Through the skill of video game developers, entire worlds come to life.
Adventurous missions are conjured, frustratingly difficult puzzles must be solved, and larger-than-life characters are born.
Creativity springs from their minds. So what would happen if someone sequestered 300 developers together for three days as they crossed the U.S., giving them nothing but time to see what their imaginations can unlock?
That is the idea behind “Game Train,” a documentary produced by Franklin-based Harena Data capturing that exact scenario. The film focuses on the bond that this unique community shares, and the exciting new ideas that emerge when given the time and space to make their visions a reality.
“Game Train” will make its premiere at the Historic Artcraft Theatre at 7 p.m. Sunday.
“A lot of people were using game development and game process and game conception as a way to be part of a community,” said Bill Dever, chief strategy officer for Harena Data.
“Game Train” came to life four years ago. The team at Harena had heard about a group of train developers who rented a train, boarding in Chicago and riding it all the way to San Francisco and creating games all the while.
Shawn Smith, one of the partners of Harena Data, asked if he and a team of camera operators, sound experts and other filmmakers could ride along. They were given the OK, and filmed the entire three-day trip — about 80 hours of film total.
Carefully combing through that footage, producers were surprised to find a different kind of story emerge. The film showed not only the work that these people did together, as they bounced ideas around and worked out solutions to the myriad problems that arose, but also the joy of being around one another.
Participants came from all over the world: Somalia, Italy, Finland, Russia, German, Spanish and other countries. People came from all different backgrounds, sexual orientations and social comfort levels.
But they were united by their passion for games, Dever said.
“It really truly evolved into a story about the need for inclusion, and a need for creation out of human love,” he said.
Directed by Ross Headley and Hershel Zhand, the film brings to light how unique the gaming community is, particularly in a time when other aspects of life that have traditionally brought people together are fading away.
“We’re losing our communities tied to faith systems, we’re losing our communities tied to economies,” Dever said. “At the end of the day, these people were forming their own concepts and communities, where you had 329 people all get on a train for the purpose of creation.”
Because of Harena’s connection to the creative arts in Franklin, they felt that the Artcraft would be an ideal place to screen the film for the first time. The film is open to the public.
They can see a lot of commonalities between the subjects of “Game Train” and their own hometown, Dever said.
“We in Franklin, we’re a very different community. On the surface, we want to be perceived as very staid and structured and disciplined, but beneath that crust, there is a dynamic, vibrant pool of creation,” he said. “We have all of these festivals, we have all of these arts. It’s a different city.”
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“Game Train”
What: A documentary capturing the journey of more than 300 game developers riding a train together for three days. The film was produced by Franklin-based Harena Data.
When: 7 p.m. Sunday
Where: Historic Artcraft Theatre, 57 N. Main St., Franklin
Tickets: historicartcrafttheatre.org
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