The Western, once a staple of North American cinema, has a strong European pedigree with names such as Sergio Leone, Corbucci, Karl May and Harald Reinl to name but a few. Seeing a gap in the short film market, Wilhelm Kuhn decided to develop this genre in France, recreating the American Frontier in the central region of Auvergne. The result was Kuhn's thesis film for The London Film School, THE PORTER BROTHERS. Kuhn’s project pits brother against brother as Sam Porter is forced to turn against his older sibling, Ned, by bounty hunters in order to stay alive. However, he discovers the price of redemption goes far beyond that of betrayal.
Aside from Kuhn, there was a strong LFS presence on the crew, many of whom invested in the film from their own pockets. The job of reconstructing the living standards of the 1870s was given to Production Designer Harry Bracho, with Dornaz Hajiha as Assistant Director, Ilhan Palayret as Grip and Director of Photography Jackie Teboul had the hard task of doing justice to the visual glory of the film.
Their sterling work has not gone unnoticed on the festival circuit. THE PORTER BROTHERS has already been screened at the Austin Short Film Festival, while also officially being selected for the Buffalo Fantastic Film Festival and Rivers Edge Film Festival in November. If that wasn’t enough, THE PORTER BROTHERS received an Award of Merit at this year’s Best Shorts Competition and was nominated for the Jerry Goldsmith Award for Best Score for a Feature Film.
Kuhn was able to take time away from his busy schedule to talk about the Western genre.
What is the appeal of the western?
The western is the most powerful embodiment of genre cinema, and also a central piece of American mythology. I think anyone who likes genre movies and American cinema is, by definition, a fan of westerns. It can also be seen as a sub-category of a broader genre: that of adventure films, whose essential theme revolves around the relationship between human beings and the wilderness.
Why has that appeal diminished over recent years?
It hasn't. We get this impression because like sword-and-sandal movies, the western is often associated with Hollywood's golden age but every decade since then has had its fair share of good westerns. And it's being constantly re-invented. The most recent example I can think of is BONE TOMAHAWK, which very astutely mixes horror and western genres.
Why did you choose to make a western?
Because it's absent from short films and I wanted to show that even a student short could pull it off. Also, I spent my childhood in those mountains in Auvergne where we shot the film, splitting my time between watching classic westerns on TV and playing cowboys in those mind-blowing open spaces. I think it's important to pay tribute to the period in your life that made you want to be a filmmaker.
To watch the scoring of the film, the sound editing in post-production and a national French news broadcast by France 3, visit THE PORTER BROTHERS’ Facebook page.
Written by Ben Corbett
Photo Credit: Jackie Teboul