West Texas spent 300 years under Spanish or Mexican sovereignty before becoming part of the US in 1848. The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo established the Rio Grande River as the border and we are never more aware of that than we are today, some 178 years later.

Mexicans living in the ceded territories were given the choice to relocate to Mexico or remain and become U.S. citizens. Nine or so generations later, the land north of the Rio Grande remains largely Hispanic​ speaking, and life in this arid and inhospitable corner of America seems timeless and untamed. This is no place for influencers, AI or virtue signaling. It is what it was.

The area lacks good accommodation for outsiders, but that perhaps allows us to immerse ourselves in daily life. When we film in this area, we show deference to the cowboys and ranchers who live there. They could teach us all a few things about manners, the love of simplicity and a hard day’s work. They are living near the most penetrable border in the world and with that comes patriotism and a sense of duty.

Meanwhile the cows in Texas are some of the most aesthetically blessed of their species. This big Texas longhorn made for a damn good prop at sunrise at this old ranch near the Rio Grande. I have always had a fondness for anything that defies gravity and in so doing add energy by being back lit at sunrise or sunset. There is a sense of place.