The fourth annual Refocus Film Festival in Iowa City will open with Train Dreams, a new film from the Academy Award-nominated writer-turned-director Clint Bentley.
Following in the festival's theme of adaptation, the film is based on the award-winning novella of the same name, written by Iowa Writers' Workshop alumnus Denis Johnson. It will open Oct. 9 at the Englert Theater, with appearances from special guests.
The film stars Golden Globe nominee Joel Edgerton as the scruffy logger and railroad worker Robert Grainer, who struggles with finding his place in a rapidly changing world. Set in early 20th century America, the earthy drama also stars Oscar nominees Felicity Jones, Kerry Condon and William H. Macy.
The screenplay for Train Dreams was co-written by Bentley and his filmmaker partner Greg Kwedar. The pair was nominated for Best Adapted Screenplay at the 97th Academy Awards for their work on Sing Sing, which Kwedar directed.
Train Dreams premiered earlier this year at the Sundance Film Festival and was picked up by Netflix shortly thereafter. Its screening at Refocus gives Iowa audiences early access to the film before it becomes available to stream Nov. 21.
According to Ben Delgado, programming director for Refocus, Bentley and Kwedar expertly transformed the original source material into a magnificently moving story fit for the big screen.
"Adaptation can be a tricky exercise, particularly with a work as beloved as this,” Delgado said. “The filmmaking team has perfectly threaded that needle — beautifully evoking the spirit of the source through cinematic grandeur.”
The novella and other work by Denis Johnson
As a festival dedicated to the art of adaptation — and one that takes place in conjunction with the Iowa City Book Festival — Refocus will also showcase Johnson’s life and work as an award-winning author throughout the weekend.
His story Train Dreams was originally published in the literary magazine The Paris Review in 2002 and later released as a stand-alone novella in 2011. The next year, it was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction.
Train Dreams is not the first of Johnson’s work to make it to the big screen. His 1992 collection of short stories, Jesus’ Son, was made into a film of the same name in 1999. It stars Billy Crudup alongside Dennis Hopper and Holly Hunter and includes a cameo from Johnson himself.
His 1986 book The Stars at Noon was also later adapted into a 2022 movie directed by acclaimed French filmmaker Claire Denis, starring Margaret Qualley and Joe Alwyn.
In addition to celebrating his writing, the festival will honor Johnson’s legacy by featuring an appearance by his biographer, Ted Geltner. Geltner’s upcoming book about Johnson, Flagrant, Self-Destructive Gestures, comes out in November from the University of Iowa Press.
Johnson attended the Iowa Writers’ Workshop at the University of Iowa in the 1970s and earned a B.A. in English and an MFA. The UI alumnus later returned to the program as a teacher. In 2017, Johnson died at the age of 67.
What to expect at the festival
Refocus Film Festival Executive Director Andrew Sherburne said recognizing the unique connection Iowa City has to literature is a key component of the festival.
“Refocus Film Festival is emerging as an essential stop for films with literary heritage,” he said. “Even more remarkable is to be able to trace these films directly to our community, year after year, as is the case with Denis Johnson and Iowa City.”
This year marks Refocus’ fourth year in its current form. It’s presented by FilmScene, a nonprofit cinema in Iowa City founded by Sherburne.
Although the opening night selection is the centerpiece of the festival, the weekend will feature over 25 other films and events with artists, writers and many others in creative fields. Passes for the festival are available, but tickets to specific showtimes are not yet open.
The festival runs Oct. 9 - 12 in downtown Iowa City at FilmScene’s Ped Mall and Chauncey theaters, as well as at other venues in the area.
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Refocus Film Festival and FilmScene are sponsors of Iowa Public Radio.
