off. "She'd love to do the sequel if she could do it better than Twilight,” says one. “It ­became clear that Summit didn’t have those same priorities."

Indeed, at press time the second movie appeared to have ­little more than a rough first-draft working script. As Summit’s production president Erik Feig told EW during Twilight’s ­record-busting first weekend, “There is that first...script. All the finesse that turns a screenplay into a movie hasn’t ­happened yet.” Two weeks later, Summit is saying it’s happy with screenwriter ­Melissa Rosenberg’s progress.

Another of Hardwicke’s primary concerns was that hunky vampire Edward remains MIA throughout New Moon’s middle portion. In her own opening-weekend interview, she told EW, “You have to get the chemistry as strong ­between Jacob and Bella as it was between Bella and Edward. You also have to do ­some­thing with that arc: She’s in love with somebody, he disappears, she falls in love with someone else, and the first guy comes back. Movies like Pearl Harbor have tried it. It absolutely didn’t work.”

With or without Hardwicke, Summit ­faces other snags. Two sources tell EW the studio doesn’t want to rehire baby-faced Taylor Lautner (pictured) as Jacob, though Lautner’s agent has apparently reached out to the ­imaging company behind The Curious Case of Benjamin Button in an attempt to demonstrate to Summit how a digitally bulked-up Lautner could work. (Summit says it won’t make a decision until a new filmmaker is on board.) There’s also the matter of finding a cast of Native American actors to play Jacob’s werewolf clan — a difficult challenge Hardwicke was also faced with before ­settling on Lautner, who isn’t completely ­Native American. And with a slightly increased budget of $50 million — much of which is ­assumed will go to leads asking for heftier paydays, location shoots in Italy, and ramped-up F/X — Summit will have to scrimp somewhere.

So what director would want to take on such a big headache? Well, at press time, an offer was out to Chris Weitz (The Golden Compass), who put Summit on the map years ago when its foreign sales operation made tons of cash off of his first film, American Pie. (One source says Weitz has already had conversations with below-the-line crew for New Moon.) “We are in a recession,” ­reminds one Hollywood insider. “It’s a hit franchise. Whoever steps into it is guaranteed a $100 million gross. Everyone wants this movie.” Adds an exec at another studio, “You’d have to have a very high standard for art, hate the movie business, and hate ­money to walk off this sequel.”

Catherine Hardwicke Fired!?!?

Twilight director Catherine Hardwicke has been fired and won’t be returning to helm the sequel, reports Deadline Hollywood.

Sources reveal the acclaimed Thirteen director, “was difficult and irrational during the making of Twilight.” The franchise, which has already accrued $160+ million, headlined Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart.

The film studio, Summit Entertainment, has started preparing the sequel New Moon and to contain costs, they are considering making third book Eclipse back to back.

WHAT DO YOU THINK of the firing of Hardwicke? Will you still see New Moon?

UPDATE: The movie studio has released the following statement: “Summit Entertainment and director Catherine Hardwicke jointly announced today that the filmmaker will not be directing the next installment in the newly minted Twilight film franchise. Summit’s targeted end of 2009 or early 2010 release of the film, NEW MOON, does not work with Ms. Hardwicke’s required prep time to bring her vision of the film to the big screen. Thus as has been done before with many successful film franchises, the studio will employ a new director for New Moon.

“I am sorry that due to timing I will not have the opportunity to direct New Moon,” said Hardwicke. “Directing Twilight has been one of the great experiences of my life, and I am grateful to the fans for their passionate support of the film. I wish everyone at Summit the best with the sequel– it is a great story.”

“Catherine did an incredible job in helping us to launch the Twilight franchise and we thank her for all of her efforts and we very much hope to work with her on future Summit projects,” said Erik Feig, Summit’s President of Production. “We as a studio have a mandate to bring the next installment in the franchise to the big screen in a timely fashion so that fans can get more of Edward, Bella and all of the characters that Stephenie Meyer has created. We are able to pursue an aggressive time frame as we have the luxury of only adapting the novels into screenplays as opposed to having to create a storyline from scratch.”

