Kenny Chesney was back home on Wednesday night, premiering his movie “Summer In 3D” at the Regal Cinemas Pinnacle Stadium 18 in Knoxville, Tennessee. Knoxville.com has the story, including video of the event:

East Tennessee-born country star Kenny Chesney walked the red carpet, signed autographs and welcomed a crowd of about 1,000 to the premiere of his new concert film, “Kenny Chesney: Summer in 3D,” on Wednesday evening at the Regal Cinemas Pinnacle Stadium 18 in Turkey Creek.

“This is the first time anybody outside of myself and the people who made it have seen this film,” said Chesney from a stage in the expansive Pinnacle lobby before the crowd went inside theaters to view the film.

Sponsorships and ticket sales for the event raised more than $130,000 for Variety — The Children’s Charity of Eastern Tennessee, the local chapter of which was founded by the Knoxville-based Regal Entertainment Group.

The crowd began arriving more than two hours before Chesney was scheduled to appear at the theater complex.

Inside Pinnacle, guests ate barbecued pork, beans and slaw furnished by Texas Roadhouse, along with beer, wine and soft drinks while the Chillbillies performed on a stage.

Chesney, for his part, seemed happy with the event.

Just before the screening Chesney told the crowd: “Growing up here allowed me to dream really big dreams … and this is the first time I’ve been able to show you what you guys helped create.”

Update – More from Kenny on “coming home” for the premiere:

“When you step back and consider how far you’ve come, in a lot of ways it makes you want to go back to where you come from,” said the high energy performer. “You realize how much the values you were raised with – and the support for crazy dreams – help you do things you would never consider. So who better to share a moment like that with? And to benefit Variety – which takes such an active role in making a difference in young people’s lives… that’s makes everything about this so much sweeter.”

“It’s heartening to know the people back home care,” Chesney explained. “I learned a lot about dreaming there. You wanna ground something this special in something that was that important. And, you know, it’s nice to know that that dreams matters just as much to the fans… cause to me, it’s their dream every bit as much as its mine.”