For Suza Lambert Bowser, it was a haunted hotel that inspired her journey into the world of film.

“My friend runs an old hotel from the 19th century in Calaveras County,” Bowser, a long-time writer, said. “It’s haunted and creaky, and just very evocative. It got me thinking about what life was like back then.”

From this seed, Bowser developed a full-length feature film, A River of Skulls, now slated to screen at the Diablo Valley Film Festival in Martinez on September 11. The film – written, directed, and produced by Bowser and her company, Sheep Ranch Productions – is set in Calaveras County in 1871, during the California Gold Rush, and tells the story of young people struggling to survive amidst the violence, racism, sexism and social upheaval of the period. A River of Skulls stars Kelly Nixon as Eula Jane Seeney, the oldest daughter in a family rocked by death and poverty, who becomes involved with two distinctly different men: Jack Rivers, a half-Mexican and half-Native American man forced to face the realities of racism, and Percy Willoughby, a wealthy white man who seduces Seeney with false promises of marriage. Bowser said the film, shot on location in Calaveras and Tuolumne counties, has served as a means to explore her passions for history, sociology and, perhaps most significantly, feminism.

“At that time, women either learned to deal with the cards they were dealt or they perished,” Bowser said. “But, on the flip side, there were still a lot of opportunities to raise your social status. You could work your way out of prostitution or out of poverty. San Francisco is based on the foundations laid by the people during the Gold Rush who were able to change their place in society.”

Bowser said the problems faced by the 19th Century women in the film remain relevant today, and she hopes the film will help young women view feminism as more than “burning bras.”

“I find that young women don’t understand what feminism is,” Bowser said. “My heroine is not necessarily a Joan of Arc, but my point for young women is that you don’t have to be a Joan of Arc, and that it is notable and noble enough just to survive.”

Bowser, who has herself sought solace at a shelter for battered women, is so dedicated to women’s issues that when she screened A River of Skulls in Calaveras County, she donated a portion of the proceeds to the Calaveras Crisis Center.

Still, in addition to female struggles, Bowser said the film also tackles the theme of racial assimilation.

“There were whites, Native Americans, Mexicans, Asians,” Bowser said. “It was a wild, chaotic time!”

It was similarly hectic on set, said Bruce Cole, a Martinez resident who worked as an actor and fight coordinator in A River of Skulls.

“The film was produced by a small company, so there were lots of people doing more than one thing,” Cole said. “It’s my first movie as an actor and as a fight director, and it was such an educational experience. It was probably the equivalent of a couple years in school. It’s helped me become much more involved in film.”
Bowser said she too learned a lot through her “multi-disciplined” approach to developing the film.

“This was my first movie, and because I was writing, directing, producing and marketing, I got to bring a lot of people into the film who taught me so much about the editing process,” Bowser said. “I’m still tweaking the editing and the audio. It’s the power of playback. When you see something, you know right away if it’s not working!”

All fine-tuning aside, Bowser said she is excited to screen the final version of the film at the Martinez-based festival.

“Local film organizations, like the Diablo Valley Film Festival, are a great opportunity,” Bowser said. “I love working with grassroots organizations.”

Cole, who first suggested to Bowser that she submit A River of Skulls to the film festival, said his previous experiences working with Martinez’s enthusiastic local art community convinced him that festival would be an appropriate venue.

“We’re trying to promote the movie, and the festival is trying to take off, so it will be a chance for cross-promotion,” Cole said. “I’ve been involved with the car show and the farmers’ market in Martinez, and I’ve seen how everyone helps each other out and supports each other.”

Moreover, Cole, who was working on a theater production in Calaveras at the time of auditions for A River of Skulls, said his home ties to Martinez make the festival especially important to him.

“The festival will be my homecoming,” Cole said. “Plus, it’s great because I know I’ll be able to pack the screening with lots of friendly fans!”

A River of Skulls, written, directed, and produced by Suza Lambert Bowser and Sheep Ranch Productions, is a dramatic story set during the California Gold Rush. The film focuses on two young people, who are cast adrift from two distinctly different social worlds. Eula Jane Seeley, a young white woman, and Jack Rivers—or Joaquin Rivera—a half-Mexican, half-Native American man, both struggle in a time defined by hard scrabble mining camps, towns built overnight with sudden wealth, bustling hotels, banks, and brothels, and the intense dynamics of racial assimilation.

Eula Jane Seeley (Kelly Nixon) the oldest daughter in a family recently rocked by her mother’s death in childbirth, faces the sad reality of her father’s emotional disintegration. Forced to work under the ever-watchful (and ever scornful) eyes of Mabel Flescher, played beautifully by Sheila Doyle, she earns a small income to support her younger sister and brother.

Jack Rivers (Joaquin River), reeling from the racially motivated murder of his grandfather, Liwanu, finds himself captured by Eula’s beauty and resilience. Separated by the social barricades of the times, Jack and Eula are unable to express their feelings for one another. At the same time, the arrival of the newly rich Percy Willloughby (Erik Rhea), complicates the situation when he beguiles Eula with false hopes of marriage.

A parallel plot strand involves the beautiful but bitter Betsy Beaumont (Kristina Van Cleave) and her rascally, unapologetic rake of a husband, Carson Beaumont (Bruce Cole). Their lives interweave with Eula and Jack after Mabel Flescher (Betsy’s sister) engineers a cruel trick that propels Eula into a downward spiral.

Shot on locations that include the historical landscapes of Sheep Ranch, Columbia, and Murphys, A River of Skulls features the breathtaking cinematography of Matt St. Charles (Director of Photography), the intelligent discernment of Malcolm DeSoto (Second Camera), the creative talents of Joshua D. Nelson (Assistant Director) and the directing skills of Bruce Cole (Fight Director).

A River of Skulls is a unique project, an independent feature length film that explores the far-reaching consequences and interconnections of sexism, racism, class, and social upheaval. By screening A River of Skulls in Calaveras County, the director, Suza Lambert Bowser, wishes to express her deepest gratitude to the fine folks of the Gold Country, without whose help, the vision for the film would never have become a reality.

Tickets will be available at the Murphys Creek Theatre (209-728-8422) and also through The Resource Connection’s Calaveras Crisis Center (209) 754-0692 or (209) 754-1300