American Cinematographer — August 2013
Short Takes: Wild Horses

Inspired in part by photographs by celebrated National Geographic photographer Melissa Farlow, Wild Horses, about the systematic slaughter of the wild American mustang, is Stephanie Martin’s first foray as a director. The 20-minute short film – with a budget raised partly on Kickstarter – was born of Martin’s desire, after 10 years working as a cinematographer in features, shorts, documentaries and commercials, to write and direct projects she had a passion for.

While technically a “small” film, production for Wild Horses assembled some of the most gifted above- and below-the-line talent available, all of whom donated their time and expertise to make what Farlow herself calls “a great little movie.” Martin co-wrote the script with Wellesley classmate Jessica Walsh and, following acceptance into the AFI Directing Workshop for Women (DWW), enlisted her husband, three-time Oscar recipient Robert Richardson, ASC, to serve as director of photography.

The famed cinematographer, who has won Academy Awards for Best Cinematography for his work on JFK, The Aviator and Hugo, came to the project immediately following production for Django Unchained, bringing with him several crew members and horses from the Tarantino feature, including veteran horse trainer Rex Peterson and wrangler Scott Perez.

Shot with four Arriflex Alexa EV cameras, provided by Panavision and Tool of North America, Wild Horses stars Mireille Enos (World War Z) as Mills, a Hollywood photographer who returns to her native Nevada to witness the roundup and destruction of a band of wild horses. Production took place over six days – a limit set by DWW program requirements – at the Big Sky Movie Ranch in Simi Valley, and Martin knew meticulous scheduling would be crucial to keeping the film, featuring 45 horses and a helicopter, on track. (Read full story…)