FILMING BEGAN IN ALBERTA IN MAY 2004. SHOOTING LOCATIONS IN THE REGION INCLUDED THE CANADIAN ROCKIES, COWLEY, FORT MACLEOD, AND CALGARY. MEMBERS OF THE CALGARY GAY RODEO ASSOCIATION ADVISED AND CONSULTED WITH THE PRODUCTION, AND ALSO APPEAR IN SEVERAL SEQUENCES.
Tim Cyr: We're the only gay rodeo association in Canada, but it's part of a huge circuit throughout the U.S. We have the best turnout of the circuit, and to be a part of it is a great feeling.
Michael Costigan: We really were in cowboy country. So when people would come to be in sequences, they looked the part because they were the part. This was not a movie where there were a lot of fancy trailers, and catering and perks. It wasn't a Hollywood production, but we accomplished so much in terms of scope. I think people will see it all up there on the screen, thanks to the crew that we've been working with.
Diana Ossana: One of the wranglers said an interesting thing to me about Jake. He said, "Wow, what a quick learner. He's a natural; you tell him something once and he remembers it, and does it absolutely that way the next time."
Jake Gyllenhaal: Heath has known how to ride since he was a little kid, and he's already done movies where he's ridden a horse. I knew nothing about riding horses. I came up a month before we started shooting, for, as we called it, "cowboy training camp." Getting on a bull wasn't too freaky; I trusted the guys to give me a bull that wasn't too rowdy. I learned how to ride horses, how to wrangle sheep, and how to do the cowboy things.
Ang Lee: Heath went [to camp], too. He and Jake needed to feel comfortable and find a chemistry - and Jake needed to get blisters and bloody hands, chopping wood, hauling bales of hay, putting up fences…
Michael Costigan: On every movie, Ang does a Chinese good luck ceremony that he leads everybody through. Everybody lights incense and then has to bow to the four corners.
Diana Ossana: Everyone worked so hard and rarely complained. No matter how difficult the terrain or the scene, they went for it. 80 percent of this film is outside, and the weather could, and did, change in 15 minutes. Mornings might be bitter cold, and by the afternoon the sun would be blazing down on us.
Ang Lee: We didn't have good luck with weather - we had sleet, hailstorms, and it was always cold - and mountains are not controllable [, either]. Logistically, it was a stretch, and the budget was modest - this was an independent film, and the cheapest I've made since Eat Drink Man Woman - but sufficient to make my vision come true. Working on Brokeback Mountain, I feel I was relearning my love and enjoyment for filmmaking - and learning something about myself and my own relationships.
James Schamus: This was probably the most pleasant film shoot that Ang and I have ever worked on. There was almost an inverse proportion between our lack of money and the abundance of spirit in our crew and cast. Everything was done simply - not only because we didn't have the budget but also because, artistically, everything needed to be honest, direct, and clear…from the rawness and vulnerability of our actors to the presence of the natural environment.
Heath Ledger: It was a focused vibe on-set. Everyone there wanted to work hard on telling the story properly.
Scott Ferguson: Everybody on the film felt lucky to be there. Working with Ang Lee was a privilege. It was long hours and hard work; some of the places we went were either a long drive or a long hike with a lot of gear. A number of us working on the film came from either New York or Los Angeles, and sometimes we'd call ourselves the SOB's - the "south of the borders." But we were all making a movie together, it didn't matter who was Canadian and who was American.
Heath Ledger: The crew in Calgary were the most wonderful group of people I have worked with to date.
Randy Quaid: It was my first time in Calgary; I've filmed, I guess, everywhere else in Canada.  I loved the mountains, and even the wind; it's gorgeous big sky country.
Ang Lee: You realize, when you place the camera you have to tilt it up a little bit; the sky is so grand. It's not only the big landscape, but the big sky.

