Film scholar and documentarian Julia Smith will launch a fundraising campaign for her upcoming documentary, “Birth of the Acid Western,” about the late New Mexico State University professor Orville Wanzer, while exploring his legacy as a filmmaker from the ’60s, ’70s and ’80s whose influence helped shape the evolution of “the modern western” and independent avant-garde cinema in the United States.
Smith will present special screenings of a newly restored 16mm-print of Wanzer’s 1965 horror Western “The Devil’s Mistress.” The tour begins at The Silco Theatre in Silver City on March 30 and includes screenings at The Guild Cinema in Albuquerque on April 11 and The Jean Cocteau Cinema in Santa Fe on May 2. Additional venues will be announced.
Wanzer, an English professor at NMSU, made history by directing “The Devil’s Mistress,” the first feature film shot in the Las Cruces area and one of the earliest regional low-budget films to achieve a Hollywood release. The recently digitized 16mm-film reel, which had been preserved in the Rio Grande Historical Collections at NMSU, will be showcased for the first time in decades.
The origins of this 16mm print trace back to 1963, when Wanzer completed the script for “Bruja,” which he wrote on a bet from his actor friend Forrest Westmoreland, who challenged Wanzer to make a movie since he loved them so much. The name was later changed to “The Devil’s Mistress,” starring Wanzer’s wife, Joan.
Wanzer, a street kid from Brooklyn, had a deep love for cinema, which he credited with shaping his life. After serving in the Navy as a ship projectionist in the 1950s, he briefly moved to Hollywood but found limited opportunities, so he pursued an advanced degree and was hired to teach at NMSU.
“The idea was to make local films on a totally local basis to break the chain of Hollywood movies. That would be the revolution,” Wanzer told Smith in one of his final recorded interviews, just weeks before his passing in February 2019.
With his script ready and a cast of six locals, Wanzer traveled to Hollywood to purchase a 16mm camera to film “The Devil’s Mistress.” Wanzer took the finished film to Hollywood to see if it was good enough to play in the 100 Fox Theatres across the nation.
At each New Mexico screening, Smith, who has researched and restored Wanzer’s film archive since 2019, will introduce the film and discuss its historical significance and Wanzer’s contributions to independent filmmaking in New Mexico. The program will also feature a trailer for “Birth of the Acid Western,” her documentary that explores Wanzer’s pioneering work, the Acid Western genre and the existential ethos of the American counterculture expressed in the evolution of the Western genre in the 1960s. The event will conclude with a question-and-answer session hosted by Smith.
“This screening is a rare opportunity to experience a forgotten piece of New Mexico film history,” Smith said. “Orville Wanzer’s ‘The Devil’s Mistress’ is not just a lost cult film – it represents the birth of an independent regional filmmaking movement that challenged Hollywood’s dominance. My documentary, ‘Birth of the Acid Western,’ builds on his legacy by tracing the genre’s evolution and its cultural impact, and its cultural significance in being made in New Mexico.”
Smith’s goal is to raise funds to complete “Birth of the Acid Western,” which has been years in the making. Proceeds from the screenings will support final production costs, archival development and digitization, and distribution efforts. She also hopes to expand the tour to include more historic theaters, particularly in rural areas where regional film history is often overlooked.
Tickets for the screenings are available through the venues’ box offices. Visit www.acidwesterndoc.com to make donations to support the “Birth of the Acid Western” documentary.
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CUTLINE: Orville Wanzer with the 16mm camera he purchased in Hollywood to film his 1965 horror western “The Devil’s Mistress.” (Archive photo courtesy Julia Smith)
CUTLINE: Film scholar Julia Smith poses with original poster for the film “The Devil’s Mistress,” which was shown in 100 Fox Theatres across the nation. (Photo courtesy Julia Smith)
CUTLINE: Orville Wanzer in the desert near Las Cruces during filming of “The Devil’s Mistress.” (Archive photo courtesy Julia Smith)
CUTLINE: Cast of the “The Devil’s Mistress” at its premier in 1965. (Archive photo courtesy Julia Smith)