Writer/director Gary Ross reteams with his "Pleasantville" stars Tobey Maguire and William H. Macy for "Seabiscuit," the true story of a little horse who beat the odds and became a champion. Ross worked closely with Laura Hillenbrand, author of "Seabiscuit, An American Legend," to bring the touching tale of three troubled men and an underdog horse to the big screen.
GARY ROSS (Director)
You had to buy and train all of the horses?
We owned 40 horses so it was kind of like running a circus and [doing] a movie at the same time. We had 30 wranglers and handlers to take care of them. We had the feed and all the things that are associated with that. We literally had everything but elephants. It was a very complex road trip that we had. We sold them all and found very, very happy homes for them.
Are any of the horses racing now?
I'd have to check. I'm not sure.
How difficult was it to get the horses to work around all the cameras?
They had to get used to them. We took about two or three weeks running, desensitizing them to cameras, running them next to a pick-up truck, simulating a camera so that they would become acclimated because there are times when the camera is literally a foot away from the horses.
And you don't use any special effects?
Yes, exactly. It's a very old-fashioned movie and we're proud of that.
How does this story set in the Depression era still apply today?
I think it's the resilience. We've never gone through times as difficult as that and yet we persevered. We persevered together and that's ultimately the message of this movie. We can't do it alone, sometimes we need other people. These three guys pulled together and they helped each other and they saw potential in each other and in the horse. I think we can get inspiration from the fact that we came through times that are much harder than these and we survived.
Chris McCarron at the World Premiere of "Seabiscuit"
Photo ©Rebecca Murray. All Rights Reserved.
Are you still racing?
I rode here in the United States for about 28 years [and] I retired last year. I worked on "Seabiscuit" as the race consultant.
How realistic is the movie?
It's very authentic. I'm very proud of the racing scenes and how realistic they look, and how true to life the story is. There are a few things in the story that may not be historically accurate but that's only with regards to the races. It's not easy to completely duplicate the races with extreme accuracy. So there's a couple of little things that are off, but it still tells the story.
Was it hard to get the horses to try not to win?
It's in their blood to run fast and try to beat everybody to the wire. It's really difficult when you have all those horses out on the track and you want some of them to start slowing down and backing up and let people catch up and win. If they don't want to cooperate, there's really not a whole lot you can do about it. It gets tricky.
