A young girl sledding down a snowy hill is one of two short related sequences that immediately grab your attention in the opening of the supernatural romance "In Your Eyes," a Joss Whedon-written and produced film that had its world premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival in New York City April 20.

The other sequence involves a young boy, Dylan, in a classroom who is having a vision of the young girl, Rebecca, sledding. Dylan collapses when he sees Rebecca crash into a tree.

"In Your Eyes" then jumps ahead years in time to Rebecca and Dylan as adults who share an inexplicable telepathic bond even though they've never met and live far apart from each other in very different circumstances. Are they destined to meet?

Two years on from playing Rebecca in the sledding scene, 10-year-old Kiera Gruttadauria of Sutton had a question of her own. "I was always asking my mom, 'What happened to the movie?' " Kiera said.

"We heard nothing for two years,' said Kiera's mother, Emma Jayne Gruttadauria.

Then about a week before the Tribeca premiere, she received a call from one of the film's producers. " 'We'd love to have Kiera join us,' " she was told.

So on April 20, Kiera took the red carpet walk into the movie theater alongside Alexander Kravec, who played the young Dylan. "I was kind of nervous but excited at the same time," she said of walking on the red carpet. "It was my first time."

The adult Rebecca and Dylan are played by Zoe Kazan and Michael Stahl-David. At a party after the screening, Kiera got to meet Kazan. "She said I did a really good job. I told her she did a good job," Kiera said.

"In Your Eyes," directed by Brin Hill (whose previous credits include "Ball Don't Lie"), has already been released — as a $5 digital rental (for 72 hours) via Vimeo and the film's website, www.inyoureyesmovie.com. You can watch the film's opening three minutes — with Kiera and Alexander — for free.

"Which is really smart because it entices you to see what happens," Emma Jayne Gruttadauria said.

Meanwhile, Kiera's face as Rebecca has been seen in numerous photograph stills and sequences promoting "In Your Eyes."

The film is "very Joss Whedon-ish," Emma Jane Gruttadauria noted. Whedon is known for his innovative approaches ranging from creating the TV series "Buffy the Vampire Slayer," to writing and directing the blockbuster film adaptation "Marvel's The Avengers," and then directing a 12-day, black-and-white shoot of Shakespeare's "Much Ado About Nothing." He also hasn't been afraid to operate outside Hollywood business channels, as evidenced by "In Your Eyes," for which Whedon was executive producer. (The film has been released via his micro-studio, Bellwether Pictures, which he co-founded with his wife.)

Emma Jayne Gruttadauria said she believes that "In Your Eyes" was an old Whedon script that he got around to finally seeing filmed. It was shot in New Hampshire, and Los Angeles doubling as New Mexico, the respective places where Rebecca and Dylan live.

Kiera is a fifth-grade student at Sutton Elementary School. Some of her previous acting credits include "A Christmas Carol" with Stageloft Repertory Theater of Sturbridge, and small parts in the films "27 Dresses" and "Danny-Boy."

"This was her first big role she auditioned for and got," Kiera's mother said of "In Your Eyes."

Emma Jayne Gruttadauria is an actress who has appeared in local stage productions (including with Stageloft, Pilgrim Soul Productions and Worcester County Light Opera Company) and several films. She is in the supernatural thriller "Mary Loss of Soul," which recently won best picture award at the Boston International Film Festival.

She knows the acting business can be tough, so "I tend to hold her back a bit,' she said of Kiera. Kiera is also a strong swimmer, which her mother encourages.

But when Gruttadauria saw a casting notice for "In Your Eyes" she couldn't help but notice that Kiera fit the description.

Over 200 other girls who also probably matched the looked for look went to auditions. Kiera said she had to improvise facial expressions "pretending I was going down a hill."

She was subsequently invited up to the movie set in New Hampshire as one of two finalists for the role of Rebecca. She was cast and her part was shot the same day.

"She had a blast. She got to sled all day," her mother said.

Kiera said she had to sled all the way down a hill on one occasion, while sledding parts of the hill on other occasions, for a total of about 10 different trips.

"It was so fun. They were really nice," Kiera said. Everyone made sure that she kept warm.

"One day, that was it," her mother said.

Then came the wait.

"I was so excited," Kiera said of hearing the news about the premiere at the Tribeca Film Festival. Her mother and her father, Brian Gruttadauria (who works in computer technology), accompanied her. Kiera's sister, Eryn Gruttadauria, 15, a student at Sutton High School, was away on a pre-arranged organized trip to Spain.

"It was weird to see myself on the screen. I've never really done a part that big," Kiera said. But "In Your Eyes" itself wasn't weird, she thought, despite its supernatural themes. "I thought it was really good. It made sense," she said.

Some of Kiera's classmates at Sutton Elementary School have had a look at "In Your Eyes." "They thought it was really cool," Kiera said.

Kiera auditioned for a role in the upcoming movie "The Judge," most of which was shot in Massachusetts (including Worcester) and stars Robert Downey Jr. and Robert Duvall. This time she wasn't cast, but your eyes may well get accustomed to seeing more of her on the screen.

"I really want to do this all the time," Kiera said.

Contact Richard Duckett at Richard.Duckett@telegram.com