ABOUT THE PROJECT
LOGLINE
An otherworldly singer tours the dregs of the American West before finding transcendence.
SYNOPSIS
HOWLING WOLVES is a distant sequel to Memphis (Venice, Sundance ’14) and stars the same undeniable soul, Willis Earl Beal, with a decade lost in between. The film explores tragedy and disappointment and delivers a strange ascent into the unknown, asking the question—what happens to a singer when nobody wants to hear their song anymore? Do you give up? Kill yourself? Keep on? Or is there a fourth way?
HOWLING WOLVES observes each of these paths, ruminating on the meaning of art’s tenuous place in the world today. Reminiscent of early Wim Wenders and Jim Jarmusch, with cinematography styled from both the large-format photography of Ansel Adams and the streetwise eye of Robert Frank, HOWLING WOLVES is unapologetically arthouse, never stops searching for meaning, and nestles deeply inside the viewer’s mind long after the credits roll.
The story follows a troubled musician living in a motel on the outskirts of an anonymous Western city and busking for spare change to stay alive, having seen his once-promising music career crumble into ruins. When a representative from a tiny record label arrives to take him on tour, he agrees despite his deteriorating mental state. The journey takes them through a series of increasingly degrading venues of the failed American experiment: dive bars, military bases, Masonic temples, and Indian reservations.
Haunted by visions, with self-destruction imminent, the tour culminates at a final “gig” that miraculously leads him into a sublime state of peace and understanding. Anchored by devastating live musical performances, HOWLING WOLVES is a road movie that reaches the beautiful nowhere and gets there with excruciating honesty.
PROJECT TYPE Narrative Feature
DIRECTOR Tim Sutton
PRODUCER Madeleine Askwith, Sydney Foos, Alexandra Byer
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