Ahead of the world premiere at DOC NYC, Ashland, Wyatt Maw’s documentary portrait of Montana’s landscapes and people has unveiled its official trailer.
Shot on Super 16mm film over the course of eight years, the panoramic portrait explores the hopes and dreams through the traditions, triumphs, and tragedies of a diverse group of people living today on the sacred lands of Southeast Montana, near the site of the Battle of Little Big Horn.
Influenced by Abbas Kiarostami, Ermanno Olmi, Les Blank and Terrence Malick, Maw brings an intimate, authentic, and lyrical lens to the plains, following young people, horse whisperers, indigenous elders, mystics, and more to present a rare portrait of identity, resilience, and place.
Ashland marks award-winning filmmaker and photographer Wyatt Maw’s feature directorial debut.
“Ashland has been a journey 10 years in the making. It started by accident – when I decided to take a job on a ranch for a summer in Ashland. I immediately fell in love with the place. It felt like time moved differently there. You could feel the presence of the generations all around you. The intense bonds with horses and almost spiritual connection to the land was profoundly moving to me. One could say that the Old West was still alive there just only in a slightly altered form. Shortly after arriving, the idea for a movie slowly started to reveal itself to me. And now, almost a decade later, we’re so excited to bring the film to NYC audiences as part of DOC NYC. Jaie and his team have been incredible to work with and it means the world to us that they see in Ashland the same things we all felt when we were making it. This film is an ode to the people and the place and the deep magic that resides within it. We hope that audiences will feel this as much as we do,” said director Wyatt Maw.
Among other collaborators on Ashland are executive producer Luke Brawley of Indox, two-time Oscar-nominee sound designer Martín Hernández, who earned his Academy Award nominations for sound editing on Alejandro G. Iñárritu’s Birdman and The Revenant, and colorist Alastor Arnold, who graded Sean Baker’s Anora and Red Rocket. Executive producer Kyle Martin produced Lana Wilson’s Look Into My Eyes and Margaret Brown’s Descendant.
“After seeing Ashland for the first time, I knew I wanted to be involved in a bigger way. Coming on board as an Executive Producer for the first time has been incredibly exciting, as I truly believe Wyatt has created something remarkable. The film feels both deeply real and almost magical, a genuinely sensory experience where you can practically feel the earth beneath your feet and smell the air around you. We’re thrilled to be premiering at DOC NYC, where the festival team, and Jaie in particular, have been incredibly supportive and connected with the film and its vision from the very beginning. This trailer offers a glimpse into the film’s quiet yet epic nature, and we can’t wait for audiences to experience it on the big screen at the festival,” said executive producer Luke Brawley.
DOC NYC Artistic Director Jaie Laplante writes, “A love letter to the inhabitants and vast landscapes of Montana, Wyatt Maw’s debut feature may be the closest thing to ‘a rest from the storms of life,’ which is how one protagonist describes her hometown. Lyrical and pastoral, Ashland has a deeply authentic soul, as Maw follows several sets of Montanans over eight years. The expressionistic film’s editing isn’t literal or linear, providing a sensory, immersive impression of a world that you don’t want to leave.”
Wyatt Maw directed Ashland and produced it with James Carson. The creative team includes cinematographers Maw and Hatti Beanland, editors Carson, Ivete Lucas, and Lance Edmands, sound designer Martín Hernández, and colorist Alastor Arnold. Sebastian Sepulveda and David Barker served as editorial consultants, with Rome Widenhouse as assistant editor. Dominica Eriksen, Drake Woodall, and Declan Saint-Onge contributed additional cinematography. Woodall and Saint-Onge also served as camera assistants alongside Stu Segal. Brad Nayman recorded sound, with additional sound by Cal Robertson, Mark Dorcak, and Phillip Meyer. Molly Ortiz and Beanland served as associate producers, with Danielle Varga as producing consultant. Executive producers are Gary Oakland, Melissa Oakland, Luke Brawley, Kyle Martin, James Hollensteiner, Wanda Hollensteiner, and Julian Cautherley.
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