Keepers of the Horse
Synopsis: The story of a beautiful and forgotten herd of horses. Horses directly descending from the line of Choctaw horses who arrived with Hernando DeSoto in the 1500s and are forever embedded in the heritage of the Choctaw Indian Nation.
For 30 years, Bryant Rickman of Hugo, Oklahoma has devoted his life to saving the Choctaw horse bloodline. These horses are the direct descendants of the horses that Hernando De Soto brought from Spain in 1539 and later carried the Choctaw Tribe across the trail of tears. Until the late 20th century these Horses ran free in the mountains of Southeast Oklahoma but now they face their demise without the help of Rickman. He has given everything he has to create sanctuaries for these bands of horses and get them off land owned by timber companies, who have granted hunters permission to kill any horse that still roams the mountains. To this day, this 72 year old man still rescues these wild horses and gives them homes on open land where these ponies can still be free but with the comfort of safety and his daily offerings of native food and mineral blocks.
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Director's Statement
We have to treat our planet better or we will no longer have a place worthy of calling home.
Director's Bio
PhD Student in Agricultural Communications at the University of Arkansas focusing on how to use fine art as a medium to create better land stewardship around the world.