'Twilight' Director Catherine Hardwicke Reveals DVD Details

By Larry Carroll

SANTA MONICA, California — These days, "Twilight" fans are so freaked out that you'd think James the nomad was on to their scent.

Even though their beloved vampire film keeps taking in big bucks at the box office, director Catherine Hardwicke has been yanked off the sequels, and names of potential successors are jumping around faster than Edward Cullen on a deer hunt.

As the future of the franchise hangs in the balance, and the fanbase splinters into various camps, we've set aside some cool news that should hopefully return a smile to the faces of Stephenie Meyer fans. It's part three of what would become Hardwicke's last in-depth interview as the "Twilight" captain. Following on the heels of her discussing record-setting box-office numbers and "New Moon" hopes, we bring you brand-new details about Hardwicke's final "Twilight" effort: the much-anticipated DVD.

"We just did the commentary," Hardwicke grinned when she came to visit our studio right after "Twilight" opened, revealing that she had spent time in an audio booth with stars Robert Pattinson and Kristen Stewart that very morning. "We were like, 'Is this the lamest commentary ever?' We were just laughing! I was thinking, 'Should we do something really serious with myself and the stunt guy and special-effects people and show aspiring filmmakers how we did those special effects?' But nope. We did the giggle version. [Rob and Kristen were] remembering the funny stuff that happened and the crazy stuff. They make fun of how they look in the movie."

Asked when the disc will arrive in stores, Hardwicke said, "I think spring. Maybe right after Valentine's Day." She then added even more information to the details she gave us about the DVD last month. "We have 10 deleted or extended scenes. There's some juicy stuff in there," she said, adding that one would correct an omission spotted by many Meyer fans. "I think in one of them, [Edward and Bella] do say, 'I love you.'

"There's a few crazy montages we made of every time someone gets bitten by a vampire that we didn't show in the movie. There's a lot more vampire biting," she said of the more violent material held back to get "Twilight" its PG-13 rating. "One montage is called 'Human Hijinks,' and it's all the human friends [including Mike Welch and Anna Kendrick] doing crazy stuff, more [from the field-trip scene] with the worms and the greenhouse. Just them totally messing around, going crazy. That's kind of fun."

A second montage will focus on the movie's undead moments. "There is the very sexy vampire biting — that is not in the movie," Hardwicke said of the bonus feature. "There's [Rob biting Kristen in the dream sequence], and then there's the nomadic vampires attacking. We have that in there too."

As for other notable moments, Hardwicke said: "There's a lot of behind-the-scenes stuff. We had a great guy, Jeff, who was [filming us] every day. He did some very creative interviews, so you can see us making almost every scene in the movie, which is kind of fun. I actually learned a few things I didn't even know, listening to other people's interviews!

"You can also see the orchestra in London performing 'Bella's Lullaby,' " she said of another bonus feature. "There's a lot of neat stuff."

Then there's the moment that MTV's "Twilight" Tuesday fans will perhaps be most eager to see, as explained hilariously last month by Edi Gathegi. " That 'Does a Baby Eat Candy?' scene was in rehearsal, so I'm trying to get them to put that rehearsal scene in; that was hysterical," Hardwicke laughed. "We literally fell on the ground, because [Edi's attempts at improv] can get pretty perverse. You have to see it!"

As for the other deleted scenes, "There are some scenes that are longer, and some scenes that we don't have in the movie," Hardwicke explained. "There's one scene that's not in the film where Rob and Kristen are walking alone, and he trips her and they fall back into these leaves, and then he takes a bite of her finger. ... It's Kristen's favorite scene."

Script already finished for ‘Twilight’ sequel

Robert Pattinson signed on for two more movies

Access Hollywood

updated 6:00 p.m. ET, Sun., Nov. 23, 2008

LOS ANGELES - With “Twilight” rising at the box office this weekend, Summit Entertainment has officially announced its first sequel, “New Moon,” Variety reported on Saturday.

