You never know who might be swimming next to you in a treacherous river basin, and film star Julia Stiles is here to tell you: Take note. It might just be Nathaniel Rateliff (… and the Night Sweats, too).

Stiles met Colorado’s biggest songwriting superstar back in August 2017 while she was swimming in the Columbia River near George, Washington (that’s an important comma). It was a chance encounter that years later would profoundly inform her debut effort as a film director. 

“I was a fan, and had been for a long time,” said Stiles, who was in Denver on May 30 to accept Denver Film’s 2025 Women+Film Barbara Bridges Inspiration Award at a gala luncheon under a tented canopy at the Denver Botanic Gardens. Among those watching Stiles give her remarks were Rateliff and his partner, Denver filmmaker Taylor McFadden (”Lovers”).

“When I was seven months pregnant with my first child, we decided to go on a camping trip to see Nathaniel and the Night Sweats play at the Gorge Amphitheatre,” Stiles told gala emcee Mekialaya White, an anchor with CBS Colorado. “Because it’s a camping trip, my husband and I decided to go swimming before the concert. And as we were swimming, I was like, ‘I think that’s the band,’ because … I mean, look at you,” Stiles said to laughs as she gestured toward Rateliff, who was seated nearby in his signature western hat. “I mean, with the tattoos and the jewelry and the hat, it had to be, right?” (She was not wrong.)

“I just thought, ‘I have to go say hi.’ And I did.”

Eight years later, Stiles’ film “Wish You Were Here,” has finally been released, and two Night Sweats songs powerfully drive the romantic pulse of the narrative: “You Worry Me” and “And It’s Still Alright.”

“Nathaniel’s music has been, literally in my head ever since that day,” said Stiles, whose film shows two characters falling fully in love over one magical night while “You Worry Me” plays out in its entirety underneath. “I timed that whole scene to match the song before I even knew I would have permission to use it or the money to pay for it,” said Stiles.

Denver Film chose “Wish You Were Here” to open its annual “Women + Film” festival, which last weekend again celebrated both women in film, and the women who make films. Denver Film always gets some heavy hitters to come here to accept its Barbara Bridges Inspiration Award – named after the Women+Film program founder – but the timing of the gala doesn’t always coincide with the actual festival, because you kind of have to take stars like Rita Moreno, Hannah Waddingham and Stiles whenever you can get them. This was one of the few years when the scheduling stars aligned, so a screening of “Wish You Were Here” immediately followed the award presentation, and served as the kickoff to this year’s three-day festival. 

Stiles was labeled a rom-com queen as a teen despite a long and varied resume that shows off her rather considerable chops, including dramatic roles in “Dexter, “Silver Linings Playbook” and “O,” a 2001 thriller that adapted Shakespeare’s “Othello” set at an American high school. But Stiles proudly embraces her rom-com roots.

The privilege of being a creator right now is that you get to create the world you want to see on the screen. And as she now incorporates directing into her professional repertoire, what Stiles wants to see on the big screen right now is romance. Unapologetic, sentimental, tear-jerking romance.

“I do think we need a love story right now,” Stiles said. “We need more love in this climate.”

And yes, “Wish You Were Here” is an unapologetic, sentimental, tear-jerking romance about a woman whose search for love butts up against an existential obstacle. It’s based on a novel of the same title by Renée Carlino. Stiles and Carlino adapted the story for the screen together, which made Stiles a director, co-writer and co-producer all at once.

“The thing that grabbed me when I first read the book has evolved into something even deeper,” Stiles told The Denver Gazette. “When I was reading the book, I was like, ‘We need a movie like this right now. Because ultimately it’s about love and taking care of people, and it’s got humanity in it, and hopefully it makes you laugh and makes you cry.

“I just want people to feel something. I wanted it to be ultimately hopeful. It’s a bit of a meditation on life. Our time on this Earth is precious. It’s such a gift to be alive on this planet, and so to then find somebody else that you can connect with and create a lifetime of memories with is an even greater gift – and we should never take that for granted.”

Stiles praised Women+Film as “an incredibly important program,” and said the messaging behind it should not be taken for granted.

“I have been acting in front of the camera for decades, and the messaging when you’re an actress is predominantly about your appearance,” she said. “It’s about what you look like. ‘Are you pretty – or not?’ ‘Are you thin – or not?’ But stepping behind the camera, the emphasis was on my ideas. The message was that your ideas are important and your vision and your creativity, and what you have to say are important.

“That’s what Women+Film emphasizes, and I really appreciate that.”

But she also made a point to appreciate the vastly outnumbered men in the audience – a group that included Rateliffe, Denver Mayor Mike Johnston and Denver Film CEO Kevin Smith.

“It’s OK to be a guy,” Stiles said to cheers and laughs. “We need you here. The board members, the (politicians), Nathaniel, all the men – your presence here is not taken for granted.”

Denver Film Programming Manager Ambriehl Turrentine said Stiles’ appearance in Denver both brought attention to the independent film scene and infused the weekend Women+Film fest with some high-energy buzz.

“I just hope everyone is inspired to support women in film and the independent film scene in general, because there are a lot of gems out there that don’t always get the life that they deserve.”