12 Westerns: Casting Call for The Wilderness Road
12 Westerns in 12 Months is excited to announce a casting call for our upcoming feature The Wilderness Road, the first of two films based on the dark, early history of the Natchez Trace. The Wilderness Road is scheduled for production in October and November of this year in Baldwyn, Mississippi, and surrounding locations. Our casting director for these two productions — Six Shooter Studios – will be administering this round of video auditions.
Fourteen (14) roles are available in this casting call. Previous auditions from live casting calls held in Jackson and Vicksburg will be considered, but those who auditioned at those prior two live calls are certainly welcome to self-tape and submit again. Represented talent, please allow your agent to submit you, as this project is also available on Actors Access/Breakdown Services.
Please submit only one take per role. Also, submit a slate (stating name, height, city, state and ability to work local hire in the northeast Mississippi area) at the end of your audition in one single file. Finally, please submit in either .mov or .mp4 formats. Email your audition file – or transfer it by Dropbox or WeTransfer – to contact@sixshooterstudios.net. Also, provide a current headshot. If online demo clips are available, please feel free to provide a link in your submission email. Do not transfer or email demo reels.
The deadline for submission is 2 pm, February 21st.
The Wilderness Road will be a SAG project.
Email Six Shooter Studios at contact@sixshooterstudios.net with any questions. Please do not send headshots, demo reels, or auditions in any other ways than those outlined above.
BIG HARPE
30 to 45 years old, Caucasian male. 6’-0 tall or taller. Micajah “Big” Harpe and his brother Wiley “Little” Harpe were murderers, highwaymen and river pirates who operated in Tennessee, Kentucky, Illinois and Mississippi in the late 18th century. The Harpe brothers are considered the earliest documented serial killers in U.S. history. Smart, dominant, tough, and sadistic. Horseback-riding required. LEAD.
Please prepare this scene: Big Harpe Side
LITTLE HARPE
30 to 45 years old, Caucasian male. 5’-9 inches tall or shorter. Wiley “Little” Harpe and his brother Micajah “Big” Harpe were murderers, highwaymen and river pirates who operated in Tennessee, Kentucky, Illinois and Mississippi in the late 18th century. The Harpe brothers are considered the earliest documented serial killers in U.S. history. Little Harpe is even more calculating and clever than his brother, a very dangerous person. Horseback-riding required. LEAD.
Please prepare this scene: Little Harpe Side
THE HARPE WOMEN
20 to 40 years old, Caucasian female. The “Harpe Women” are Susan Roberts, Betsey Roberts, and Sally Rice, wives of the infamous murderers Big and Little Harpe. These women are at times accomplices, and at times victims, in the violent saga of the Harpe brothers. Susan is tall and tough. Betsy has been described as “gay-tempered.” Sally is the youngest of the wives. Each woman will be portrayed as pregnant during the film. Some horseback-riding required. SUPPORTING.
Actresses submitting, please choose one of the roles and prepare the side associated with that character.
Susan Harpe, Betsey Harpe, Sally Rice:
LANGFORD
20 to 30 years old. Caucasian male. Thomas Langford is a traveler on the Wilderness Road, a well-to-do, but naïve young man, underestimating the dangers around him. Impressionable. SUPPORTING. 1-2 Day Shoot.
Please prepare the following side: Langford Side
JOHN SWANEY
40 to 55 years old. Caucasian male. John L. Swaney is an historic mail carrier on the Natchez Trace. He is accomplished in his job and respected. By chance, he develops a personal relationship with one of the most famous Trace outlaws, the notorious Samuel Mason. Horseback-riding required. SUPPORTING. 1-2 Day Shoot.
Please prepare the following scene: John Swaney Side
HENRY SCAGGS
40 to 60 years old. Caucasian male. Henry Scaggs is a Kentucky Longhunter. He is passionate and committed, perhaps a little eccentric. He seeks to bring the Harpe Brothers to justice. Possible horseback-riding. SUPPORTING. 2-3 Day Shoot.
Please prepare the following scene: Henry Scaggs Side
COLONEL TRABUE
50 to 70 years old. Caucasian male. Colonel Trabue is a retired “Indian fighter.” He is weary from his days of war and has isolated himself from civilization, seeking a peaceful life with his young son. Possible horseback-riding. SUPPORTING. 1-2 Day Shoot.
Please prepare the following scene: Colonel Trabue Side
MOSES STEGALL
25 to 35 years old, Caucasian male. A man who plays both sides of the law. Tough, shady, ultimately vengeful. Possible horseback-riding. SUPPORTING. 1-2 Day Shoot.
Please prepare the following scene: Moses Stegall Side
MARY STEGALL
20 to 35 years old, Caucasian female. Sweet wife of Moses. At home with her baby and encounters the Harpe brothers, with horrific consequences. SUPPORTING. 1-2 Day Shoot.
Please prepare the following scene: Mary Stegall Side
THOMAS MASON
20 to 30 years old. Caucasian male. The oldest son of the outlaw Samuel Mason and a full member of his gang. SUPPORTING. 1-2 Day Shoot.
Please prepare the following scene: Thomas Mason Side
PREACHER ELI
40 to 60 years old, Caucasian male. Tall, thin. FEATURED DAYPLAYER.
Please prepare the following scene: Preacher Eli Side
CAPTAIN BALLENGER
35 to 50 years old. Caucasian male. Ballenger is a focused man, committed to law and order. Duty is his priority over all else. Horseback-riding required. 1-2 Day Shoot.
Please prepare the following side: Ballenger Side
JAMES BLAIN
30 to 50. Caucasian male. James Blain is a good-looking, frontier attorney general, a man in charge. But he has a problem on his hands. It is his responsibility to deal with the rampant violence caused by outlaws like Samuel Mason and the Harpes. SUPPORTING. 1-2 Day Shoot.
Please prepare the following side: James Blain Side
GEORGE
35 to 50 years old. Caucasian male. An “everyman” who seeks to protect his family and friends from outlaw violence but declining to get involved. George is a new settler who simply wants to stay out of the trouble on the frontier. FEATURED DAYPLAYER.
Please prepare the following scene: George Side
STORY: The first roadways through the American South in the late 18th century – the Natchez Trace and the Wilderness Road – are plagued by vicious and violent outlaws. Those who would bring frontier justice down on the likes of noted thief Samuel Mason and the sadistically murderous Harpe Brothers have a difficult time doing so.
