The EQUUS Film Festival - Binging On Horse Movies Dead of winter, there is nothing else to do – let’s go to the movies! Horse movies! T e EQUUS Film Festival. Two days! January 19-20, with the
fi lms shown in - get this - the Fasig-Tipton Sales Pavilion at the Maryland State Fairgrounds. A theater in the round, almost. How cool is that? You can trot over between fi lms to grab a bite at the Grandstand Grille. Created in 2013, this New York City festival highlights and awards the diverse and creative eff orts of those who artistically pay homage to the horse, and includes feature fi lms, documentaries, shorts, music videos, commercials, training educational materials, art and literature. “Winnie” Awards are distributed for Equestrian Art Film, Director, Documentary, Commercial, International, Music Video, People’s Choice and Best of Festival and Literature and Art.
Just like with successful Broadway shows, there is a touring version of the Film Festival. Each stop on the tour might feature diff erent fi lms. T e Equiery staff and MHC president Neil Agate got a sneak peek, and here are our picks!
Top Pick - ALL THE QUEEN’S HORSES
Tracy McKenna: “T at whole fraud was fasci- nating, and she totally fouled up the QH market when they had to auction off hundreds of show horses for pennies on the dollar.”
Cass Ingles: “I fi nd it fascinating when people manage to pull off massive fraud successfully for years before being caught.”
Katherine Rizzo: “Just sounds fascinating!” You may recall this story of the largest municipal fraud in American
history from CNBC’s American Greed. Rita Crundwell was well known in the Quarter Horse breeding world. She had been named American Quarter Horse Association leading owner eight years; her horses had won 52 world championships. At the time of her arrest for embezzling $53.7 over 22 years from the small down of Dixon, Illinois, she had 300 horses. She is now serving 20 years; her assets were dissolved and what little was left returned to the city.
ALL THE WILD HORSES
Neil Agate: I have always been fascinated by the Mongol Derby.
Peggy Ingles: I think I have to go with All T e Wild Horses, just because that race is badass! All T e Wild Horses follows fi ve international
riders from the USA, Canada, South Africa, Ire-
land and the UK as they compete in the Mongol Derby horse race in Mongolia. T is multi-horse, multi-station race over a 1000 kilometers of Mongolian steppe is the longest and toughest horse race on the planet. T e riders are out on their own and navigate with GPS from horse sta- tion to horse station, where they change their horses every 40 kilometers. Readers may recall an article in T e Equiery about Marylander Bar-
bara Smith, who fi nished 9th in the Mongol Derby four years ago. She crossed the fi nish line on her 61st birthday. Smith will be available for a meet and greet after the movie.
MANY CLOUDS
Katherine Rizzo: “Love steeplechasing and re- cently watched a documentary called Dark Horse that took place over many of the same courses that this horse raced over.”
T is fi lm, which follows British steeplechase horse Many Clouds, defi nitely looks to be a tear-
64 | THE EQUIERY | JANUARY 2018
jerker. After his win in the 2015 Grand National, Many Clouds became a people’s favorite and his popularity grew. In 2017 he was named the horse of the year by a landslide public vote. His 2017 season was look- ing like another successful one ‘til he took on the mighty T istlecrack at Cheltenham. Both horses went to war over the last few fences and although Many Clouds would get the better of the unbeaten youngster, he died a few minutes after crossing the fi nish line. From the fi lmmakers: “Many Clouds lost his life doing what he loved and we wanted to pay tribute to him, by producing this short fi lm using some of the footage we’ve taken with and about him over the years.”
A RACETRACK SOMEWHERE
Neil Agate: “When I lived in Australia, I visited an old (partially deserted) bush track outside of Sydney, and I remember talking to some people about the amazing history of the Australian tracks, and think this movie looks like it recreates some of those great stories.”
A Racetrack Somewhere explores Australia, delv- ing into the heart of some of the country’s most
iconic and remote events. Destinations include Birdsville, King Island, Warrnambool, Kangaroo Island and Darwin
HORSE PACKER
Emily Nessel: “T is seems really interesting, not something you hear about that often. Scenery in the video will be gorgeous. It is quite possible that I’ve hiked on a trail they have helped keep in good working order. Also, I feel like I have said once or twice, when hiking on somewhat remote mountain trails, ‘I wonder how they maintain these all the way out/up here?’ Now I’ll know!”
T is fi lm explores the dying profession of horse packing at Rocky Mountain National Park on its 100th anniversary, following Travis as Lead Packer on the West side of Rocky Mountain National Park. He gives an in-depth look at what the job entails and why horse packing is so important for preserving the wilderness.
SACRED GROUND
Neil Agate: “As an avid polo player and fan, I know some of the history of Newport Polo Club, and know many people who have played there over the years, so really looking forward to learning more of its history.”
Sacred Ground looks behind the scenes of 800-244-9580 |
www.equiery.com
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