Independent Lens, Backside: The Unseen Hands of Horse Racing
PBS Western Reserve (WNEO 45.1 / WEAO 49.1):
Sunday, April 19, at 11 PM
Fusion (WNEO 45.2 / WEAO 49.2):
Monday, April 13, at 10 PM
Saturday, April 18, at noon
This powerful new documentary reveals the hidden labor sustaining one of America’s most celebrated sporting traditions, the Kentucky Derby. Set behind the iconic pageantry of the world’s most famous horse race, the documentary takes viewers into the rarely seen world of the “backside” of Churchill Downs, where grooms and hotwalkers, the majority of whom are immigrants, care for some of the most valuable racehorses in the world.
Through intimate, observational storytelling, director Raúl O. Paz-Pastrana honors the resilience, expertise, and dignity of a community whose contributions have long remained invisible. Rising before dawn and laboring long after the crowds leave, these workers form the backbone of an elite industry shaped by race, class, and power. Showcasing the grit, skill, and deep knowledge required to maintain peak equine performance, the film emphasizes the profound, symbiotic relationship between humans and horses — a bond that can decide everything in the high-stakes world of horseracing. Paz-Pastrana gives voice to the people who sustain this elite American institution and quietly illuminates how wealth and tradition are upheld through largely unseen immigrant hands.
