COWBOY.MOV

SYNOPSIS

Burdened with financial debt and the estrangement of his son, fast food worker Travis Howell finds refuge by channeling his overnight meme status into an increasingly dangerous and powerful online conspiracy show.

A NOTE FROM THE DIRECTOR:

What do you get when you cross $6k, a dozen college students, an unprecedented global pandemic, and rural Montana? This film, evidently. I grew up fascinated with Western mythology and iconography, from Eastwood to Leone to Johnny Cash. These stories encapsulate everything that makes America distinct, exploring ideas such as: consumerism, masculinity, love and death, and a driving spirit in the face of a harsh external world. And generally speaking, all this is set in the decades immediately following the American Civil War.

COWBOY.MOV (“dot em oh vee”) seeks to continue the exploration of the lone Western antihero into today’s cultural moment. We live in a unique time—a time where anyone’s grandmother can be a global celebrity in a matter of hours, all without leaving the house. This film combines American media narratives like “A Face in the Crowd” and “Network” with a touch of Coen-esque humor to explore fatherhood, friendship, and the corruption of power.

One year ago, COVID-19 began changing the world as we know it. With my final semester at Columbia’s film program effectively negated, I decided to make the most of the situation: writing a feature-length script in under a month, raising over $8,000 through online crowdfunding, and gathering a stellar team of eager filmmakers. We filmed for two weeks in July 2020, and worked tirelessly until March 2021 to edit the film into its current completed state. I hope you enjoy the film—and for your own health, I hope you don’t consume as many energy drinks as were consumed on our set. Cheers!