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Tamara Rae Larsen says she thought allowing a production company to shoot part of a movie starring Robert Duvall at her Riverton ranch in exchange for screen credits was a good business move.
She wanted to publicize the beauty and functionality of the Riverbend Ranch Equestrian Center to attract patrons and other movie production companies, according to Larsen, so she spent money and time preparing her home and the ranch for filming.
But there was no credit for the ranch or herself when "Wild Horses" came out this year, Larsen alleges in a breach-of-contract suit filed Sept. 11 in Utah's 3rd District Court.
The lawsuit seeks at least $2 million for lost publicity and an order that the screen credits be added to all media formats of the movie, including iTunes, Amazon Instant Video, Netflix, On Demand, DVD and films distributed to cinemas.
Named as defendants are Wild Horses Productions Entertainment LLC; Duvall, who was the movie's director, writer and star; producer Robert Carliner; and John Doe Defendants I-XX, which are persons or entities responsible for the conduct alleged in the suit.
The defendants could not be reached for comment. Court records show Duvall, who lives in Virginia, has been served with the suit; as of Friday, the other defendants apparently have not been served, according to the court docket.
Riverbend Ranch is a 25-acre equestrian center that boards and trains horses, provides riding lessons and holds horse shows, according to the suit. The facility's features include indoor and outdoor arenas, irrigated pastures surrounded by white vinyl fencing and a barn that occupies an entire acre.
Larsen, who owns and operates the ranch, lives there in an 8,500-square-foot home.
In her suit, Larsen says she signed a location agreement with Wild Horses Productions in July 2014 to allow filming at the property. In return, she was to get screen credits and a modest payment to cover the cost of renovations that were required before shooting could begin, the suit says.
The production company filmed most of the scenes at various locations on the ranch and in the home in August 2014, the suit says. It says that while the movie was being shot, the equestrian center had to suspend some of its operations and Larsen was required to vacate her bedroom and other living areas.
Larsen, who says she appeared in a scene in the movie without compensation, alleges Duvall acknowledged the Riverbend Ranch's critical role in "Wild Horses" by repeatedly stating at a dinner party after filming that "if the film could not have been made at the ranch, it would not have been made at all."
Wild Horses Productions did not invite her to any screenings or provide her a DVD of "Wild Horses," Larsen alleges in the suit, and she learned the company had breached the location agreement by watching the movie on TV.
The breach was all the more egregious because the movie's screen credits included furnishers of hats and costumes, as well as several Utah cities, but omitted any reference to Riverbend Ranch, Larsen and Riverton, the suit says. The screen credits also included a feed store "although the store's exterior was merely glimpsed" during a scene, the suit alleges.
The movie — which also stars James Franco and Josh Hartnett — is about the reopening of a 15-year-old missing-persons case and the relationship between a Texas rancher and his son. Mark G. Mathis, a producer for "Wild Horses," has said Utah has small towns that when viewed from angles to avoid mountains in the background could pass for west Texas.
On July 10, 2014, the board of the Governor's Office of Economic Development (GOED) approved a post-production tax credit for Wild Horses Productions of 25 percent of the money spent in Utah making the movie, if certain criteria were met.
Mathis told the board the production company would use 34 cast members, 56 crew members and 100 to 150 extras. With spending estimated at more than $1.6 million, Wild Horses Productions was eligible for up to $400,875 in tax credits.
The suit says Duvall was a member of Wild Horse Productions and its registered agent, and Carliner was a member or managing partner or both. California secretary of state records show the company was formed July 7, 2014, and canceled July 16, 2014, according to the suit. It says the location agreement took effect July 18, 2014, and the defendants did not tell Larsen about the company's cancellation.
Wild Horses Productions "appears to have been formed as a sham LLC [limited liability company] for the sole purpose of obtaining GOED incentives," the suit alleges.
Noting that the cancellation document shows Wild Horses Productions has no assets, the suit also says using a "nonexistent corporation" to shield Duvall and Carliner from liability would "sanction fraud" and "promote injustice."
Larsen is asking for a declaration that Duvall's and Carliner's personal assets can be used to satisfy any judgment entered against them.
Mathis, who signed the location agreement on behalf of Wild Horses Productions, could not be reached for comment.
"Wild Horses" premiered at the South by Southwest Film Festival in March and had an Internet release and a limited theatrical release June 5. The review aggregation site Rotten Tomatoes scored the movie at 17 percent favorable among critics, while the audience score was 16 percent favorable.
Twitter: @PamelaMansonSLC