outriding the devil
“This is not just a great cowgirl story. This is one of the great untold Western stories.” - Fallon Taylor, WPRA World Campion Barrel Racer
The greatest comeback in Western sports history. One of the most inspiring films ever made about the evolution of rodeo, triumph of the human spirit, and the great American West.
ABOUT THE Docudrama
OUTRIDING THE DEVIL goes deep into the roots of rodeo and Western heritage. The inspirational story of Texas Rodeo Hall of Famer, Angela Ganter, is the anchor to the docudrama and epitomizes the grit and determination of the Western Spirit.
She was a world champion barrel racer when she suddenly lost her husband, and then shortly after, in 2010, she was diagnosed with Stage 4 breast cancer. Angela wasn’t expected to live, but in a decade-long fight she defeated cancer and made arguably the greatest comeback in Western sports history, culminating in a win at the Calgary Stampede (after her prized and beloved horse, Bugs, died from a vet administered OD the night before).
While battling cancer, Angela coached her daughter, Jackie, to the 2015 WPRA Rookie of the Year Title at the NFR. Angela contemporizes the "never say die" spirit of the Old West.
setting the stage at historic mescal studios
The dramatizations that provide historical context to OUTRIDING THE DEVIL were filmed at the historic Mescal Movie Set, where iconic Westerns such as Tombstone, the Outlaw Josey Whales, and The Quick and the Dead were shot.
The descendent of pioneer ranchers, Angela’s great-grandparents were among the first to ranch in Comancheria, now West Texas, in 1850, before her grandfather became one of the first to ranch in Billy the Kid Country in New Mexico.
Among the ensemble cast is Mo Brings Plenty (Yellowstone), Emmy and Tony winner Eric Nelsen who played fan favorite Ennis in 1883, Eddie Spears from Spielberg’s Into The West, Golden Garnick (1923); Country music stars Ned LeDoux and Chancey Williams; and making his screen debut, recently crowned at the 2024 NFR, All Around World Champion, Shad Mayfield. Also from the world of rodeo, Lily Wright, sister of multi-world champions Stetson, Ryder, Rusty and Statler Wright, makes her first foray into acting as a young Angela Ganter.
Other rodeo idols featured in OUTRIDING THE DEVIL include “The Voice of Rodeo”; Bob Tallman, Stetson Wright and the Wright Family; Zeke Thurston; Ky Hamilton; and Fallon Taylor to name only a few. All world champions at the pinnacle of the sport.