NEW Out of the Wild Horse Film Wins Awards

The acclaimed Western romance movie Out of the Wild, written by Colorado horseman and author Mark Rashid, has won one of the top awards at the EQUUS Film Festival in New York, a festival dedicated to films and stories that celebrate the horse-human connection.

Inspired by a true story involving a wild mustang, Out of the Wild follows Henry McBride, a down-and-out cowboy carrying a painful past that he has tried, unsuccessfully, to drink away.

Living on his last dollar and with nowhere else to turn, McBride takes a job at the last place an old cowboy might expect to find himself: a dude ranch. It is there that he meets the ranch’s owner, Jessie King, a no-nonsense rancher with a deep understanding of horses and a genuine love for them.

McBride’s journey of self-discovery begins when Jessie introduces him to a different approach to working with a troubled mustang. As the two begin to understand the horse rather than simply trying to control it, McBride starts to recognize something of himself in the animal. The mustang’s difficult past, guarded nature and struggle to trust mirror many of the wounds McBride has carried for years.

At its heart, Out of the Wild is a story about second chances, trust and the healing relationship that can develop between people and horses. The film draws on Rashid’s experience with horses and his philosophy of working with them through understanding, communication and partnership rather than force.

The movie is based on Rashid’s book of the same name and was filmed last fall at Cowboy Trail Rides, just outside Las Vegas. The Nevada landscape provides an authentic backdrop for the story, with much of the film shot among the same trails and open country where visitors can now experience the setting for themselves.

Fans of Out of the Wild can even ride horseback through the area where much of the movie was filmed, offering a chance to see the landscape up close and experience a little of the world that helped bring the story to life.