Return to Freedom (RTF) celebrated Spirit’s birthday on Saturday, May 10, as part of the Opening Day of its 2025 program season (Spirit’s birthday is May 8).

“Spirit” co-director Lorna Cook and one of the film’s animators, Peter Paul (“Moana,” “How to Train Your Dragon”) spoke at the event, which attracted more than 300 fans from across the United States and from Brazil, Canada, Australia, Poland and England and raised funds for the more than 460 rescued wild horses and burros in RTF’s care.

“I was weeping listening to some of their stories,” said Neda DeMayo, founder of RTF, a national nonprofit wild horse and burro advocacy organization. “This movie and this horse have meant so much and been so transformative in so many lives! At one point, as staff led Spirit back up to his pasture, people from all over the world sang ‘Happy Birthday’ to this very special horse who carries their dreams of a free and kind world.”

DreamWorks Animation chose RTF’s sanctuary, headquartered in Santa Barbara County, California, as Spirit’s home following his time as the animators’ model for the 2002 film.

The “Spirit” filmmakers searched for a horse that embodied the characteristics of the iconic wild mustang. They selected Spirit, then called Donner, a young colt born to a stallion and mare captured by the Bureau of Land Management on the Kiger Herd Management Area in Oregon.

The filmmakers chose Spirit because of his beautiful conformation, wide-set eyes, and his thick, wavy and multi-colored mane and tail — a perfect example of genetically and historically rare 15th-century Spanish Barb horses. Animators observed him closely to create a horse character with realistic movements who could communicate without speaking.

In April 2002, after completion of the film, DreamWorks selected as a home for Spirit Return to Freedom’s American Wild Horse Sanctuary in Lompoc, Calif. Fans continue to travel from all over the country and all over the world to meet the stallion.

Like the animated film, Spirit continues to inspire many to learn about — and advocate for — the wild horses and burros whose survival on our public lands remains in jeopardy.

For his role as an ambassador for mustangs, the EQUUS Foundation and the United States Equestrian Federation inducted Spirit into the Horse Stars Hall of Fame in 2018. RTF opened its American Wild Horse Sanctuary in 1998 on 300 acres among the rolling hills of the Central Coast. There, visitors can experience the diverse herds that represent the American Mustang, including descendants of Padre Kino’sSpanish Mission horses, the Iberian Sorraia-type Sulphur Springs herd, and descendants of the Choctaw Indian ponies that carried the infirm on the Trail of Tears.

RTF offers a variety of other scheduled programs at its Lompoc headquarters as well as a 2,000-acre San Luis Obispo, Calif., satellite location. Programs include tours, photo safaris, Family Day events, as well as special workshops. More information is at returntofreedom.org/visit.

About the Film

DreamWorks Animation’s film Spirit: Stallion of The Cimarron is a tale of adventure and friendship about a wild horse (voiced by Matt Damon as a narrator) that cannot be broken. It features a combination of hand-drawn and computer animation. The screenplay was written by a longtime figure in the wild horse community, John Fusco, and directed by Kelly Asbury and Lorna Cook.

“Spirit” was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature. A song from the soundtrack, “Here I Am,” sung by Bryan Adams, was nominated for a Golden Globe. A Netflix spin-off series for children, Spirit: Riding Free ran for eight seasons and earned a Daytime Emmy Award. A feature film based on the series, “Spirit Untamed,” was released in 2021.

About Wild Horses and Burros

At a time when herds of wild horses and burros were fast disappearing on federally managed public lands, an outpouring of support led Congress to unanimously pass the 1971 Wild and Free-Roaming Horses and Burros Act. It provided a measure of protection but failed to set up a real management plan for the future of wild herds. Congress assigned the task of managing wild horses and burros primarily to the Bureau of Land Management (BLM).

The BLM has attempted to control population numbers almost entirely through capture and removal with helicopters — despite the availability of proven, safe and humane fertility control, which could slow herd growth and allow for more humane, on-range management.

In March 2025, the BLM estimated that there were 73,312 wild horses and burros on public lands it manages. Its goal is to reach a BLM-set “Appropriate Management Level” of no more than 25,556 total wild horses and burros across 177 Herd Management Areas in 10 Western states.

