{"id":6835,"date":"2026-07-15T17:23:00","date_gmt":"2026-07-15T12:23:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/?p=6835"},"modified":"2026-07-15T17:23:00","modified_gmt":"2026-07-15T12:23:00","slug":"cowboy-director-nathan-grubbs-on-betting-the-farm-in-louisiana","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/?p=6835","title":{"rendered":"&#8216;Cowboy&#8217; Director Nathan Grubbs on Betting the Farm in Louisiana"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><script>\r\n  atOptions = {\r\n    'key' : '644b717812d811d6a1c1fc5b6ccd6fa6',\r\n    'format' : 'iframe',\r\n    'height' : 90,\r\n    'width' : 728,\r\n    'params' : {}\r\n  };\r\n<\/script>\r\n<script src=\"https:\/\/www.highperformanceformat.com\/644b717812d811d6a1c1fc5b6ccd6fa6\/invoke.js\"><\/script>\r\n<br \/>\n<\/p>\n<div>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\tIndependently financed American genre films rarely arrive without scars. In the case of \u201cCowboy,\u201d <a href=\"https:\/\/variety.com\/t\/nathan-grubbs\/\" id=\"auto-tag_nathan-grubbs\" data-tag=\"nathan-grubbs\">Nathan Grubbs<\/a>\u2019 directorial debut, which bowed at London\u2019s <a href=\"https:\/\/variety.com\/t\/raindance-film-festival\/\" id=\"auto-tag_raindance-film-festival\" data-tag=\"raindance-film-festival\">Raindance Film Festival<\/a>, the struggle to get the film made became almost inseparable from the story being told.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\tProduced through Rubicon Entertainment, the contemporary Southern noir Western was constructed incrementally, with Grubbs serving as director and lead actor and Joshua Ryan Dietz, Jeff Hoffman and Chris Sivertson penning the screenplay. Rather than waiting for a conventional financing package to fall into place, he and a tight group of collaborators began shooting, proving the film\u2019s possibilities chapter by chapter.<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\t\u201cThe biggest challenge in assembling the financing was honestly myself,\u201d Grubbs told <em>Variety<\/em>. \u201cI had to become this character, put on the cowboy boots, and bet on myself \u2013 in many ways, bet the farm.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\tProduction stretched across more than a year, requiring actors to return for multiple shoots while the filmmakers protected continuity, replaced lost locations and worked across a fragmented schedule.<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\t\u201cA few friends and I took a tremendous risk, shooting the film chapter by chapter and building momentum as we went,\u201d Grubbs explained. \u201cWhen people saw what we were accomplishing with very little money, the excitement grew.\u201d<\/p>\n<div class=\"post-content-image \/\/  size-large alignnone \">\n<figure class=\"o-figure  lrv-u-font-family-secondary u-color-medium-grey lrv-u-border-b-1 u-border-color-light-grey-tint-two u-margin-b-150 lrv-u-max-width-100p\" style=\"width:1024px\">\n<div class=\"c-lazy-image  \">\n<p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"c-lazy-image__img lrv-u-background-color-grey-lightest lrv-u-width-100p lrv-u-display-block lrv-u-height-auto\" src=\"https:\/\/variety.com\/wp-content\/themes\/pmc-variety-2020\/assets\/public\/lazyload-fallback.gif\" data-lazy-src=\"https:\/\/variety.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/cowboy-image1.jpg?w=1024\" alt=\"\" data-lazy-srcset=\"https:\/\/variety.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/cowboy-image1.jpg 1500w, https:\/\/variety.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/cowboy-image1.jpg?resize=150,100 150w, https:\/\/variety.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/cowboy-image1.jpg?resize=300,200 300w, https:\/\/variety.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/cowboy-image1.jpg?resize=1360,907 1360w, https:\/\/variety.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/cowboy-image1.jpg?resize=1000,667 1000w, https:\/\/variety.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/cowboy-image1.jpg?resize=910,607 910w, https:\/\/variety.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/cowboy-image1.jpg?resize=681,454 681w, https:\/\/variety.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/cowboy-image1.jpg?resize=450,300 450w, https:\/\/variety.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/cowboy-image1.jpg?resize=250,167 250w\" data-lazy-sizes=\"(min-width: 87.5rem) 1000px, (min-width: 78.75rem) 681px, (min-width: 48rem) 450px, (max-width: 48rem) 250px\" height=\"683\" width=\"1024\" decoding=\"async\"\/><\/p><\/div><figcaption class=\"c-figcaption  \">\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\tThat piecemeal process mirrors the film\u2019s preoccupation with survival. \u201cCowboy\u201d relocates the Western to New Orleans, where veteran Juno turns to robbery before a failed heist sends him to prison. After his release, he takes a job under a false name at the horse ranch he once targeted and forms a relationship with Eve, played by Alexandra Essoe, who was blinded during the crime.<\/p>\n<p>The film was initially conceived for California. Early versions placed its city passages in downtown Los Angeles and imagined a major chase unfolding through the concrete basin of the iconic L.A. River.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI liked the metaphor of someone at their lowest point, literally at the bottom of the river, and then within a short distance, reaching mountains, countryside, horses, and open space,\u201d Grubbs said.<\/p>\n<p>Once the production shifted to Louisiana, however, the project developed a more personal and distinctive visual identity. Railroad tracks took the place of the river; ranches, live oaks and Spanish moss replaced California\u2019s mountains and open scrubland. \u201cLouisiana changed the visual language, but in a beautiful way,\u201d he said. \u201cIt gave the film a unique identity, and because I\u2019m from Louisiana, it became deeply personal.\u201d<\/p>\n<div class=\"post-content-image \/\/  size-large alignnone \">\n<figure class=\"o-figure  lrv-u-font-family-secondary u-color-medium-grey lrv-u-border-b-1 u-border-color-light-grey-tint-two u-margin-b-150 lrv-u-max-width-100p\" style=\"width:1024px\">\n<div class=\"c-lazy-image  \">\n<p>\t\t\t\t\t\t<img loading=\"lazy\" class=\"c-lazy-image__img lrv-u-background-color-grey-lightest lrv-u-width-100p lrv-u-display-block lrv-u-height-auto\" src=\"https:\/\/variety.com\/wp-content\/themes\/pmc-variety-2020\/assets\/public\/lazyload-fallback.gif\" data-lazy-src=\"https:\/\/variety.