Dillon, Montana --- The Montana Center for Horsemanship has announced that EQUUS INTERNATIONAL Film Festival 2020, the film festival founded and headquartered in Montana will be an official partner of the national conference planned this fall at the Montana Center for Horsemanship. “Of Horse, Human and Nature” a long planned conference at the Center in Dillon, Montana will feature Dr. Temple Grandin, a world-renowned animal behavior scientist and autism expert as well as Dr. Barbara Baker, president & CEO of the Pittsburgh Zoo and PPG Aquarium, the only zoo in the world incorporating natural horsemanship into management of exotic wildlife. Other equine experts in natural horsemanship, equine therapies, nutrition and other health areas, and dynamic horse presenters from around the nation will also be featured. Janet Rose, a Director with the Montana Center and founder of EQUUS INTERNATIONAL Film Festival says “it is our greatest hope that this event, scheduled for September, can be a beacon for the trail ahead – something we all might look forward to. Whether that will happen is still unknown, but we are working towards it, whether it brings us together in person or whether it may be virtual. We hope we can be together, but recognize, the future is uncertain.”
Rose says she’s excited to bring EQUUS INTERNATIONAL’s award-winning films to this national conference, adding “Dillon, Montana is a horse capital and one of the most beautiful environments in the world – to marry great horse films in this spectacular horse setting with western hospitality, doesn’t get any better.” Rose adds that the screening theaters of the University of Montana Western, the lead co-presenter for the conference, are exceptional - technically advanced and aesthetically beautiful. With multiple theaters, offering different seating capacities, the UM Western campus, says Rose is a perfect setting for public film screenings. EQUUS INTERNATIONAL Film Festival also just announced the addition of three film judges including Scott Knudsen, a Texas horseman and renowned “Cowboy Entrepreneur;” Elizabeth Kaye McCall, an international equine film and horse show specialist; and Lynda Mcleod, a longtime horsewoman and communications consultant. Additional film judges will be announced soon. The film festival is currently in an active Call for Entries.
The Montana Center for Horsemanship, home base for the September conference is currently preparing and expanding its educational footprint. It was in the midst of fundraising and development of state-of-the-art classroom and conference space and a veterinary and research laboratory, to accommodate large numbers of people, when the health crisis happened. Rose says, “as we were breaking ground, the coronavirus hit, but our hope now is for the health and well-being of everyone worldwide and prayers that people can come together again soon – we can only hope.”
To learn more, please visit https://www.montanacenterforhorsemanship.org/get-involved or contact Janet Rose at 406.925.3270 or by email - janet.rose@williamkriegelfoundation.org
The mission of the Montana Center for HorsemanshipTo help every horse and person make the most of their respective lives To enable horses to learn effectively and experience “horse happiness” through the process of Natural HorsemanshipTo help individuals achieve personal and professional success in the equine fields To perpetuate a defining tradition of the American West