University of Iowa theatre arts alumna Tanna Frederick is quite happy to be back in her home state of Iowa, even if these recent October days have brought a bit of wintry chill to her moviemaking activities.

“It’s such a nice change of pace,” says Frederick during a break on one of the final days of shooting for Garner, Iowa, the first feature film from her Project Cornlight initiative. “It’s really important to me to be back in Iowa.”

The importance goes beyond simple nostalgia for the Mason City native. For one, a rough cut of Garner, Iowa will be shown Friday, Oct. 25 at the Iowa Independent Film Festival in Mason City. Cast and crew will discuss the film after the screening. (It’s also being shown at a sneak preview Oct. 24 in the film’s namesake town of Garner.)

And as mentioned before, Frederick and her team wrapped up shooting during this visit, capping a filming process that stretched over a year and a half in north-central Iowa locations.

Garner, Iowa features a woman named Kathy (played by Frederick) who makes a return to her rural roots after being incarcerated. Kathy had left behind a daughter to be raised by her parents; illness is taking its toll on Kathy’s grandfather. “Basically we see a family’s healing process,” Frederick says.

Frederick’s co-stars include veteran screen and stage actor Tom Bower, whom Frederick says plays his Walter character in a way that resembles her real-life grandfather (“Cantankerous and regal—a tough combo to find. Tom Bower was perfect casting,” she says). Talent with Iowa roots abounds: Indianola native Joel West, who in addition to acting has had success in modeling; Shanda Lee Munson, who made her feature film debut in Remember the Titans; and Rylie Behr, 14-year-old actress from Mason City who has a second film, Precious Mettle, also in the post-production phase.

“I like proving that this state has so many amazing artists and that together we can create a diamond,” Frederick says, adding that she aims for Garner, Iowa to be competing on a national level at film festivals, with the ultimate prize being a deal to show the movie in indie film houses. “So many stories rooted here in Iowa and the Midwest are amazing. They are waiting to be told, and the world needs to hear them.”

And that’s what Project Cornlight is all about. The project aims to develop Iowa-based films and other projects that showcase Iowa creative talent, with a target of producing at least one independent film in Iowa per year. Plans for growth envision a series of films, stage productions, industry workshops, and a screenplay competition in which an Iowa-connected writer will have her or his script selected for development into a feature film.

Frederick says Project Cornlight has received more than 20 scripts since the initiative’s inception. “I want to go with the one that speaks to me,” Frederick says. “It’s hard—they’re all good scripts, really cool stuff. But once we decide on the next project, we’ll get that in preproduction for 2014.”

Garner, Iowa attracted talent from beyond Iowa, with people coming from Nebraska and Missouri to audition. One particular actor, Patrick Frey, got the call to audition just days after the birth of his child.

“He drove about six hours on his motorcycle to audition for a part with three lines, and hopped back on his bike after the audition to get back home to his family,” Frederick says. “The passion to audition like that showed the kind of commitment we wanted on this film—not to mention his audition was crazy wonderful!” (The scene featuring Frey’s character was rewritten to give the role a bit more prominence.)

Frederick looks forward to the feedback from the audience at the film festival. “This is not some focus group from L.A. that doesn’t have the proper understanding,” Frederick says. “I want the people of Iowa to feel properly represented by this film; their feedback will only sharpen what I feel is a high level of authenticity.

“When we show this, I’m hoping people will relate to the film, and feel that sense of Iowa pride that is so important to me.”