Ashley Avis – WILD BEAUTY: Mustang Spirit of the West

We had the opportunity to interview Ashley Avis the filmmaker of WILD BEAUTY: Mustang Spirit of the West. Wild Beauty is an official selection of the 12th annual Utah Film Festival. 

What was the inspiration to make Wild Beauty?

As a lifelong horsewoman, when I embarked on writing and directing BLACK BEAUTY for Disney, I wanted to authentically intertwine the themes of Anna Sewell’s classic novel into our modern day story.  After coming across the issues wild horses were facing in the western United States today, I decided to incorporate that storyline into the movie, which led to a parallel production in our documentary WILD BEAUTY.  

Our team, which includes my husband and producing partner Edward Winters, began filming wild horses in 2019.  Some of that original footage is in BLACK BEAUTY; which led to documenting the tragic roundups and questioning what was happening to our national icons.  That journalistic side prompted our longer feature length WILD BEAUTY journey, which we hope will open the eyes of people around the world to the injustice that is happening to wild horses and their families.  WILD BEAUTY is most decidedly a passion project that we hope will incite change, before wild horses disappear across our American landscapes.

From idea to completion, how did this production change?  

Initially we thought we would create a film more along the lines of an independent PLANET EARTH; beauty shots of wild horses coupled with voiceover narration.  We never thought the film or our story would become so deeply personal. 

It really wasn’t until we started filming more of these wild horse roundups, and began documenting the lies, corruption, and animal cruelty unfolding before our eyes and cameras; that we realized the journalistic side was evolving.  That became a necessary side of things to lean into when I was editing the film.

What was the biggest challenge in getting Wild Beauty made? 

Access.  At almost every turn we were blocked by the Bureau of Land Management to document what was really happening to wild horses.  We were blocked when we tried to film most of the trap-sites where the horses (of all ages, from newborn foals to heavily pregnant mares) get injured or lose their lives trying to escape or protect their families.  We were also denied access to numerous long and short term holding facilities, where the wild horses are taken afterward.  Some of these places – where wild horses can barely move around properly or have shelter from the elements – have had deadly viruses sweep through them, particularly in recent years killing hundreds of wild horses. 

In what I consider to be my well informed opinion, there is a great deal of corruption within this deeply broken system, and demanding transparency and change is critical.  I don’t understand how in our modern time today, a federal agency, along with its employees and contractors, are allowed to treat animals this way.  Much less highly intelligent, federally protected creatures.  But if people don’t know, how can they care or take action?  That is what we hope will change with our film WILD BEAUTY.

What do you think is the most important takeaway from your film?

The importance of protecting and preserving our wild world; not just for us, but the generations to come.  Our children, and their children, deserve to see wild places – to see wild horses, elk, wolves, and a myriad of other native species living in harmony amongst the tapestry of the Western United States.  Special interest groups have no right to eradicate that wild beauty, or take it away from the American people.  Livestock grazing, oil, and mining should not take precedence over our ability to enjoy our public lands.  We also need to better live with nature, not force it to constantly live with us.  Our world needs balance more than ever before.

If you could have a do over with Wild Beauty is there anything that you would do differently? If so, what would that be?

I truly think the film evolved the way it was meant to be.  Challenges and changes, despite extraordinary hardship, often point you to where you are supposed to go.  And my goodness, we had plenty.  We even gave up our house in Los Angeles for a year to afford to stay on the road that long!

What do you have next in the works?

I am currently in the Middle East directing a beautiful feature film which includes universal messages about animal empathy (the movie will come out in 2023); and I also will write and direct the adaptation of a well known love story which we have in the works with a major film studio.  I cannot wait to be able to talk about both of them soon!

How can we learn more about you and your projects?

You can visit The Wild Beauty Foundation at www.wildbeautyfoundation.org for updates on WILD BEAUTY; or my personal website, www.ashleyavis.com.  And of course, follow us on social media.