Michael Apted, director of “Coal Miner’s Daughter” filmed in SW Virginia, dies at 79.

The British director who brought Southwest Virginia and Eastern Kentucky to the silver screen with the 1980s classic “Coal Miner’s Daughter” has died.

The family of Michael Apted, 79, announced his death over the weekend.

Apted captured several scenes in the area as part of the production that earned Sissy Spacek an Oscar for Best Actress for her role of country music queen Loretta Lynn.

One of those scenes was a rainy concert featuring Spacek and co-star, Beverly D’Angelo, as Patsy Cline filmed at the Wise County Fairgrounds. Several residents of the area were used as extras in the production. Other scenes were reportedly shot in the city of Norton and near Black Mountain on the Kentucky border.

(IMAGE: Associated Press)