A total of 62,534 wild horses and burros now live not on the range but instead warehoused in government facilities at a cost to taxpayers of more than $101 million annually.

About Return to Freedom Wild Horse Conservation

RTF is a pioneering wild horse advocacy organization that has worked to preserve wild horses and burros through sanctuary, education, conservation and advocacy since 1997. RTF operates the American Wild Horse Sanctuary at two California locations. Since 1999, RTF has modeled the use of fertility control and other solutions there that can be implemented on the range.

— Edited Press Release

The post Return to Freedom Celebrates 30th Birthday of Spirit, Model for Beloved Animated Film ‘Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron’ appeared first on Horse Illustrated Magazine.

In the second podcast episode of The Horse Illustrated Episode of Horses in the Morning, brought to you by Title Sponsor Fields of Grace by author Cara Whitney, hosts Glenn the Geek and Sarah Evers Conrad talk to Elaine Bogan, director of the new DreamWorks Animation movie, Spirit Untamed; U.S. Olympic Dressage Team member Steffen Peters, who already has an abundance of experience on the international stage; and Margo Shallcross, the former trainer of Cass Olé, one of the horses that played The Black Stallion.

Hosts: Sarah Conrad, Digital Content Editor of Horse Illustrated & Young Rider and Glenn the Geek, host of Horses in the Morning

Title Sponsor: Field of Dreams by author Cara Whitney

There’s an App for that!  Check out the new Horse Radio Network app for iPhone and Android. Follow Horse Radio Network on Twitter or follow Horses In The Morning on Facebook.

Guests

Elaine Bogan is the director for the DreamWorks Animation movie Spirit Untamed, which came out in theaters on June 4, 2021. After receiving her Bachelors in classical animation at Sheridan College, Bogan found her home in story, which has translated into a challenging and successful career. She has been a story artist with DreamWorks Animation since 2005 on a wide range of feature films and television series, and began directing for the studio in 2011. Elaine Bogan became DreamWorks Television’s first female director while working on the series Dragons: Riders of Berk. Her debut episode was nominated for a 2014 Annie Award for Outstanding Achievement in Directing in an Animated Television/Broadcast Production. She went on to direct episodes of the Emmy-nominated Trollhunters and 3Below, both part of Guillermo del Toro’s Tales of Arcadia trilogy. While the movie is now out in theaters, it will also be available on Premium Video On Demand platforms starting on June 25 for families to watch at home.

Links: 

• The Official Movie Website: https://www.dreamworks.com/movies/spirit-untamed

Steffen Peters came to the United States in 1984 from his native Germany to work for trainer Laurie Falvo in San Diego. He became a U.S. citizen in 1992. He has been one of the country’s top international dressage competitors ever since, having represented the U.S. at four Olympic Games, four FEI World Equestrian Games, and two Pan American Games, and now he is headed to his fifth Olympic Games in Tokyo, Japan, in July 2021.

Peters rode his KWPN gelding, Udon, to Team Bronze in his first Olympic outing in 1996. With Legolas 92, he won Team and Individual Gold at the 2015 Pan American Games in Toronto and Team Bronze at the 2016 Rio de Janeiro Olympics. With his longtime mount, Ravel, the KWPN gelding owned by Akiko Yamazaki, he won the FEI World Cup in 2009 and two Individual Bronze medals at the 2010 Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games in Lexington. He has been recognized for his accomplishments with three USEF Equestrian of the Year titles, in 2008, 2009, and 2011.

Peters has built a phenomenal record with his current top horse, Suppenkasper, a KWPN gelding owned by Yamazaki and Four Winds Farm. They were undefeated in 2020 through the Adequan Global Dressage Festival in Wellington, Fla., and the CDI 3* at Desert Dressage in Thermal, Calif. The pair kicked off 2021 in the same winning fashion, winning the FEI Grand Prix and Grand Prix Special CDI 4* at the Adequan Global Dressage Festival (AGDF) week 3 and the FEI Grand Prix and Grand Prix Freestyle CDI 5* during week 7 of the festival.

