Tillie Howard

A DISTURBANCE IN THE HIGH DESERT is a dramatic short-film that transports us to 1920s Eastern Oregon in the shadow of Mt. Hood. As economic hardship spreads, hateful forces and laws threaten the safety of those deemed "inferior" or "defective". Mare and Gemma are lovers who find each other while living a fragile existence in this rugged, unforgiving west. We meet them after Gemma endures a nighttime assault by an unexpected perpetrator on the outskirts of their ranch, a tenuous safe haven. The certainty of right and wrong blurs. Familial ties are tested.

Abigail, a high-strung horse fanatic, is competing in her last hobby horse competition before going off to college. Desperate to become a professional hobby horse rider and impress her parents, she'll settle for nothing less than first place. All that stands between her and her dream are five of the fiercest hobby horse competitors in Southwestern Open Class Division.