BAAM at The Gem is proud to be a part of the Full Speed Ahead Statewide Festival of Train Movies and Events. Join us at 6:00 pm on Friday, May 9th for a screening of Rob Reiner’s 1986 classic Stand By Me with an introduction by Michael Koryta, novelist and screenwriter (Those Who Wish Me Dead).

Released in 1986, Stand By Me is a beloved coming-of-age film based on Stephen King‘s novella The Body. Directed by Rob Reiner, the movie follows four young friends on a life-changing journey to find the body of a missing boy. With a standout cast including Wil Wheaton, River Phoenix, Corey Feldman, and Jerry O’Connell, Stand By Me captures the humor, heartbreak, and emotional depth of growing up. The film marked one of the earliest and most successful adaptations of Stephen King’s non-horror work, earning critical acclaim and cementing its place as a nostalgic classic.

Train fact: King’s novella was set in the fictional Castle Rock, Maine, but the movie’s setting is Castle Rock, Oregon – the state where most of the picture was filmed. The famous scene on the railroad bridge was shot in Northern California; the bridge still exists but the tracks were removed when the right-of-way became part of The Great Shasta Rail Trail.

Michael Koryta is a New York Times-bestselling author whose work has been translated into more than 20 languages and has won or been nominated for the Los Angeles Times Book Prize, Edgar® Award, Shamus Award, Barry Award, Quill Award, International Thriller Writers Award, and the Golden Dagger. They’ve been selected as “best books of the year” by numerous publications.

To find other screenings and events in the Full Speed Ahead Statewide Festival of Train series, click here. 

Social Hour at 5:00 pm

Introduction by Michael Koryta at 6:00 pm

Film to follow

Tickets are “Pay What You Can” benefiting Bethel Area Arts & Music.