Issue link: https://viewer.e-digitaleditions.com/i/103334
outtahere "I've spent at least Previous page and below: One of the best ways to see the Victorian High Country is on horseback; Snowy River's 'masterof-horse' Charlie Lovick points to 'The Man', actor Tom Burlinson. 100 days of every year since 1960 in the Victorian High Country," muses Charlie Lovick from his family homestead in Mansfield. "It's country you can only see on horseback and we see it as our job to hand all that knowledge down by coaching on the ground." He is referring to his family's High Country adventure tours, which offer enticing, adrenaline-inducing rides through the encompassing foothills of the Great Dividing Range. A fourth-generation mountain cattleman, Charlie is a local legend because of his family's renowned mountain heritage. "My great-uncle Frank spent most of his life here and Mount Lovick was named after him," he explains. "My father then took up the mantle and was awarded a British Empire medal for his feats in mountain search and rescue. Now that I've become one of the elders, we're known as tradition bearers, as we hold all the knowledge of the High Country." This deeply embedded knowledge was integral to the extraordinary authenticity achieved in George T. Miller's classic Australian film, The Man From Snowy River (1982), which was shot on location in the mountainous Mansfield and Merrijig regions of Victoria. As 'master of horse', Charlie brought a high level of realism to those memorable sweeping, galloping sequences in the film. But it was training Tom Burlinson, a city-based actor who had never ridden a horse, to ride convincingly well that was perhaps Charlie's biggest contribution. "I knew straight away that I had a real chance of making this kid into a horseman who could saddle the show," recalls Charlie. "He had a natural presence on a horse. He came to live with us for a couple of months before filming and we struck an instant rapport." Playing pivotal roles in Phar Lap, both Snowy River adventures and, more recently, The Cup, Tom Burlinson is synonymous with horsemanship in films. But 31 years ago he was embarking upon new territory. "Charlie was such a natural teacher," the actor explains. "He taught me how to use a stock whip and, more importantly, about the lifestyle and heritage of the mountain cattleman." Tom credits Charlie for instilling a world-weary confidence in his portrayal of Jim Craig ('The Man' in the title), who strives to earn the respect of the High Country men following the untimely death of his father. The most challenging part for Tom, however, was the climactic sequence, where Jim hurtles over a mountain summit on his horse and charges down the treacherous incline. Riding the 'terrible descent' symbolically transforms Jim into 'The Man'. "I sensed this was going to be the key moment in the film, so I lobbied Geoff Burrowes to allow me to do it!" 17