Promoters of a planned Wilmington Film Museum will officially kick off their initiative with the opening of a special exhibit Saturday at the Hannah S. Block Community Arts Center.

The exhibit, organized by the Cape Fear Independent Film Network, includes a visual history of filmmaking in general but focuses primarily on the growth of the film industry in the Wilmington area – especially since the arrival of Dino De Laurentiis in 1985, Rich Gehron, the organization’s president, said Friday. On display, he said, will be several one-of-a-kind artifacts of the Wilmington film scene, along with posters, press photos and project photos taken by people involved with various productions.

Among the items on display is this photo of an extra in makeup for the Super Mario Brothers movie. The prosthetic he wore is also in the exhibit, according to Gehron.

“It’s not just about waving the Hollywood flag; we’re celebrating film in its entirety, including independent productions,” Gehron added. “We’re also trying to tell the story of films that were made here and the professionals who traveled here with film and TV productions and stayed to make Wilmington their home.”

The exhibit, which will run through Aug. 15, is designed to raise awareness of the museum initiative and launch a fundraising campaign to create the museum. Both the exhibit and the proposed museum are projects of the film network.

“Our goal is to find a permanent home for the museum in downtown Wilmington, a place we can either lease or purchase,” Gehron said. “The exhibit will give the first look at what we hope will be a permanent fixture.”

A second exhibit is planned for a different location downtown, he said, adding that the film network has already heard from a couple of possible venues for that installation.

The exhibit opens with a reception from 6 to 8 p.m. The event and the exhibit itself are free of charge, Gehron said.