Links: 

• SPetersDressage: Operated by Steffen Peters and his wife, Shannon, a U.S. Dressage Federation Bronze, Silver, and Gold medalist and three-time National Championships competitor

Margo Shallcross was introduced to the world of Arabian horses in 1964. Shallcross joined Anderlea Arabians in Albion, Iowa, as head trainer and farm manager in the 70s. Her responsibilities included training, breeding, and showing Anderlea’s horses. In 1977, she became the head trainer and farm manager at San Antonio Arabians, home of Cass Olé. Cass Olé starred in two movies, The Black Stallion and Return of The Black Stallion. She showed the famous stallion at liberty at numerous national and international venues, including the U.S. and Canadian Arabian National Shows, the White House, and the Washington International Horse Show. She also presented Cass during T.V. appearances. In 1983, she opened her own training facility, Fancy Free Arabians, which she ran until 2006. There, Shallcross offered training, lessons, breeding, and showed clients’ horses at the local, regional and national levels.

Shallcross, who has been judging Arabians since 1990, is a Senior National Judge with the USEF Arabian Division, the Pinto Association, the American Miniature Horse Association and the American Miniature Horse Registry. She has judged numerous national and international world competitions, including shows in Venezuela, Mexico, Australia, New Zealand, Austria, Belgium, Denmark and Canada.

Links: 

• Official Site of The Black Stallion

Title Sponsor

We want to thank our Title Sponsor, Fields of Grace by author Cara Whitney. Draw closer to God down on the farm. From her horse farm in Nebraska, Cara Whitney—wife of Dan Whitney (aka “Larry the Cable Guy”)—shares humorous and touching stories featuring her horses, cows, and rascally dogs. In Fields of Grace, Cara shows us that it’s always a good time to share the love of Jesus with your neighbor. Look for Fields of Grace everywhere books are sold.

Premier Sponsor

We would also like to thank our Premier Sponsor, Straight Arrow Products. Mane ‘n Tail’s newest premium product line, Ultimate Gloss, will leave your horse’s mane, tail, and coat with an award-winning shine. If you are looking for a formula that gets down to the skin, releasing dirt, dander, and build-up from your horse’s coat, then Ultimate Gloss is your go-to bathing solution. Made with natural ingredients, Ultimate Gloss provides a gentle way to leave your horse with a high-gloss, long-lasting shine. Discover the secret behind the “Boss of Gloss” by visiting the website at www.ultimategloss.com.

The post Episode 2: Spirit Untamed, Olympic Preview, and Insider Stories of The Black Stallion for June 22, 2021 from Title Sponsor Fields of Grace by Cara Whitney appeared first on Horse Illustrated Magazine.

Meet the horses of DreamWorks’ new movie, Spirit Untamed, with actress McKenna Grace, who plays Abigail Stone in the movie. An epic adventure about a headstrong girl longing for a place to belong who discovers a kindred spirit when her life intersects with a wild horse, Spirit Untamed is the next chapter in the beloved story from DreamWorks Animation.

Lucky Prescott never really knew her late mother, who was a fearless horse-riding stunt performer from Miradero, a small town on the edge of the wide-open frontier. Lucky has grown up in an East Coast city under her Aunt Cora’s watchful eye, but when Lucky presses her luck with too many risky escapades, Cora picks up stakes and moves them both back with Lucky’s father in Miradero. There, she meets Spirit, a wild Mustang who shares her independent streak, and befriends two local horseback riders, Abigail Stone and Pru Granger.

When a heartless horse wrangler and his team plan to capture Spirit and his herd and auction them off to a life of captivity and hard labor, Lucky enlists her new friends and bravely embarks on the adventure of a lifetime.

The movie features Jake Gyllenhaal, Julianne Moore, Isabela Merced, Eiza Gonzalez, Marsai Martin, and McKenna Grace. The movie is directed by Elaine Bogan.

After you meet the horses of Spirit Untamed above, visit https://www.dreamworks.com/movies/spirit-untamed.

Further Reading

• New Series Inspired by Spirit: Stallion of the Cimarron Comes to Netflix

The post Meet the Horses in DreamWorks’ Spirit Untamed Movie appeared first on Horse Illustrated Magazine.