As 2017 comes to a close and I look back at all my posts from this year, I am so grateful I decided to jump into the world of blogging - particularly horse blogging. Let me open up to you all and tell you why I decided to start blogging. I am a stay at home mom to two very young boys who are currently 2 1/2 years and 8 months old. Back in June, it was the one year anniversary of me quitting my job and becoming a full-time stay-at-home-mom. While I do like being home full-time with my boys, I became very bored. My whole world was only about being a mom. The majority of my social life was with other moms and we naturally only talked about our kids and mommy things. I wanted to have something I could focus on that was not related to babies. One interest I had to put aside in my life, even before I had kids, was my love for horses and equestrianism. I have not owned a horse since I was a teenager, but I have worked at barns and volunteered with horse rescues, but currently because of the lack of time, I was not able to be around horses and connect with the horse community. How could I connect with other equine enthusiasts if I was not working with horses? I came up with the idea to start a blog when I was watching one of my favorite TV shows that brought up horse topics that I knew non-horsey people would not understand. So, I logged onto Weebly, wrote up my first post inspired from the show Outlander and talked about horse breeds in 18th-century Scotland, and hit the PUBLISH button. After not getting blasted with negative feedback (I seriously thought people would find my writing boring and juvenile), I kept posting about a new horse subject from a movie or TV show every two weeks. I connected with other equestrians on Twitter and then was invited to join an equestrian blogging group on Facebook that has been nothing but positive and supportive. Through this group that is mainly consists of bloggers from the United Kingdom, I found a blogger who lives literally ten minutes away from me in Western Washington. We met up, rode horses, and have become good friends. Here is a picture of us below. I have become friends with other horse enthusiasts online who, unfortunately, live far away, but I hope to meet in person someday. It's amazing how close knit the equestrian community is all around the world and how willing people are to open up about their struggles with themselves, their horses, and life in general. While I am very busy with my family, I love logging online and reading everyone's new posts about their journeys with their horses and horse related activities.
In conclusion to this post, I would like to tell you all my three favorite posts in my blog from 2017. 1. Outlander - Scottish Horse Breeds This is my number one because it was my first post. I will always remember how nervous I was when I published this and the kind of feedback I would receive. Happily, it was received well and has been one of my most popular posts. 2. Ben Hur - Roman Chariot Racing The first time I watched the chariot racing scene in the 1959 Ben Hur movie, my jaw was on the floor because I knew nothing in that scene was CGI. You could see the raw power of the horses racing around the hippodrome and the actors holding on for their dear lives. I had so much fun researching this scene and reading up on the history of horse chariot racing in the ancient Roman world. 3. Interview - Les Amis Stunt Team of Scotland I was able to secure an interview with the Les Amis Stunt Team in Scotland and learn about the overall process and preparation that happens before a horse actor goes in front of a camera. I do hope to do more interviews with stunt people and movie horse handlers in the next year. Thank you everyone who has supported me on my journey as an horse blogger. Thank you for all the comments whether they be on social media or in my blog's comment section. I hope everyone has a very happy New Year and I look forward to connecting with you all in 2018!
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Today, I want to focus on a scene from the 1979 movie The Black Stallion. Watch here: Swimming Black Stallion saves Alec. In this scene, the stallion has already jumped off the burning ship into the water before Alec, the boy, falls in. When the stallion appears, he can be seen swimming towards the boy while keeping his head above water. To film this scene, the film crew used an actual horse in a water tank and had attached wire cables to the sides of his halter to guide him towards the kid actor. You can see these wires in some of the shots. All the sudden, the horse's head gets pulled hard to his left side and turns him upside down where we can see his legs thrashing above the surface. This was actually a mistake done by the horse handlers as the person controlling the horse’s left side wire pulled too hard and flipped the poor horse over. Luckily, the horse was able to correct itself and get its head back above the surface on his own and swim on. Horses can swim if they need to. Their bodies are buoyant enough to keep their heads just above the water to breathe and their powerful legs are able to push them forward. Horses in the wild will swim across rivers to richer grazing grounds or to escape from land predators if necessary. However, since they are not built for swimming, they can only tread water for a short time before they become exhausted, which puts them at great risk of drowning. I recently read a news article about a girl who took her pony swimming on the beach and the pony panicked in the water and swam further out into the sea because he did not know how to turn around, and then he drowned. Many horse owners today love to take their horses swimming to cool off during the summer months. Some precautions horse owners should keep in mind is to make sure their horses become comfortable in water before they take them swimming. Also, be mindful that water does not get into the horse's ears as they can not drain easily and can get infected. Lastly, be mindful of hypothermia. A healthy horse’s temperature is between 99 - 101F (37-38C.) If a horse stays in cool water for too long, they can become hypothermic. A good rule of thumb to follow is if the water is uncomfortable for the rider, it’s probably uncomfortable for the horse. Equestrians - have you ever taken your horses swimming? Ever wonder how a horse is chosen for a film role and what preparations need to happen before a horse sets foot in front of the camera? I was able to interview the Les Amis Stunt Team from Scotland to help answer these questions and get some wonderful insight on what goes on behind-the-scenes to prepare horse actors to work in a film production. Can you tell me about who the Les Amis Stunt Team is, where you are based out of, and what you do with horses? We are a stunt team based in the borders of Scotland. We