Texas Focus: The Whole Shootin' Match

Originally a 16mm black and white film, The Whole Shootin' Match is about two middle-age country boys and close friends Lloyd (Lou Perryman) and Frank (Sonny Carl Davis) who work as partners on assorted manual labor jobs in order to scrape by. In search of fast cash and a quick fix to the otherwise dilapidated circumstances of their lives, Lloyd and Frank come up with an idea that they hope will bring them steady cash flow, only to find the associates they've entrusted with their plan have deceived them. Disenfranchised by the inequality of life, Frank and Lloyd are confronted with the battle between perseverance and wearying reality.

The tone of the film is set by its music–composed by Chuck Pinnell and featuring Slaid Cleaves– and its visual composition which exposes a rare simplicity characterized by discrete and meaningful shot angles. The Whole Shootin' Match is said to be the film that inspired Robert Redford to start the Sundance Film Festival.

Following the screening, Sonny Carl Davis will be in attendance for a Q&A moderated by Louis Black.

This Texas Focus screening is in collaboration with UT Press.

Support for the Bullock Museum's exhibitions and education programs provided by the Texas State History Museum Foundation.

In this audio interview, Sonny Carl Davis talks about filming The Whole Shootin' Match and director Eagle Pennell's search for an artistic message.

Audio Transcript

About the Filmmaker

Eagle Pennell, a native Texan raised in Lubbock, began his interest in film in his teens, utilizing his father's Super 8 camera and his siblings as cast members for sketches. After spending some time as a Radio, Television and Film major at The University of Texas at Austin, Pennell decided to pursue filmmaking full-time, beginning with a generous appetite for displaying a vision of Texas life.

Pennell made films that were regional, but he hoped that they would reach a wider audience. Chuck Pinnell– Eagle's brother and composer of the music in The Whole Shootin' Match– stated, "Eagle had the ability to control people and take them on journeys." Sadly, Pennell's self-destructive nature and strong appetite for substances led to his ultimate demise before the age of fifty. Eagle Pennell left behind a name in the film world that represents the trailblazing nature of what it means to be a Texas independent filmmaker.

Ticket prices are $3 for Bullock Museum members and students with a valid college or university ID and $5 for non-members.

To view the Film Ticket Refund and Reschedule Policy, click here.