Buck

“Your horse is a mirror to your soul, and sometimes you may not like what you see. Sometimes, you will.” So says Buck Brannaman, a true American cowboy and sage on horseback who travels the country for nine grueling months a year helping horses with people problems. Buck, a richly textured and visually stunning film, follows Brannaman from his abusive childhood to his phenomenally successful approach to horses. A real-life “horse-whisperer”, he eschews the violence of his upbringing and teaches people to communicate with their horses through leadership and sensitivity, not punishment. Buck possesses near magical abilities as he dramatically transforms horses – and people – with his understanding, compassion and respect. In this film, the animal-human relationship becomes a metaphor for facing the daily challenges of life. A truly American story about an unsung hero, Buck is about an ordinary man who has made an extraordinary life despite tremendous odds.

Cindy Meehl founded Cedar Creek Productions, LLC in 2008. The film company has traveled from North Carolina, on to Tacoma Washington, France, Wyoming, California, Montana and Texas to film the legendary Buck Brannaman. His exceptional and profound horsemanship skills drove Cindy to create her first documentary. Coming from a creative background in fashion and art, Cindy ran her own label Sasha, Cindy and Phil as well as Cindy Hughes Designs all through the eighties. She designed couture evening wear that sold across the country. Her clothes were in the window at Bergdorf Goodman and were featured in film and television as well as magazines and print campaigns . Cindy studied art at Marymount Manhattan College and the National Academy of Art in NYC. She began fine art painting in the 90's. She has now transferred her art from a canvas to a screen. Cindy is currently in development on a new documentary project. She lives in Connecticut with her husband, writer Brian Meehl, 2 daughters, 4 dogs and 2 horses.

Andrea Meditch is an award-winning documentary film producer and creative advisor for media companies, universities, filmmakers and festivals. In 2009 she executive produced both Academy Award winner Man on Wire and Academy-nominated Encounters at the End of the World. She is president of Back Allie Entertainment and is an advisor to Michigan State University’s College of Communication. Previously she spent fifteen years at Discovery Communications, where she launched and built Discovery Films, the theatrical arm of the company, overseeing the development, production and distribution of numerous documentary films, including Werner Herzog's Grizzly Man, which won the Alfred P. Sloan award at Sundance in 2005. Meditch was at Discovery from 1995 until June 2008 where, prior to Discovery Films, she was head of development for the Discovery Channel. There she brought in such hit series as MythBusters. Meditch holds a Ph.D. in anthropology with a concentration in mass media from the University of Texas and a Bachelor of Science degree in communications from Northwestern University.

Julie Goldman has produced a wide range of award winning documentaries. Her documentaries have been featured at film festivals around the world, including Cannes, Sundance, Toronto, Berlin, Tribeca and London. She has recently been nominated by the Producers Guild of America for the PGA Producer of the Year Award. She was a consultant on the Academy Award winning The Cove, directed by Louis Psihoyos. Julie was also Executive Producer of Sundance Audience Award winner In the Shadow of the Moon, which was released by THINKFilm. Julie recently started a new company, Motto Pictures, that produces and executive produces high-end documentary films and non-fiction programming. During her tenure as founding partner of Cactus Three, Julie executive produced a wide and varied slate of award winning feature documentaries, including: Sydney Pollack’s Sketches of Frank Gehry (Sony Pictures Classics/PBS); BAFTA-nominated Black Sun; Emmy-nominated What Remains (HBO/BBC); SXSW Audience Award winner Cat Dancers (HBO/Channel4).

Buck Brannaman's exceptional and profound horsemanship skills drove Cindy Meehl to create her first documentary. She thought it was a story that had to be told and an inspirational message that would benefit people whether they had a horse or not.

Saturday, November 5, 2011

Block 1a: 8:30am - 10:25am

Armstrong Theatre

Filmmaker will be present.

Saturday, November 5, 2011

Block 3a: 2:00pm - 3:50pm

Screening Room

Filmmaker will be present.

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