PRINCIPAL PHOTOGRAPHY ON BROKEBACK MOUNTAIN WAS COMPLETED IN AUGUST 2004. POST-PRODUCTION WAS FINISHED IN THE SPRING OF 2005, MARKING THE CULMINATION OF THE STORY'S EIGHT-YEAR JOURNEY TO THE SCREEN.
Judy Becker: In my mind, Brokeback Mountain is like a Shakespearean tragedy. It expresses so many things about human nature, and the nature of being.
Marit Allen: To me, Brokeback Mountain has the look of a classic Western. And the Western is one of the last great romances; the loneliness and the strength of these men who embody hard work and integrity…we're always hoping that those values are still out there somewhere.
Michael Costigan: I think the film shows an American way of life and experience that we haven't seen very often, or depicted with realism on-screen. Not from that place and time.
Ang Lee: We know the West from movies, as the romanticized world of gunslingers. But the real West, I don't think people around the world know [about] that much. People like me, coming from Taiwan, outside of America, think [of] America [as] New York and the West Coast. But there's this big chunk of rural American life that we don't really know too much about. It's a love story about those people. I think people need to know about that side of America. Like everybody, they have a heart - and they don't talk too much about it. You have to really dig to discover it, and share that experience.
Diana Ossana: Brokeback Mountain is not so much a Western as it is a story about the West. The media and the film industry tend to talk about how the Western is out of vogue or in vogue - but it never goes out, really, because it's America's history, it's our heritage. That is why we continue, to this day, to connect with the Western: the good ones are compelling, true-to-life stories, with raw, flawed, human characters mostly operating in a harsh, unforgiving landscape.
Marit Allen: What I hope most is that the film will help people to understand the nature of love. There are as many different kinds of love as there are people.
Tim Cyr: Everybody has a right to love. Everybody should be loved. And if two guys get together or two girls get together, [there] should be no difference in it. Every movie that comes out where people are up there on-screen like this is a push towards more equality and understanding.
Diana Ossana: I hope that our film will move people the same way in which reading the short story moved me. I want the audience to feel the same things I felt when I first read that story. For me, releasing our film Brokeback Mountain is sort of like sending one of your children out into the world: your hope is that they succeed, and that they're accepted, and finally, treated with respect.
Shane Madden: I'm happily married, to a guy. He means the world to me. I'm hoping the film can tell people, believe and respect who you are and not what everybody wants you to be.
Scott Ferguson: Some of the obstacles to Ennis and Jack's happiness were real, in society, and some were inside the two of them. Hopefully, people will learn a little about finding your own way to accept yourself, to take a chance on who you are. When we shot the last scene of the movie, I'd say about three-quarters of the crew was in tears. It had a powerful effect on us, and I hope also [will] with audiences.
Jake Gyllenhaal: What really tears me apart is, Ennis and Jack are two people who actually found love. If you have love, you should hold onto it.
Heath Ledger: Brokeback Mountain is a love story for this generation.
Michael Costigan: Great love stories don't come very often. I hope audiences, after seeing the film, can think about their own lives and the choices they've made.
Ang Lee: It could be my wishful thinking, but if the feelings we're portraying are real, if the actors believing what they're playing appear to be real, and emotion is created with the audiences watching, then maybe issues won't be [had]. Biases might disappear when you look into the heart of people. I hope that's the case with our love story.

ABOUT THE FILMMAKERS

ANG LEE (DIRECTOR)
As director of Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon, Ang Lee received the Academy Award for Best Foreign-Language Film.
Born and raised in Taiwan, Mr. Lee moved to the United States in 1978. After receiving a Bachelor of Fine Arts in theatre from the University of Illinois, he went to New York University to complete a Masters of Fine Arts Degree in film production. His short film Fine Line won Best Director and Best Film awards at the annual NYU Film Festival.
His first feature film, Pushing Hands, was screened at the 1992 Berlin International Film Festival and won Best Film at the Asian-Pacific Film Festival. The film was also nominated for 9 Golden Horse Awards [Taiwan's equivalent of the Academy Award].
Pushing Hands was also the first film in his "Father Knows Best" trilogy, all of which starred actor Sihung Lung. The next film in the trilogy, The Wedding Banquet, premiered at the 1993 Berlin International Film Festival. It won the top prize (the Golden Bear) there and subsequently opened to international acclaim. The film was nominated for the Academy Award and the Golden Globe Award for Best Foreign-Language Film, and received 6 Independent Spirit Award nominations.
Mr. Lee capped the trilogy with Eat Drink Man Woman, which was selected as the opening night feature for the Directors Fortnight section of the 1994 Cannes International Film Festival. Named Best Foreign-Language Film by the National Board of Review, the film was nominated for the Academy Award and the Golden Globe Award for Best Foreign-Language Film, and received 6 Independent Spirit Award nominations.
In 1995, Mr. Lee directed Sense and Sensibility, starring Emma Thompson and Kate Winslet. The film was nominated for 7 Academy Awards, including Best Picture, and won for Best Adapted Screenplay (Emma Thompson, from the Jane Austen novel). Sense and Sensibility also won Golden Globe Awards for Best Picture [Drama] and Best Screenplay; was named Best Picture by BAFTA, the Boston Society of Film Critics, and the National Board of Review; and won the top prize (the Golden Bear) at the 1996 Berlin International Film Festival. Mr. Lee was cited as Best Director by the New York Film Critics Circle, the National Board of Review, and the Boston Society of Film Critics.
He next directed The Ice Storm, adapted by James Schamus from Rick Moody's novel, and starring Joan Allen, Kevin Kline, Sigourney Weaver, Christina Ricci, and Tobey Maguire. The film premiered at the 1997 Cannes International Film Festival (where it won the Best Screenplay award), and was selected as the opening night feature for the 1997 New York Film Festival. For her performance in the film, Sigourney Weaver won a BAFTA Award, and was nominated for a Golden Globe Award, for Best Supporting Actress.
Mr. Lee's subsequent films were Ride with the Devil (adapted by James Schamus from Daniel Woodrell's novel, and reteaming the director with actor Tobey Maguire); the aforementioned Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon; and the boxoffice hit The Hulk (starring Eric Bana and Jennifer Connelly).

