Ford Ranch, New Mexico

Ed Harris recalls, "I wanted to make a film that had the right scope to depict the magnificent country in which the story takes place--in the Southwest, in New Mexico. I thought Parker's story deserved that. I always loved New Mexico.

The Ford Ranch in Santa Fe ended up being our best bet in terms of scenery and intangibles. It's a very film-friendly situation because a lot of production folks have moved from Los Angeles to New Mexico, so there's a ton of skilled craftspeople there. Aesthetically it was the best place to shoot. All you've got to do is get out here and experience it. Big sky. Hills. Desert. Quiet."

Dean Semler, Cinematographer

"Appaloosa" is director of photography Dean Semler's seventh film shot in New Mexico. "Santa Fe is ideal for shooting Westerns. You've got such a variety of landscapes," Semler says, referring to the state's picturesque offerings of tabletop mesas, sandstone buttes, high desert chaparral, alpine terrain and river basins.

Semler shot the film in anamorphic, wide-screen aspect ratio, often utilizing wide-angle lenses to capture the grand Southwestern panoramas. "We used a lot of beautiful still frames with landscapes and people in them. So we didn't isolate the background, we've included it, which was beautiful. We made the most of the landscapes and the characters in it," notes Semler.

Color Palette

"The color palette in New Mexico is really incredible on screen," observes Ginger Sledge. "Dean captured amazing vistas, with rich and saturated tones. You've got the vibrant blue sky and beautiful greens with shades of tan, pale pink and orange mixed in. This land is amazing."

"Appaloosa" was filmed from late September to early December 2007 in and around Santa Fe. Various locations included the multi-hued sandstone cliffs of Abiquiu and alongside the Chama River, where the autumn cottonwoods were turning golden. The town of Appaloosa was constructed on designer Tom Ford's Cerro Pelon Ranch in Galisteo. The scene where Bragg's men chase Cole and Hitch was filmed crossing the Rio Grande River near Algodones. While most of the film was shot in New Mexico, the production chose to shoot one climactic shootout in Austin, Texas, which doubled for the fictional town of Rio Seco.

Reflecting Town's Condition

In contrast to the rich hues of the New Mexican landscape, production designer Waldemar Kalinowski worked closely with Ed Harris to bring the town of Appaloosa to life in a way that reflected the town's depressed condition.

"Appaloosa is experiencing a downturn in its economy, so we have a layer of what has been and what is," says Kalinowski. "We were very specific from the beginning. It's not just a dirty little town in the middle of the West. It's a town that was established by the mining company."

To construct the town of Appaloosa, Kalinowski's team used a combination of wood, brick and adobe, a building material native to the Southwest. While most structures were mainly built with wood, some principal buildings, such as the Boston House Hotel and Saloon, were built with brick. The bank building has a stone facade, and both the mining company and church are adobe buildings.

Kalinowski covered the interior walls of the Boston House Hotel and Saloon with a present-day copy of opulent William Morris wallpapers, which were designed in England. "The William Morris wallpaper is very patterned and represent a visual idea having to do with the return to nature, and people interested in naturalism. Our wallpapers were produced in London and shipped to us."

Costume Designer David Robinson

Outfitting the characters in "Appaloosa" was the task of costume designer David Robinson, who scoured old photographs and Western antiques in his research. Robinson found similarities among men's fashion in the day and reasoned that the similarities stemmed from the practicalities of the situation. "For instance, you wear a bandana to keep your neck from chafing, and you'd wear a vest because it gives you that extra layer," the designer offers.

Additionally, the costume designer aimed to strike a balance between fashion and realism. "Photography at the time was a new invention, and those who had their photos taken were probably more dressed up than they normally would be for day-to-day life," Robinson notes.

Classic Vs. Down-to-Earth

In creating the costumes for Virgil Cole, says Robinson, "Cole has a classic style. He's often seen in a Prince Albert-style blazer jacket in charcoal gray along with black pants and striped period shirt. He's very no-nonsense. And everything is well-kept.

"Hitch is more down-to-earth. His colors are browns and greens," continues Robinson. "He's very practical, so when something rips, he just sews it up. He has a leather saddle strap that's been added to his jacket so his gun belt won't wear on his jacket."

Robinson designed, sketched and built all of the outfits for Zellweger's character, Allison French, in his costume shop. The designer points out, "Allie's not your typical woman in a Western who's typically a sort of a prop. She's definitely a little bit more fashionable since she's coming from a big city. She's from an upper-middle class background, so we looked at more upscale fashion of the 1880s and based her wardrobe on that. Allie's outfits have a lot more color compared to everyone else's in Appaloosa. We first see her in a bronze and navy blue dress. Then she is seen in a variety of colors like green, burgundy, and her dresses are mostly silk." Of particular note, one silk-satin iridescent dress for Zellweger's character features an actual lace collar used in the 1880s.

Additionally, the modern cowboy hat was just being developed at this time, so the hats in "Appaloosa" feature rounded crowns or telescoped crowns, rather than dented crowns with curved brims, as on the modern cowboy hat.

Accurate Firearms

Another key detail in the making of "Appaloosa" was the use of historically accurate firearms. The most noticeable gun in the film is Everett Hitch's eight-gauge--a rare weapon also called a "punt gun" or a "market gun." At 50 inches long and weighing more than 11 pounds, it's an intimidating weapon. The cumbersome eight-gauge was most often used while sitting on a swivel in a boat, to fire into large flocks of ducks or geese for food and feathers. Technically a shotgun rather than a rifle, the eight-gauge shoots a number of pellets or buckshot, which spread out as they come out of the muzzle. Virgil Cole's trusty pistol is a bone-handled Colt 45, vintage 1873.

Sturdy Horses

Several dozen horses were used in the filming of "Appaloosa," mostly large, sturdy quarter horses, along with some appendix horses and mules. Head wrangler Rex Peterson studied old Frederic Remington paintings to research the horse tack of the 1880s. "The horses are being ridden with fancy period silver bits and bridles," says Peterson. "The American Indians are riding with plainer saddles and bridles."

Harris and Mortensen did their own riding, mounted on large, solid-colored bays and sorrels. "They're both excellent riders," says Peterson.

The steep mountainsides in the Abiquiu area demanded careful planning and intense focus for all involved. Viggo Mortensen recalls, "We did all the hardest stuff in the first week; climbing up steep hillsides with rocky terrain. Rex selected two very impressive steeds for Cole and Hitch to ride because when they first come into town, they want to make an impression. They come in on horses that are much bigger than the other ones in town."

"The image of Cole and Hitch riding into town in this fashion is classic Western iconography," offers executive producer Michael London. "They're two characters who set out to right a wrong. It sounds like a simple and obvious task, but they ultimately discover the nuances and complexities of the situation that make their jobs impossible to accomplish without compromising something along the way."

"It's not a revisionist Western," states Mortensen. "It's not a movie about 1882 seen through our eyes as much as it is a picture that's without judgment of people as they seem to have behaved back then. The standards of behavior were very different. In some ways, there were higher standards of politeness and chivalry, but in other ways, people were much more direct and brutal towards each other. Neither Ed nor I, as the central male characters, are trying to justify the violence that comes with our jobs in this story, or to make our characters seem more heroic than they are."

Harris states, "The most important thing to Robert Knott and me in writing the screenplay was staying true to Robert Parker's intent. Once on set, we strove for truth in each character's individual intentions and their relationships. Though we're in the 1880s, human nature still dictates how people react and treat other people. Issues and conflicts of friendship, loyalty and betrayal are still very relevant today. To see it all come together with such a great team, I really couldn't have asked for more. It's been a tremendously rewarding experience."