Wild horse film gallops into Sisters to kick off festival

An iconic image of the American West often includes a thundering herd of wild horses galloping with grace and power over country studded with rocks and sagebrush. In modern times that image often includes a helicopter's shadow as it buzzes and forces the wild horses toward the end of their freedom.

The rounding up and redistribution of the West's wild horses caught the attention of husband-and-wife filmmakers Alexandra Dawson and Greg Gricus, of Fish Creek Films. The couple was looking for a compelling idea for a documentary when they heard about the Extreme Mustang Makeover.

The competition involves 100 horse trainers and 100 wild mustangs and allows them 100 days to train the horses before competing in the Extreme Mustang Makeover Challenge.

"The premise was so powerful and so compelling," said Dawson.

Part of the BendFilm Festival, the documentary, Wild Horse, Wild Ride, is not about the difficult issues surrounding the rounding up and relocation of wild horses.

"People who are expecting a film about the "mustang issue' will instead find a story about characters and relationships, and ultimately about love," said Dawson. "This is about a difficult journey and how it somehow still works out."

The film chronicles the efforts of the horse trainers and their wild mustang counterparts who are preparing to compete in the Extreme Mustang Makeover in Fort Worth, Texas.

The horses in the film were rounded up from various herd areas around the West, mostly in Nevada and Wyoming, and then sent to three different BLM adoption facilities to be picked up by their trainers. For the competitors, it's the luck of the draw on which horse they took home. None of the horses had been touched by human hands except to be pushed into a chute, a halter forced on their heads and then run into a stock trailer.

Once in their trainer's care, the terrified horses experienced another kind of touch as each trainer worked to build trust and help the horse realize that physical contact didn't have to be traumatic.

George Gregory, an elderly Texas cowboy, and his wife, Evelyn, took on their two mustangs, Waylon and Willie, for two reasons: the challenge and to help the wild horses find a good home. George drew a small, snorty mustang who was a challenge from the start.

"He'll find out that when he's touched it's a good thing, not a bad thing," said George in his slow-talking drawl. "But you got to get to that point and that's where patience comes in, which I'm not overly loaded with; so I'll count on everyone to help me with that part."

Characters like George and Evelyn bring a tender humor to the film. Their willingness to reveal all the trials of training wild horses and, in George's case, the frustration of having limited physical capabilities, give an endearing depth to the film.

There were all kinds of folks involved from around the country, including the Navajo Nation in Wheatfields, Arizona to Wisconsin, Texas and New Hampshire. Aptly named Queen's Creek, Arizona daredevil, Wylene Wilson described herself as "A daredevil with a big smile." Theatrics aside, Wilson is an accomplished horse trainer who can teach a horse to do maneuvers that usually take years.

At the extreme opposite of Wilson's flamboyant showmanship are Charles & Carlos Chee of the Navajo Nation. Charles is getting older and wonders if he'll even be able to get his foot up in the stirrup, let alone get his horse Comanche far enough along to participate in the competition. Charles jokes and shares his fears as he takes on the difficult animal.

The characters, both horse and human, personify emotions and topics from impatience to loss, friendship, trust and terror. Not knowing how the people they were featuring would do in the competition, Dawson and Gricus felt they lucked out there, too. The story ends with a diverse assortment of outcomes, some easy to guess and others a complete surprise.

Wild Horse, Wild Ride will be shown at the BendFilm Festival and will be at the Sisters Movie House on Friday, October 7, at 6:30 p.m. and October 9, at 9:30 p.m. It will be at the Tower Theatre on October 8, at 12:30 p.m.

Alexandra Dawson will be on hand for the first two days and will take part in a panel discussion on October 8, at 1 p.m. at McMenamins, entitled Documentary Filmmaking: Sending the Message.

The BendFilm Festival runs October 6-9. The eighth-annual festival will be held in Sisters and Bend. To learn more about the BendFilm Festival or to buy tickets go to http://www.bendfilm.org.

Unless a show is sold out, tickets for Sisters Movie House can be purchased at the door.

To ensure a ticket for Wild Horse, Wild Ride, Sisters Movie House owner Lisa Clausen suggests purchasing tickets in advance either through BendFilm Festival or at Sisters Movie House.