“Twilight,” the teen vampire romance that’s generated an obsessive following among young audiences, earned $35.7 million on Friday, including a whopping $7 million from Thursday midnight screenings.

Fang fans won’t have to wait long for more — the studio is already moving forward with the follow-up. Screenwriter Melissa Rosenberg has signed on to pen “New Moon” and possible third installment “Eclipse,” and star Robert Pattinson said the “New Moon” script is ready to go.

“The script is already done for the second one,” he told the Seattle Times earlier this week, noting he’s signed on himself for two more movies.

The “Twilight” films stem from the popular four-part series of novels by Stephenie Meyer, which includes “Twilight,” “New Moon,” “Eclipse” and “Breaking Dawn.”

Volvo jumps on Twilight bandwagon

Twilight made such an impression that Volvo now has a special Twilight page on their website that features Edward's Volvo C30. They have even developed the new slogan for the model, "Life is Better Lived Forever" Visitors of the site below can watch the Twilight trailer, download it to their I-Pods/I-Phones, continue on to the Official Twilight Movie Homepage, and learn more about Edward's Volvo. It seems that Twilight not only made an impression on young girls and their mothers, but also on the Swedish car manufacturer.

http://www.volvocars.com/us/models/Pages/TwilightC30.aspx

Pre-order Twilight: The Score

Liked the movie you heard in the movie? Then you will love Twilight:The Score. With music composed by Carter Burwell, you can get the full experience when you read Twilight AGAIN! The CD contains 21 tracks and will be available December 9. Want to make sure you get a copy for the upcoming holiday season? Follow the link below to pre-order the CD at Amazon.com

Pre-Order NOW and receive it for only $12.99!

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B001JL43NO/ref=s9sdps_c1_15_img1-rfc_p-frt_g1-3237_p_si2?pf_rd_m=ATVPDKIKX0DER&pf_rd_s=center-1&pf_rd_r=0TXZ67J23NQP9AC6CXW1&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=463383351&pf_rd_i=507846

Twilight DVD estimated for April '09 release

(Not Official DVD design)

• For all those die-hard Twilight fans out there, be the FIRST of your friends to know when to look for the Twilight DVD in stores

• Click the link below to sign up to receive a notification via e-mail when the Twilight DVD officially comes out!

http://videoeta.com/movie/101224

DON'T BE LEFT IN THE DARK....SIGN UP!!!

Twilight Sucks in Fanggirls for $70.6 Mil Weekend

Now that's buying power.

A female-dominated audience drove Twilight's opening weekend to among the biggest in Hollywood history: a $70.6 million Friday-Sunday gross, per studio estimates.

"This is a game-changer. This is an industry-changing performance," Exhibitor Relations analyst Jeff Bock said today. "…With the success of Sex and the City, and Mamma Mia!, we've awoken a sleeping giant at the box office."

Exit polling showed 75 percent of Twilight's audience was female. Box office stats show the movie is the biggest opener for a movie directed by a woman (Catherine Hardwicke).

The vampire romance also played well to the young—overall, 55 percent of ticket buyers were under age 25.

1. Twilight, $70.6 million
   
2. Quantum of Solace, $27.4 milliion

YES LADIES AND GENTLEMEN, TWILIGHT TOPPED THE NEW JAMES BOND MOVIE!

Fulfill your thirst for all things Twilight by checking out the many magazines below!

Even the boys love Edward Cullen....

http://www.twilightguy.com/

Thanks to its dedicated fans, Twilight is on its way to becoming a box office HIT!

'Twilight': Early box office is bloody good!

Nov 21, 2008, 07:09 PM | by Joshua Rich

Categories: Box Office

Twilight is off and running on a record pace at the box office. The film adaptation of Stephenie Meyer's vampire-romance saga scored $7 million from shows at midnight on Thursday, and it's on pace to bank as much as $30 mil on Friday, Variety reports. That Harry Potter-esque sum would rank in the Top 20 of the biggest opening-day grosses in history. Moreover, the film is almost assured of exceeding its expected $60-mil-plus first-weekend haul -- by far. Check back for updates all weekend, including a special Saturday bulletin and Sunday's Box Office Report.

