MOVIE TRAILER
INSPIRED BY TRUE EVENTS
A girl named Reggie and a horse named Awesome Gal meet after fleeing abuse, and begin a journey of hope, healing, and triumph.
MISSION STATEMENT
My mission is to end the horrific practice of soring that Awesome endured. Though I cannot change Awesome’s past, I can change the future for thousands of other horses suffering the same abuse by telling her amazing story. This touching account will expose the dark side of the Tennessee Walking Horse industry and inspire anyone struggling through hardships.
Soring
Soring images courtesy of USDA
Imagine a horse’s front legs and pasterns painted with kerosene and wrapped tightly in plastic wrap. The horse is trapped, alone in a stall while the chemicals burn his flesh. He tries to lie down to ease the pain but is beaten to stand up. Once the chemicals have done their work, the sole is cut to the quick with an electric grinder until it bleeds. Screws and objects are driven into the hoof. Then a 6 inch stack weighing 15 pounds is applied. Chains are then attached around the pasterns. Other abuses include forcing the horse to stand on wooden blocks for hours or days, taping golf balls or wood to the sole, placing the horse’s head through a tire and tie the horse so his neck will arch, and severe bits. This is known as soring.
Soring produces the artificial “Big Lick” gait because the horse is in extreme pain. Every step is torture. The Big Lick is still an attraction at the Tennessee Walking Horse Exhibitors and Breeders Association (TWHEBA) annual Celebration in Shelbysville, Tennessee, as well as other shows. Even though soring became illegal with the Horse Protection Act (1970), the industry polices itself and hides the abuse.
Footage courtesy of the Humane Society of the United States
(WARNING: This video contains material that may be disturbing to some viewers.)
The PAST Act
(Prevent All Soring Tactics)
In 1970 the Horse Protection Act was passed which prohibits sored horses from participating in shows and prohibits transportation of sored horses to events.
The horses affected were Tennessee Walking Horses, Racking Horses, and Spotted Saddle Horses.
Because of limited funds given to the USDA to enforce the law, Designated Qualified Persons (DQPs) were trained to inspect for soring with the USDA making spot checks. Unfortunately, in 2010, the USDA Inspector General found a huge discrepancy between the rate of violations identified by the industry-selected inspectors and the USDA inspectors. The industry-selected inspectors were grossly undercounting violations due to conflicts of interest.
After being introduced in three sessions of Congress, House Bill 693 passed the PAST ACT On July 25, 1919 by a vote of 333-96. The bill is now in Senate Committee for mark-up. You can follow the bill by signing up on congress.gov.
Passing the Senate is not guaranteed. Some Senators, particularly from Tennessee and Kentucky, receive donations from the “Big Lick” people and there is heavy lobbying.
This movie will bring awarenes of this horrific practice to the entire nation. No abuser will be able to hide any more.
Frank M Calo is an Independent Producer and Director whose film THE BELIEVER, starring Ryan Gosling and Billy Zane won the Grand Jury Prize at the 2001 Sundance Festival. That film won all the festivals that year including The Berlin Film Festival. It was shown nation wide and had a great box office run.
His film, HERE & THERE with Cyndi Lauper and David Thornton has won the BEST NY NARRITIVE IN WORLD COMPETITION 2009 at Robert DeNiro’s, Tribeca Film Festival in NYC and had it’s official News York premier played to wide audiences domestically and overseas.
Mr. Calo has worked with Robert DeNiro (Godsend), Demi Moore, Mike Myers, Shelly Winters, Marlon Brando and many more. His film THE COOKOUT with Queen Latifah also had a great box office run distributed by Lions Gate Films. He also worked for two years with The Motion Picture Bond Company under Robert Bordiga, as a Producer working on films throughout the tri-state areas. He is currently working on two featured films entitled JOHNNY POSTAL and EYES OF THE KINGS along with a TV pilot entitled ESQ starring Dayton Callie from Sons of Anarchy.
