An original feature film
based on The Log of a Cowboy (1904)
Exodus IV.26
Western, Action/Adventure
Writer: Eric Esau (Saturn, American River)
Feature • 104 pages • $20M budget
Logline
In 1882, a young ranch hand joins a brutal cattle drive north from Texas and faces stampedes, ambushes, and unimaginable loss only to discover that the trail demands a cost he cannot outride.
Act I
Tommy Moore, a gifted nineteen-year-old cowboy, leaves his family ranch in South Texas to join a cattle drive bound for Montana, eager to prove himself and claim the life he believes he was made for. He earns early trust through skill and calm leadership, most notably when he runs point across the Rio Grande, and quickly absorbs the camaraderie and ritual of trail life—dust, music, night watches, and the quiet pride of belonging.
As the herd moves north, Tommy rides drag past his family home one final time, looking back as his parents watch from the gate, fully choosing the trail and leaving childhood behind without yet understanding what that choice will cost.
Act II
Not long after the drive begins in earnest, cattle rustlers fire into the night, triggering a violent stampede that tears the herd apart and kills one of the men beneath thousands of hooves. The loss marks a brutal shift in Tommy’s journey as the trail reveals its indifference to skill or intention. In the days that follow, hardship compounds—water disappears, cattle weaken and go blind, wolves attack, and the men are forced to ride through the night to escape the heat.
Tommy survives by grit and instinct, helping save part of the herd and tending to a wounded calf, but the romance of the trail gives way to exhaustion and grief as endurance becomes the only measure that matters.
Act III
Crossing into Indian Territory, hunger and poor judgment lead Tommy and another cowboy to kill a buffalo calf, provoking a tense confrontation with a Comanche band that nearly turns violent. Through translation and restraint, bloodshed is avoided, but Noche is taken in the standoff, leaving Tommy shaken by the sudden loss of the horse that carried him onto the trail.
The drive reaches Dodge City, where drink, women, and noise briefly replace discipline, and a brawl erupts as tempers fray. The men clash with the same trail cutters who have shadowed them for weeks, making it clear the danger is not behind them but waiting ahead. When the herd moves on from Dodge, the trail feels more exposed than ever, with conflict tightening around them.
As the drive presses north, rising tension with the trail cutters erupts into a violent shootout that claims the life of a veteran cowboy who has guided Tommy since the early days of the trail. His death cuts deeper than the others, not just as another casualty, but as the loss of the man who showed Tommy how to endure the work, read the land, and survive what the trail demanded.
The men bury him where he falls and move on, but the rhythm of the drive is broken, faith thins, and the road ahead feels colder. For Tommy, the trail no longer offers instruction or reassurance, only the responsibility of moving forward without the voice that had helped him find his way.
Act IV
Near the journey’s end, a final confrontation at a frozen river forces Tommy into one last test, demanding courage, judgment, and resolve from those who remain. Facing the elements and the consequences of every choice that led him here, Tommy acts not out of youthful ambition, but out of responsibility earned through loss. When the moment passes, there is no celebration.
Tommy chooses to go on, not because the trail promises reward or glory, but because he understands now what it asks and accepts the cost. He continues north not as a boy chasing a dream, but as a man who has paid for his place on the trail.
Act V
Page 16
Priest looks off at the horizon, the wind stirring dust across the plain.
“We’re all east of Eden now… tryin’ to find that trail back west.”
Tommy Moore, 19
A wide-eyed, skilled ranch kid from a loving San Antonio family who joins his first cattle drive seeking adventure and manhood. Initially naive and eager, he is hardened by relentless trail dangers, profound losses, and the quiet mentorship of older cowboys. By the end, Tommy must choose between returning home and fully embracing the unforgiving life of the trail.
Rudy Pankow, Finn Wolfhard, Leo Woodall
The stoic, no-nonsense trail boss has driven cattle for decades. A man of few words and iron resolve, he has buried too many hands and carries the weight of every loss. Flood quietly watches Tommy grow, offering gruff wisdom and rare moments of fatherly concern as he leads the outfit through hell toward Montana.
Jim Flood, 40’s
Andrew Lincoln, Gerard Butler, Michael Fassbender
Paul Priest, 40’s
A former Confederate soldier turned trail hand, Priest carries himself with quiet gravity and worn faith. He is disciplined, steady under pressure, and deeply aware of suffering: his own and others’. Priest believes in God without illusion and offers guidance through example rather than sermon.
Josh Duhamel, Michael Shannon, Tom Hopper
Supporting
Characters
Survivors, dreamers, and drifters. Hard men each bound by the dust of trail.
Randall Swiss
Male - 40'sA smooth, dangerous cattle rustler posing as a “trail cutter,” Swiss represents lawlessness without honor. He exploits the chaos of the trail, weaponizing violence for profit.
A hardened former Union soldier, John Officer moves through the trail with blunt pragmatism and a dry, cutting wit. He is physically tough, emotionally guarded, and comfortable with violence as a fact of life rather than a moral stance.
Officer
Male - 30's
Quarternight
Male - 30'sA veteran trail hand with an Irish Catholic background, Fox Quarternight is calm, observant, and unflappable under pressure. He carries himself with quiet competence and a dry sense of humor.
Honeyman
Male - 20'sRestless, impulsive, and quick with a grin, Honeyman uses humor as a way to stay moving and keep the danger at arm’s length. He’s a capable cowboy who chafes at discipline, often masking carelessness with jokes and bravado.
Page 103
FLOOD: “Looks like the trail ain’t done with us yet.”
Creative Comps
Rugged, grounded stories in a breathtakingly beautiful world.
Team
-
Eric Esau
WRITER + DIRECTOR
Eric is an award-winning film director known for the film The Heart of Man, which screened in 800 theaters across 30 countries. His latest original feature, Saturn, which he wrote and directed, is currently in the festival circuit. -
Micheal Flaherty
EXECUTIVE PRODUCER
Co-Founder and former President of Walden Media. Micheal has developed, financed, and produced nearly two dozen films that have grossed over $3 billion at the Global Box Office. -
Jamie Cohen
PRODUCER
Jamie Cohen is Managing Director and Co-Founder of Clockwork Films, a globally connected production company with partnerships including Universal, Lionsgate, and iHeartMedia. -
Jonathan Sharpe
PRODUCER
Jonathan is Co-Founder of ROR Media alongside producing partner, Micheal Flaherty. He is currently in pre-production on upcoming feature Pooh Bear in the City with Brigham Taylor.