It's OFFICIAL...Summit Entertainment is making New Moon!

Congrats to all of our prize winners!

The Twilight Team would like to congratulate all the prize winners from the event on Thursday night. Borders was generous enough to give away $150 worth of Twilight prizes including keychains, pens, bookmarks, jewelery, magnets, and a Cullen Crest messenger bag. We offer a big congratulations to the winner of the coveted Bella bracelet and to Anna Mejia and her friend who won the Ultimate Twilight Movie Package!! Congratulations girls, we hope you enjoyed the movie and your VIP treatment!

We made the Trenton Times Metro Section!!

Biting off a big project
TCNJ students plan a premiere party for 'Twilight' vampire film

Friday, November 21, 2008
BY MICHAEL RATCLIFFE

WEST WINDSOR -- If only all homework assignments could be as much fun.

The night began with the making of candied apples and the playing of a trivia game, then culminated with a midnight viewing of "Twilight," the much-anticipated film based on Stephenie Meyer's best-selling series of romance novels about a teenage vampire.

The movie opens in cinemas across the country today.

For a group of communication studies students from The College of New Jersey, the "Twilight" movie release party held yesterday at Borders bookstore in the Nassau Park shopping center was a requirement of their events planning course.

Seniors Mandy Hauck, Amanda Merced and Jessica Omland and junior Maren Morsch teamed up with staff at Borders and AMC Theatres in Hamilton to plan, publicize and execute last night's event, which saw about 40 TCNJ students -- and a few members of the general public -- take part in a variety of "Twilight"-themed activities at the bookstore before the college students hopped on a bus and attended one of the three midnight showings of the movie.

Knowing she would have to help plan an event as part of the class, Hauck said she approached her professor, Suzanne Carbonaro, before the semester began with the idea of a release party for the "Twilight" movie.

"I knew the movie was coming out and knew it was going to be a big thing. I had read the first book (in the series) and observed what a phenomenon it had become. The popularity is just incredible. People are really passionate about it," she said, making reference to the scene over the weekend when more than 1,000 people -- mostly teenage girls -- crowded the King of Prussia Mall in Pennsylvania to catch a glimpse of Robert Pattinson, the British actor who stars as vampire heartthrob Edward Cullen in the film.

The film follows the romance between a girl named Isabella "Bella" Swan who is a social outsider and an immortal vampire Cullen. Their star-crossed love affair is complicated by the fact that other vampires are out to suck Swan's blood, not to mention that Cullen has a strong urge to kill her himself.

Hauck and her classmates were responsible for contacting Borders, selling them on the idea of the movie release party and working with the bookstore to plan the various events -- which ranged from making "forbidden fruit" apples to the holding an "Oh my, Edward!" scream session.

Carbonaro said the exercise -- and similar ones carried out by other students in her class -- allowed the students to put into practice what they have been learning in class. Not only did the students publicize the event via e-mail, a website and fliers passed out on campus and at Quaker Bridge Mall, they arranged a group ticket deal with the movie theater and worked with TCNJ's student union to bus interested students to the bookstore, the movie and then back to campus, she said.

"I think they did a great job," Rosanne Castiglioni, sales manager for the Borders store, said of the students. She said another Borders corporate-sponsored "Twilight" pre-release party held last weekend generated less than half of number of attendees as last night's event.

As for the fuss over the book/ movie franchise, Carbonaro -- wearing her own "Twilight" T-shirt, said, "I cannot believe the amount of attention this film is generating. I've seen people as young as 7 and as old as 50 go nuts over this vampire thing."

Come to the party and get a ONE OF A KIND Forks, WA town newsletter!!

Our Official Promotional Posters

Look for these fliers around the TCNJ campus and tell your friends!!

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