Mr. Calo “… always wanted to tell stories and that’s who I became, a storyteller…For me, it was just a matter of taking the time to learn and to listen very carefully from the masters…I love taking characters and audiences on a journey through my mind. When you finish writing one story, all that’s left is to roll the dice and throw them on the table, where it lands is where it lands….which is better than just sitting on your shelf never to be seen or heard…no risk in that…I’ll take that risk over none at all. It’s not the beginning or the end of a story that intrigues me, it’s the journey and that’s the hardest part to write”.
Frank Calo
Director, Writer, Producer
Frank M Calo is an Independent Producer and Director whose film THE BELIEVER, starring Ryan Gosling and Billy Zane won the Grand Jury Prize at the 2001 Sundance Festival. That film won all the festivals that year including The Berlin Film Festival. It was shown nation wide and had a great box office run.
His film, HERE & THERE with Cyndi Lauper and David Thornton has won the BEST NY NARRITIVE IN WORLD COMPETITION 2009 at Robert DeNiro’s, Tribeca Film Festival in NYC and had it’s official News York premier played to wide audiences domestically and overseas.
Mr. Calo has worked with Robert DeNiro (Godsend), Demi Moore, Mike Myers, Shelly Winters, Marlon Brando and many more. His film THE COOKOUT with Queen Latifah also had a great box office run distributed by Lions Gate Films. He also worked for two years with The Motion Picture Bond Company under Robert Bordiga, as a Producer working on films throughout the tri-state areas. He is currently working on two featured films entitled JOHNNY POSTAL and EYES OF THE KINGS along with a TV pilot entitled ESQ starring Dayton Callie from Sons of Anarchy.
Mr. Calo “… always wanted to tell stories and that’s who I became, a storyteller…For me, it was just a matter of taking the time to learn and to listen very carefully from the masters…I love taking characters and audiences on a journey through my mind. When you finish writing one story, all that’s left is to roll the dice and throw them on the table, where it lands is where it lands….which is better than just sitting on your shelf never to be seen or heard…no risk in that…I’ll take that risk over none at all. It’s not the beginning or the end of a story that intrigues me, it’s the journey and that’s the hardest part to write”.
At age 7, Deborah Ring started riding at a summer day camp. From then on she was hooked on horses and involved in many types of riding – dressage, cross- country, hunting, jumping, western. Six years ago she started training Tennessee Walking horses and learned about the hideous practice of soring, the application of caustic chemicals to the horses’ pasterns to force a high stepping ‘Big Lick’ gait. Mrs. Ring has found that Tennessee Walkers have a very gentle disposition and are the most intelligent of any breed she has worked with. They are also stoic; thus, the ability of trainers to practice soring without argument from the horse.
Mrs. Ring is a Nurse Practitioner and veteran with 26 years of service. She has worked with youth groups such as 4-H and Boy Scouts, and the Little League Challenger Division.
She is married with two grown children, a rescue beagle mix, and owns Awesome Gal.
Debby Ring
Executive Producer
At age 7, Deborah Ring started riding at a summer day camp. From then on she was hooked on horses and involved in many types of riding – dressage, cross- country, hunting, jumping, western. Six years ago she started training Tennessee Walking horses and learned about the hideous practice of soring, the application of caustic chemicals to the horses’ pasterns to force a high stepping ‘Big Lick’ gait. Mrs. Ring has found that Tennessee Walkers have a very gentle disposition and are the most intelligent of any breed she has worked with. They are also stoic; thus, the ability of trainers to practice soring without argument from the horse.
Mrs. Ring is a Nurse Practitioner and veteran with 26 years of service. She has worked with youth groups such as 4-H and Boy Scouts, and the Little League Challenger Division.
She is married with two grown children, a rescue beagle mix, and owns Awesome Gal.
