Cowgirls
Sally Clark, producer/director

The women in rodeo come from a world that is widely misunderstood and disregarded. Set in the province of Alberta, Canada’s equivalent to Texas, Cowgirls shows us the modern day gladiators and the revered royalty of rodeo. These women’s defiant and unbridled nature fits the textbook definition of feminism and yet very few feel comfortable calling themselves feminists.

Through a series of portraits from daredevil trick riders to septuagenarian barrel racers to rodeo queens, Cowgirls also reveals the intricacies of several rodeo events that only recently allowed champions like Charmayne James to become million-dollar athletes and seasoned professionals like Monica Wilson to become the first woman in thirty years to win the title "Cowboy of the Year." We also learn about the dangerous and life-threatening stunts that these women perform in a male-dominated arena where bruises, blood and broken bones are decidedly commonplace – even for seniors like 79-year-old Milly Pedersen.

Cowgirls will enlighten audiences about the thrilling sport of rodeo and its thriving subculture, as well as the myths behind the cowboy’s counterpart. This is a film riddled with contradictions about womanhood and feminism and is a perfect discussion starter.

This VHS video is 29 minutes long.