Wayward Teens Find Solace in Horse Country During Sundance Award-Winning ‘East of Wall’ Trailer

Kate Beecroft makes her directorial debut with the Sundance Audience Award-winning Western “East of Wall,” which blends genre tropes with docu-fiction storytelling. It was Beecroft’s investigative instinct and deftness for storytelling that led her to encounter Tabatha, a real-life rancher on whose own life “East of Wall” is based. Tabatha stars as a fictionalized version of herself in the feature set in South Dakota.

The official synopsis teases that “East of Wall” is an “authentic portrait of female resilience in the ‘New West’ inspired and played by the women and girls who live it. Set in the Badlands of South Dakota, Tabatha, a young, rebellious rancher, who rescues and resells horses, must make hard decisions to deal with her fractured family, financial uncertainty, and unresolved grief, all while providing refuge for a group of wayward neighborhood teens.”

Related Stories

The Beautiful, Brutal Action of ‘Predator: Killer of Killers’

‘Inside’ Review: Guy Pearce Delivers Another Incredible Supporting Performance in Australian Prison Drama That Cuts Through All the Bull

Tabatha Zimiga and her daughter Porshia Zimiga are joined by actors Scoot McNairy and Jennifer Ehle for the film.

Beecroft told IndieWire that she first realized Tabatha’s story belonged on the screen after driving through her town in 2019 with DP Austin Shelton. Beecroft spent the next five years living at Tabatha’s ranch for three weeks every month.

“Really, what I was doing was just talking to them all the time, and having them tell me their stories,” Beecroft said of creating the story around Tabatha and her family. “So, in a way, it was kind of like an audition. If you can tell me a story and keep me into that story, then you have something that could be held on screen. And they all did.”

Beecroft added of structuring the film to include parts of the Zimiga’s life, “When it is somewhat fiction, they don’t feel so naked. I don’t want to put these kids in a position where they feel naked. It just wasn’t fair, but it also wasn’t fair for their artistry.”

“East of Wall” is screening as a Spotlight feature at Tribeca Festival and also will screen at the 2025 Bentonville Film Festival. The film is produced by Beecroft, Lila Yacoub, Melanie Ramsayer, and Shannon Moss, with Scott Frank, Al Engemann, Naia Cucukov, Peter Richards, Randy Wooten, Caitlin Gold, Ryan Hawkins, John D. Martin, and Staci Hartman executive producing.

“I am a no name director, no name DP, no name cast. I had no one attached to it,” Beecroft said of getting “East of Wall” made. “The only thing I could do, especially as a female filmmaker, especially with no name, was make the best pitch trailer possible, so I can be like, ‘Look what me and my DP can do without any crew, without any money. If you give us money, imagine what we could do with more.’”

Sony Pictures Classics will release “East of Wall” in theaters on Friday, August 15. Check out the trailer and poster below.