In “The Cowboy and the Queen,” director Andrea Nevins chronicles the work of Monty Roberts, a California-based horse trainer whose non-violent training techniques caught the attention of the late Queen Elizabeth II. The documentary explores how the Queen endorsed Roberts’ controversial, compassionate horse training methods in 1989, which helped him change horse training standards around the world.
The 84-minute film premiered at the New York International Film Festival last year. Greenwich Entertainment will release the film in select theaters on September 6.
Nevins initially set out to make a documentary about the Queen and her work in breeding her famous corgi breed – short-legged herding dogs that originated in Wales. During her reign, the Queen owned an estimated 30 corgis and dorgis.
“I thought if I could interview some of the women who helped her raise her famous offspring, it would be an interesting way to look at this one area where the devoted Queen Elizabeth II might have had some fun and some kind of agency in her most specific life,” Nevins says.
But the director quickly discovered that nearly all of the late Queen’s corgi breeders had died. During this research phase of the project in 2020, Nevins came across Roberts, an 85-year-old California cowboy who had spent more than 30 years advising the Queen on her legendary horse collection.
“After spending a day interviewing Monty during the COVID pandemic, and he told me the story of how he and Queen Elizabeth became friends, I decided this was the documentary I wanted to make,” says Nevins. “The way he was able to weave his story of growing up in California during World War II and the Queen’s story, both of them committed to finding a way to transform the trauma they experienced during the war into a better, kinder way to treat not only horses but people as well,[had me]completely captivated. I was captivated by their friendship and their shared goals.”
In the film, Nevins uses archival footage, including old films and photographs that Roberts kept in his garage and in a large storage container on his farm, to tell the story of an unlikely friendship.
“We were able to find some rich and beautiful images from the Queen’s 96-year life and 70-year reign, and some never-before-seen footage of Monty with the Queen and working with the Queen’s untrained horses,” says Nevins. “When I found that footage, that was it. I was determined to make this film.”
In May, “The Cowboy and the Queen” received a Humanitas Award nomination in the Documentary category and was an official selection at the Santa Barbara International Film Festival, the Berkshire International Film Festival and the Boulder International Film Festival.
The film is the third documentary Masterclass will air this year. In July, the online learning platform launched its first three-part limited documentary series, including “The Cowboy and the Queen,” JR’s “Tehachapi” and Bess Kargman’s “Diane Warren: Relentless.”
“The Cowboy and the Queen” will premiere on Masterclass on September 12.
Watch an exclusive clip from the documentary here:
