Walt Disney’s “Secretariat” Equine Casting Call By: Lauren Pigford On August 6 Mayhem Pictures, producers of the upcoming Walt Disney’s “Secretariat” movie, announced an online, open, casting call for Secretariat look- a- likes. The news of the online, open, casting call hit the equine news circuit shortly after. Blogs were buzzing with the news like the popular Thoroughbred racing blog, OneFastHorse.com and The Handicapper’s Edge, racing’s free daily news for horseplayers. Horse owners were encouraged to submit photos for their hopeful “Big Reds” by August 31. Interested owners were to send emails to casting@secretariat.com and visit www.secretariat.com to fill out a submission form with a conformation picture and a headshot. All photographs submitted were to be personally reviewed by Rusty Hendrickson who is in charge of horse selection for the major motion picture. Hendrickson was also the lead horse “wrangler” for other racing movies such as “Seabiscuit” and “Dreamer.” “The three main qualities I’m looking for in a horse to portray Secretariat are looks, temperament and soundness,” said Hendrickson. “A big flashy chestnut would obviously have an inherent advantage, but I’m going to need at least two 'main' Secretariats and perhaps four stand-ins. I know that he was one of a kind, but we’ll do the best we can. A calm temperament is particularly key, especially when multiple takes are involved. But applicants need not feel that they must have an identical looking horse to be considered. We can do wonders with equine makeup for the white facial markings and the three white socks. Our horses need to be sound, but racing experience is not a necessity. And Secretariat’s short back and round hip are somewhat reminiscent of American Quarter Horses, so owners of that breed should also feel free to make submissions,” Hendrickson said. Mark Ciardi, producer for Mayhem Pictures decided to do the open casting call to find the very best horse to portray “Big Red.” “We feel we have a compelling story to tell in our movie, and we want the imagery to be as accurate as possible,” said Ciardi. “This Secretariat casting call will help us to find the very best Secretariats possible to portray the iconic chestnut champion.” Diane Lane is set to star in the “Secretariat” film about the relationship between the 1973 Triple Crown-winner and his owner, Penny Chenery. Now that all the photos and submission forms have been received Hendrickson, Cherny and others who knew the real Secretariat will select the top horses and begin filming later this year.