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In the middle of a summer filled with both underperforming event films and 3D CGI powerhouses, there are still smaller movies worth checking out. Rolling out in limited release is Winter’s Bone, the winner of this year’s Grand Jury Prize: Dramatic Film at the 2010 Sundance Film Festival.

Director Debra Granik took some time to site down with Film School Rejects to discuss the development, filming and release of this intimate film about a girl trying to save her home in the Ozarks after her father apparently skips bail.

Winter’s Bone is based on a book by Daniel Woodrell, which Granik and production partner Anne Rosellini had a chance to preview before publication. “When we read the book, we were extremely engrossed,” Granik said, explaining that she was most attracted to the main character of Ree. “She was an unusual female protagonist. She was someone who had a lot of moxie. We were very captivated by her.”

For the role of Ree, Granik cast Jennifer Lawrence, who had made a bit of a splash a couple years ago with her similarly distraught performance in Lori Petty’s film The Poker House. What’s impressive about Lawrence securing the role was that she walked in cold for an audition and was not sought for her previous work. “We didn’t know about The Poker House,” Granik admitted. “though I could have looked her up on IMDb.”

The key to making the character of Ree work was understanding the small scale at which Winter’s Bone was shot. It was not a big Hollywood movie, and Lawrence fell into sync with that. Plus, being from a more rural state like Kentucky, Lawrence was able to bring some real-world experience to the role. This was particularly useful to Granik, who grew up in Massachusetts and Maryland and had only been to the Ozarks once in her life before.

Granik relied on local knowledge when they shot the film, even when dealing with the more unattractive elements of the region. In particular, the widespread production of meth is a key element to Winter’s Bone. “Meth has such an impact,” Granik said in regards to the region. “This was not a documentary, so we didn’t go after anyone who wasn’t interested,” she added, and this is what allowed the local citizens to open up to the film crew.

Still, the local color wasn’t all about meth labs and poverty. Granik also made a point to highlight the music of the region, which was not featured in the book. “It seemed like it would be an error of omission,” she explained. Granik used local musicians not just in a key scene of the film, but also to help complete the soundtrack.

In addition to adding the local music culture to the film, Granik took a few liberties with the adaptation. “The liberties we took were in service to doing something for the film that the book can do easily but a film can’t,” she said, such as straight-out exposition and some character background. She also included a scene in an Army recruitment station. “Army recruitment is very important for young people in that region for a way out, for tradition,” Granik explained, attempting to show the process in a realistic approach for someone who feels trapped in their lives and strapped for cash.

The small film that was Winter’s Bone gained national attention when it won at Sundance earlier this year, putting it in a club with previous winners Precious: Based on the novel PUSH by Sapphire and Frozen River. Granik, who described her Sundance win as “very exciting” and “an emotional experience,” feels a special kinship to Frozen River, which deals with similar themes.

“These are stories about regular Americans,” Granik said, pointing out that people don’t always want the glamour of Sex and the City. “And they can have such life in theaters.”

Depending where you are in the country, you can experience Winter’s Bone in its limited release from Roadside Attractions and be part of its life in theaters. Check your local listings and take a chance on what Granik calls “a rich and poignant American story.”