'' On the Road '' ( ) is a 2012 adventure drama film directed by Walter Salles . It is an adaptation of Jack Kerouac 's 1957 novel '' On the Road '' and stars an ensemble cast featuring Garrett Hedlund , Sam Riley , Kristen Stewart , Alice Braga , Amy Adams , Tom Sturridge , Danny Morgan , Elisabeth Moss , Kirsten Dunst , and Viggo Mortensen . The executive producers were Francis Ford Coppola , Patrick Batteux , Jerry Leider , and Tessa Ross . Filming began on August 4 , 2010 , in Montreal , Quebec , with a $ 25 million budget . The story is based on the years Kerouac spent travelling the United States in the late 1940s with his friend Neal Cassady and several other Beat Generation figures who would go on to fame in their own right , including William S. Burroughs and Allen Ginsberg . On May 23 , 2012 , the film premiered in competition for the Palme d'Or at the 2012 Cannes Film Festival . The film received mixed early reviews after it premiered at the film festival . The film also premiered at the 2012 Toronto International Film Festival in September
2012 Cannes Film Festival
2012 Cannes Film Festival
On the Road (2012 film)