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/cowboy_image2.jpg?w=1024\" alt=\"\" data-lazy-srcset=\"https:\/\/variety.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/cowboy_image2.jpg 1500w, https:\/\/variety.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/cowboy_image2.jpg?resize=150,100 150w, https:\/\/variety.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/cowboy_image2.jpg?resize=300,200 300w, https:\/\/variety.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/cowboy_image2.jpg?resize=1360,907 1360w, https:\/\/variety.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/cowboy_image2.jpg?resize=1000,667 1000w, https:\/\/variety.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/cowboy_image2.jpg?resize=910,607 910w, https:\/\/variety.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/cowboy_image2.jpg?resize=681,454 681w, https:\/\/variety.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/cowboy_image2.jpg?resize=450,300 450w, https:\/\/variety.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/cowboy_image2.jpg?resize=250,167 250w\" data-lazy-sizes=\"(min-width: 87.5rem) 1000px, (min-width: 78.75rem) 681px, (min-width: 48rem) 450px, (max-width: 48rem) 250px\" height=\"683\" width=\"1024\" decoding=\"async\"\/><\/p><\/div><figcaption class=\"c-figcaption  \">\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\tThat connection also shaped Grubbs\u2019 decision to direct. He had originally intended only to play the central role, but years of delays, shifting schedules and the disruption of the pandemic gradually made him the project\u2019s principal custodian.<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\t\u201cOver time, I became the person most responsible for protecting the film\u2019s vision and carrying it all the way through,\u201d he explained. \u201cIf there were pickup shots or unfinished pieces, I knew I would keep showing up. That responsibility ultimately led me to direct as well.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\tGrubbs cites Sam Peckinpah, the Coen brothers and Jacques Audiard as key influences, particularly in their handling of moral ambiguity, atmosphere and crime. Yet \u201cCowboy\u201d is less an exercise in genre quotation than an attempt to translate those traditions into a specifically Southern landscape.<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\t\u201cThe goal was never imitation,\u201d he said. \u201cIt was to honor the films that shaped me while still making something personal and rooted in my own experience.\u201d<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\tLimited resources were offset by local support. Louisiana residents provided locations at reduced rates or for free, while volunteers and working rodeo cowboys helped construct the physical world of the film. Grubbs built a horse corral alongside a friend; professional rodeo cowboys assembled the rodeo sequence with speed and authenticity.<\/p>\n<p class=\"paragraph larva \/\/ lrv-u-margin-lr-auto  lrv-a-font-body-m   \">\n\t\u201cPeople there really do bend over backwards to help a local filmmaker achieve something meaningful,\u201d he said. \u201c\u2026 That kind of support kept motivating us to keep going.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The experience also gave Grubbs a deeper appreciation of the demands placed on actor-directors. During production, he revisited \u201cCitizen Kane,\u201d \u201cDances With Wolves,\u201d \u201cEasy Rider\u201d and \u201cUnforgiven\u201d \u2014 not as direct comparisons, he stressed, but as examples of filmmakers assuming complete responsibility for a project. \u201cMaking \u2018Cowboy\u2019 gave me a deeper respect for how difficult that is, and how rewarding it can be when the film truly comes from a personal place.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>\u201cCowboy\u201d had its U.K. premiere at the recent Raindance Film Festival. For Grubbs, the festival\u2019s enduring commitment to independent filmmaking made it a particularly apt launchpad.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThe most important thing is that the film is finished and can now be seen,\u201d he said.<br \/>He already has three further features in development, including a science-fiction psychological thriller. On some, he may continue acting and directing; others could move him more firmly behind the camera. \u201cMaking \u2018Cowboy\u2019 reinforced my desire to tell stories that are emotional, cinematic, and personal,\u201d he said. \u201cIf I\u2019m able to make these next three films, that would be a dream come true.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<script async=\"async\" data-cfasync=\"false\" src=\"https:\/\/pl30214220.effectivecpmnetwork.com\/9ab3d4df8a7e1a6171e16ddbf732cc19\/invoke.js\"><\/script>\r\n<div id=\"container-9ab3d4df8a7e1a6171e16ddbf732cc19\"><\/div>\r\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Independently financed American genre films rarely arrive without scars. In the case of \u201cCowboy,\u201d Nathan Grubbs\u2019 directorial debut, which bowed at London\u2019s Raindance Film Festival, the struggle to get the film made became almost inseparable from the story being told. Produced through Rubicon Entertainment, the contemporary Southern noir Western was constructed incrementally, with Grubbs serving&#8230;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":6836,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/variety.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/nathan_grubbs.jpg?w=1000&h=563&crop=1","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6835","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-pics-news"],"brizy_media":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6835","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=6835"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6835\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/6836"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=6835"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=6835"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/usnews-14267fa.ingress-comporellon.ewp.live\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=6835"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}