Cameron was born and raised in California before moving to Virginia for college. It was around this time his family rescued Awesome Gal. Awesome was shy and traumatized due to the abuse she endured; but Cameron and Awesome would form a unique bond that got stronger as the years went on. Four years ago Cameron changed careers and moved to New York to pursue acting. He starred in both theater and film productions, including “Prophet: The Story of Nat Turner,” “Pet Lawyer,” “Anadellia Rises,” and “Breaking Point.” Cameron realized the power of cinema in telling stories, and he wanted to use that power to tell Awesome Gal’s story. Though we cannot change Awesome’s past, the film can help change the future for thousands of other horses suffering the same abuse. Follow his work here
Cameron Ring
Actor, Creator
Cameron was born and raised in California before moving to Virginia for college. It was around this time his family rescued Awesome Gal. Awesome was shy and traumatized due to the abuse she endured; but Cameron and Awesome would form a unique bond that got stronger as the years went on. Four years ago Cameron changed careers and moved to New York to pursue acting. He starred in both theater and film productions, including “Prophet: The Story of Nat Turner,” “Pet Lawyer,” “Anadellia Rises,” and “Breaking Point.” Cameron realized the power of cinema in telling stories, and he wanted to use that power to tell Awesome Gal’s story. Though we cannot change Awesome’s past, the film can help change the future for thousands of other horses suffering the same abuse. Follow his work here
Shannon Spangler is a Texas native and graduate of New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts with a double major in Drama and History. Short films in which she has appeared have won the IndieWork’s Audience Choice Award, Best Film at the Seoul International Extreme Short Image & Film Festival, Indie Fest’s Award of Merit, and have been featured at Cannes, HollyShorts Film Fest, the Female Eye Film Festival, and WorldFest Houston. She is a meticulous planner (usually color-coded), and avid reader and runner. She lives in Brooklyn.
Shannon Spangler
Actress
Shannon Spangler is a Texas native and graduate of New York University’s Tisch School of the Arts with a double major in Drama and History. Short films in which she has appeared have won the IndieWork’s Audience Choice Award, Best Film at the Seoul International Extreme Short Image & Film Festival, Indie Fest’s Award of Merit, and have been featured at Cannes, HollyShorts Film Fest, the Female Eye Film Festival, and WorldFest Houston. She is a meticulous planner (usually color-coded), and avid reader and runner. She lives in Brooklyn.
Mr. Martinsen is an optioned screenwriter and co-writer of many screenplays among them “Johnny Postal”, “The Eyes of Kings”, and “Angel Smiles”. He has either directed or edited over 40 music videos for MTV or various outlets. He is known as the “script doctor” because he can take a marginal screenplay and make it into a winner. A graduate of The University of Miami Film School, he always aspired to write screenplays since childhood.
Rick Martinsen
Co-writer
Mr. Martinsen is an optioned screenwriter and co-writer of many screenplays among them “Johnny Postal”, “The Eyes of Kings”, and “Angel Smiles”. He has either directed or edited over 40 music videos for MTV or various outlets. He is known as the “script doctor” because he can take a marginal screenplay and make it into a winner. A graduate of The University of Miami Film School, he always aspired to write screenplays since childhood.
Doug Sloan is a much respected wrangler, stunt coordinator, and stunt double. He has worked with variety of animals but specializes in horses. Because of his ability to get animals, especially horses, to perform numerous functions in a safe manner, he is highly sought after by the film industry. Doug realizes time is money, especially when working on a production timetable. His credits include enormous films such as Lincoln and Gettysburg and TV series such as Turn and John Adams.
Doug Sloan
Horse Wrangler/ Actor
Doug Sloan is a much respected wrangler, stunt coordinator, and stunt double. He has worked with variety of animals but specializes in horses. Because of his ability to get animals, especially horses, to perform numerous functions in a safe manner, he is highly sought after by the film industry. Doug realizes time is money, especially when working on a production timetable. His credits include enormous films such as Lincoln and Gettysburg and TV series such as Turn and John Adams.
Interviews
SPECIAL THANKS TO:
Greg Castle, CEO, Best Friends Animal Society,
From the Heart Productions
Diana DeRosa Photography
Linda Waggaman Photography
Jasmine C. Sanders Photography