Eric Bendick
American horses are icons. Mustang. Appaloosa. Morgan. Quarter Horse. Each breed has a unique story to tell, and each story is a deep part of the American experience. Grounded in historical moments and charismatic people, American Horses traces the emergence of these remarkable horses and introduces contemporary trainers who are continuing in the long tradition of caring for them.
“These animals are like ghosts,” says Carlton Ward Jr.—National Geographic explorer, photographer, and 8th generation Floridian—at the beginning of this captivating film that endeavors to keep the Florida Panther from becoming just that: a ghost. As the last big cat surviving in the eastern United States and the state animal of Florida, the panther is an icon of Florida’s ever-diminishing wild places, as revealed in the film’s sumptuous images. Leading a team that includes cowboys, wildlife biologists, photographers/videographers, and a lot of folks who simply care about the future of Florida’s fragile ecology, Ward treks repeatedly into the Everglades and expanses of South Florida to seek, record, and save these ghosts.
Gifted wildlife photographers and intrepid ecologists brave the tangles of the Florida Everglades to discover the unknown pollinators of the rare and beautiful ghost orchid in this stunningly shot scientific mystery.
By horseback, foot, and paddleboard, three friends trek across Florida’s imperiled backbone. The Lake Wales Ridge is an ancient ribbon of sand dunes that is a hotspot for biodiversity found nowhere else in the world. It is also a place steeped in a long tradition of agricultural heritage. Both are threatened by the rapid pace of change in Florida’s wild interior.
