ProRodeo Sports News - October 5, 2018

MOVIES

Chris Byrd, a PRCA bull rider originally from Compton, Calif., was among the group of Compton cowboys featured in the film Fire on the Hill .

Compton cowboys’ documentary premieres Fire on the Hill

Photo courtesy Brett Fallentine

BY MATT NABER B efore gang violence, drug dealers and traffic jams flooded the streets of Compton, Calif., the ’hood was cowboy country. Some are working to keep that part of South Central Los Angeles’ history alive, and their story is being told in an award-winning documentary. Fire on the Hill , a documentary about African American cowboys from Compton, premiered at the Los Angeles Film Festival, Sept. 22. Six days later, Fire on the Hill received the LAMuse Documentary Award. The film follows three African American cowboys working to protect their history and rodeo lifestyle after a fire burned down Hill Stable, a sanctuary in Compton where kids could escape gang life. Hill Stable’s location was partially zoned for agriculture when the land was donated to Los Angeles County by Griffith D. Compton in 1889. Among the cowboys to come out of Hill Stable and be featured in the film is PRCA bull rider Chris Byrd, a Compton native who started his PRCA

career in 2012 and now lives inWheatland, Calif., while working for Flying U Rodeo Company. “It’s pretty exciting to see a documentary about people frommy way and about me,” Byrd said. Also featured in the documentary are PRCAmembers Derrick Finnels and Lemontre “Tre” Hosley, and local cowboys Ghuan Featherstone, Calvin Gray, William “Fat Pack” Bias and Sid Cosby. ProRodeo Hall of Famer and Los Angeles native Charlie Sampson also provided commentary. “It was a little different from being talked to after a rodeo,” Byrd said of the film’s premiere. “They wanted to know if I was still rodeoing and wanted to know how I was doing in the standings, and they said it was a good movie.” For director/producer Brett Fallentine, Fire on the Hill is about more than just the cowboys fromCompton. “This is a film about perception and the perceptions we have with different places and cultures,” Fallentine said. “South Central L.A. has a reputation, and I went there thinking about this reputation. What I found were the most heartwarming, genuine and caring people. It turned my

ProRodeo Sports News 10/5/2018

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