specialise in live performance shows such as cossack style trick riding or jousting & themed stunt shows such as wild west or barbarian shows, which we take all over the UK & Ireland. We also perform a lot of equestrian theatre shows, bringing theatre and horses together. Within our shows we perform many stunts such as rider falls, drags & many trick riding moves, our horses also perform many tricks such as bowing, standing on pedestals & rearing up. Being able to perform trick riding, stunts & horse tricks you have a perfect advantage before going onto a film set. We have been asked to & have done bits & pieces of small film & T.V jobs with our own horses, but on larger productions we work for larger teams & supply riders & grooms only. When film makers contact you requesting horses, do they usually know exactly what kind of horses they want for their film or do they ask you for suggestions based off what their film is about? It can really depend on what the film needs as to if they will ask for a specific horse or type of horse. For example we have recently been involved in a production about a viking princess, so they were obviously looking for a Norwegian Fjord horse as another breed would not have really worked. Which was perfect for us as we have Onion our Norwegian Fjord horse, who has been with us for nearly 10 years. Generally for smaller productions or back ground work they just need the horse & rider combination who can do the job properly. Although most productions will prefer Friesian & Andalusian horses. When organising with the production you have to discuss what is required of the horses & riders, make sure you have a place to livery the horses close enough to set & organise enough ground crew to look after & prepare the horses for their days work. As we are based in Scotland we like to keep things local, so if it is possible we will transport our horses back to our farm or in the past have had the production company come to our 75 acre hill farm or local area to use as the set. Do you research and make/order historically accurate horse tack for the different time periods the films take place in or do you usually use modern equipment? A combination of both really, accuracy is a very important part in many film jobs but safety during stunts is paramount. Generally we (Les Amis) make all of our own saddle, bridles, trappings & breastplates. We make our trick riding saddles, historical saddles (such as roman & border riever) & historical side saddles, this way the fit to the horse is best & we can make the saddle exactly how we want/need it. Other equipment such as harness and general purpose saddle we will purchase. With the exception of roman chariot harness, I am not sure where you would start to look to buy those, but luckily our saddlers whipped them up as easily as anything! For our live shows we research what era tack we are in need of, so we have a bit of a stock pile when a film jobs comes up. I am curious about what goes on during a typical day on set with a horse. Do the horses get lunged before filming to get their jitters out and help them to be more calm for the actors riding them? What else needs to be done to prepare the horses for a day on set? Generally the day will start by feeding the horses & transporting them to location, once there usually the grooming or washing will start. Tack & equipment are often cleaned before heading to location, but if not then it will also need to be cleaned before it goes to set! (even though it is often covered in dirt by the break down department immediately!) Yes, the horses will be either exercised before an actor rides them or warmed up before going onto set, if they will be expected to work quite hard. More often than not horses are just in the background, so they are just needed to stand & chill out while the actors do their bit. Do you ever need to help horses get accustomed to props, actors' costumes (such as big frilly hats), or set pieces? Ever have problems of horses shying away or becoming nervous of what they see on set, such as large filming equipment? With our own horses they all undergo a lot of training & desensitisation to strange & scary objects & with an understanding of training they are all very good at quickly calming down if something has frightened them. It is very good for us to be able to take our horses out to live performances as performing in a main arena with thousands of spectators is a good start to working around the hustle & bustle found on a set. With a combination of young and older/experienced horses the young/inexperienced ones take great confidence from the others. Personally our horses all live out as one big herd which gives them the ability to trust in their own instincts as well as following their lead horses into worrying situations. I have seen interviews where actors confess they did not know how to ride a horse before shooting their film, but told their casting director they did to help them get the part. Do you find most of the actors you work with have some horse riding experience or all they all true beginners? The actors that we have worked with with our own horses have all had a fairly basic knowledge of riding, so a lesson or two is needed before going in front of the camera. We are more than happy to take the time to help an actor with their riding as it will be of great benefit to the film & also a benefit to the horse he/she will ride. Which of your horses gets the most requests for film work? The main horse that has particularly been requested is Onion our Norwegian Fjord horse & this is of course because of his breeding. I see most of your horses are Friesians and Andalusians, which are two very common breeds used in movies and shows now a days. Why do you think they are so popular in movies and shows today? Friesians & Andalusians are very ancient breeds, so for historical shows or movies they are a very accurate breed. They are also particularly fancy & amazing to look at, which gives them the wow factor when performing in front of a live audience or a camera. But they are also lovely to train & work with & will really put their all into learning a new trick or movement! Follow Les Amis Stunt Team on social media.
Facebook: @filmhorsesscotland Twitter: @LesAmisdOnno Instagram: lesamisdonno Tumblr: Equestriantheatre Website: https://www.lesamisdonno.com/ Special thanks to Les Amis Stunt Team for the wonderful interview! I look forward to seeing you and your horses on the big and small screens! |
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AuthorI am Amy. I love movies, TV, and horses. I grew up with horses and taught kids how to ride during my summer breaks from school. Now I am a country girl living in a city hoping to someday move back into a rural area and own a horse again. Archives
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