LARRY McMURTRY (Screenplay; Executive Producer)
Larry McMurtry was awarded the Pulitzer Prize in 1986 for his novel, Lonesome Dove.
He has authored 40 books, both novels and essay collections, and has written over 30 screenplays. Several of his works have been adapted into feature films and television miniseries. His first novel was Horseman, Pass By. The book became Martin Ritt's Hud, adapted by Irving Ravetch and Harriet Frank, Jr. and starring Paul Newman. The film won 3 Academy Awards: Best Actress (Patricia Neal), Best Supporting Actor (Melvyn Douglas), and Best Cinematography (James Wong Howe).
Mr. McMurtry's novel The Last Picture Show was made into a feature film by Peter Bogdanovich, with Mr. McMurtry receiving an Academy Award nomination for co-writing the screenplay adaptation with the director. The film won 2 Academy Awards, Best Supporting Actor (Ben Johnson) and Best Supporting Actress (Cloris Leachman), and was nominated for Best Picture.
His novel Terms of Endearment, was adapted into a movie, and directed, by James L. Brooks. The film won 5 Academy Awards: Best Picture, Best Director, Best Adapted Screenplay, Best Actress (Shirley MacLaine), and Best Supporting Actor (Jack Nicholson).
The aforementioned Lonesome Dove was adapted by William D. Wittliff into a television miniseries directed by Simon Wincer. The program, one of the most popular miniseries of all time, won 7 Emmy Awards.
Mr. McMurtry began a writing collaboration with Diana Ossana in 1992.  The team has written two novels together, Pretty Boy Floyd and Zeke and Ned. They adapted two of his novels, Streets of Laredo and Dead Man's Walk, into acclaimed miniseries, both of which they also executive-produced. The two miniseries were directed by Joseph Sargent and Yves Simoneau, respectively. The duo later adapted Frederick Manfred's novel Riders of Judgment into the miniseries Johnson County War, which they also executive-produced, and which was directed by David S. Cass Sr.
Tom Hanks is slated to star in, and produce, the Universal Pictures film version of Mr. McMurtry's novel Boone's Lick, for which the author and Ms. Ossana are writing the screenplay adaptation.
Among his other novels are Moving On, All My Friends Are Going To Be Strangers, Somebody's Darling, The Desert Rose, Film Flam, Loop Group, and The Colonel and Little Missie: The Beginnings of Superstardom in America. His essay collections include Walter Benjamin at the Dairy Queen, Roads, and Paradise. He is a regular contributor to the New York Review of Books.
Mr. McMurtry was born in Wichita Falls, Texas, and raised in Archer City. His father and eight uncles were all ranchers. He attended North Texas State and Rice Universities, and was also a Stegner fellow at Stanford University.

DIANA OSSANA (Screenplay; Producer)
Diana Ossana was born and raised in St. Louis, Missouri. Her father emigrated from Italy to America in 1937. She attended Eastern New Mexico University in Portales, New Mexico, majoring in English/Political Science.
She moved to Arizona in 1977. In Tucson, she helped to implement and establish a successful law practice for a corporation of 5 trial attorneys.
In 1992, Ms. Ossana began a writing collaboration with Larry McMurtry, which continues to this day and has expanded to encompass film and television projects that they write and produce.
The team has written two novels together, Pretty Boy Floyd and Zeke and Ned. They adapted two of his novels, Streets of Laredo and Dead Man's Walk, into acclaimed miniseries, both of which they also executive-produced. The two miniseries were directed by Joseph Sargent and Yves Simoneau, respectively. The duo later adapted Frederick Manfred's novel Riders of Judgment into the miniseries Johnson County War, which they also executive-produced, and which was directed by David S. Cass Sr.
Tom Hanks is slated to star in, and produce, the Universal Pictures film version of Mr. McMurtry's novel Boone's Lick, for which the author and Ms. Ossana are writing the screenplay adaptation.

ANNIE PROULX (Author)
Annie Proulx's short story, "Brokeback Mountain," was originally published in The New Yorker in 1997. The story earned, among other accolades, a National Magazine Award. It was subsequently published in the author's 1999 collection Close Range: Wyoming Stories.
In 1994, Ms. Proulx's novel The Shipping News earned her the Pulitzer Prize.
The Connecticut native studied history at the University of Vermont and Concordia University in Montreal, and passed her doctoral oral examinations in that subject.
In 1975, with few teaching jobs available, Ms. Proulx became a journalist. She also wrote short stories, two of which were listed in editions of Best American Short Stories.
In 1988, she published her first fiction work, Heart Songs and Other Stories. Her first novel, Postcards, won the 1993 PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction.
Ms. Proulx's other books include Accordion Crimes, That Old Ace in the Hole, and Bad Dirt: Wyoming Stories 2.

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