Grades 9-12, College, Adult
Directed by Doug Hawes-Davis
Produced by High Plains Films
DVD Purchase $275, Rent $85
VHS Purchase $250, Rent $85
US Release Date: 2002
Copyright Date: 2001
DVD ISBN: 1-59458-100-2
VHS ISBN: 1-56029-913-4
Subjects
American Studies
American West
Animal Behavior/Communication
Animal Rights
Animals
Biology
Conservation
Earth Science
Ecology
Environment
Environmental Ethics
Geography
Habitat
History
Humanities
Life Science
Public Lands
Western US
Wildlife
Awards and Festivals
Bronze Plaque Award, Columbus International Film & Video Festival
Finalist Award, International Wildlife Film Festival, Missoula
Honorable Mention, EarthVision Environmental Film Festival
Vermont International Film Festival
Hot Springs Documentary Film Festival
Big Muddy Film Festival
Artivist Film Festival
The history, ecology, and current plight of the wild horse in North America.
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"This is what independent documentary filmmaking is all about." Missoula Independent |
When early Spanish settlers accidentally released wild horses (Equus cabalus) to the continent in the early 1500s, they returned an American original.
Although the remnants of the escaped Spanish horse are protected by the 1971 Free-Roaming Wild Horse and Burro Act, each year thousands are removed from public lands across the American West to reduce competition between horses and domestic livestock.
El Caballo documents one of the most complex wildlife management issues today. Where do modern wild horses fit in our view of the natural world?
Reviews
"El Caballo isn't a call to action. It doesn't tell anyone what to think, and it doesn't stake out a high ground or 'right' way to manage. What it does is present a little-known controversy, backed up with a diverse array of opinionated experts, and package it with eye-candy footage that never lets your eyelids sag."
Missoula Independent
"Long considered an 'exotic' species, wild horses occupy a sort of borderland, caught between the mythology of their origins and the reality of their plight today. This is the subject of a new documentary, El Caballo, by Drury Gunn Carr and Doug Hawes-Davis. Known for their hard-hitting documentary films, Varmints and Killing Coyote, Carr and Hawes-Davis approach wild horses with a lighter, albeit no less powerful touch."
High Country News
"An award-winning beautifully videotaped documentary...(T)he history of the horse in America that this film presents is quite valuable...Highly recommended for libraries whose patrons have an interest in American prehistory, history of the West, wildlife, and horses."
Library Journal
"Simultaneously an engrossing exploration of the mysteries surrounding America's 'native vs. introduced' wild horses, as well as a blistering indictment of the BLM's pathetic land management policy."
Prof. Timothy McGettigan, PhD, Department of Sociology, Colorado State University-Pueblo
"A level-headed but powerful presentation... El Caballo provides a quick education on wild horses, with excellent footage and explanation of all aspects of the wild horse issue...El Caballo is timely and portrays an accurate picture of the torment these horses have endured, and still do, at the hands of man... El Caballo is a realistic call to action - A MUST SEE."
Natural Horse