Black Bear announced today that Golden Globe© Nominee Joel Edgerton (The Gift, Boy Erased) and Academy Award© nominee Felicity Jones (The Theory of Everything) will star in Train Dreams from director Clint Bentley (Jockey), an epic cinematic journey centered on one man’s life and love in an ever-evolving world. Bentley & Greg Kwedar (Sing Sing) penned the script, which is an adaptation of Denis Johnson’s iconic, Pulitzer Prize-nominated novella. Damien Ober penned a previous draft of the script.
Train Dreams is the sweeping and poignant tale of Robert Grainier (Edgerton), a day laborer employed as a logger helping to expand the railways across America. Forced to spend prolonged periods of time away from his wife, Gladys (Jones), and their young daughter, Grainier struggles to make sense of his place in a rapidly changing world. As his story unfolds, he experiences great love, unspeakable loss, unique bonds, on a journey that is both distinct and universal.
Train Dreams is being produced by Marissa McMahon and Ashley Schlaifer from Kamala Films, Will Janowitz, and Teddy Schwarzman and Michael Heimler for Black Bear. Black Bear’s John Friedberg, along with Kwedar, Casey Affleck, and Scott Hinckley, will executive produce. Black Bear will fully finance the picture and introduce the film to international buyers during the European Film Market (EFM) next week. WME Independent will be handling U.S. sales. Production is set to begin in April in Washington State.
“Clint Bentley and Greg Kwedar are two of the most exciting American filmmakers working today,” said Black Bear’s Schwarzman. “After a tremendous collaboration on Sing Sing, we’re thrilled to back their next project in Train Dreams, one of the most beautiful scripts we’ve ever read. Our friends at Kamala Films have developed an epic, and we cannot wait for Joel and Felicity to bring to life these incredible characters.”
