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Corral

(Of Cows and Cowboys)

Year: 1954
Format: 35mm Black & White
Runtime: 11 min
Director: Colin Low
Producer: Tom Daly
Writer: Colin Low
Cinematographer: Wolf Koenig
Editor: Tom Daly
Sound: Clarke Daprato
Music: Eldon Rathburn, Stan Wilson, Al Harris
Cast: Wallace Jensen
Production Company: National Film Board of Canada

This beautiful, deceptively simple documentary about a cowboy rounding up a herd of wild horses was shot in southwestern Alberta. An evocative, quietly nostalgic portrait (told without commentary), the film is less than twelve minutes long, but reaches poetic heights through its elegant cinematography, artful editing and romantic two-guitar score (played by Stan Wilson and Al Harris).

Originally intended as part of the Faces of Canada series, but released finally in the Canada Carries On series, Corral was the first actuality film made by National Film Board animation and documentary pioneer Colin Low. Shot near Low’s birthplace of Cardston, Alberta, it won numerous international awards and remains one of his – and the NFB’s – crowning achievements.