Movie about Montford Johnson, a Chickasaw cattleman, includes St. Augustine

A movie streaming on Netflix includes scenes from St. Augustine, portraying a time when Native Americans were imprisoned at Fort Marion, known today as the Castillo de San Marcos.

The movie is called "Montford: The Chickasaw Rancher."

Produced in part by St. Johns County resident Paul Sirmons, whose wife Sherry served as a production accountant, the movie focuses on the life of Montford Johnson.

"The Chickasaw Nation Productions’ film portrays the great hardships and tragedy Johnson and those close to him overcame to establish a vast ranching empire along the famous cattle highway of the American West, the Chisholm Trail," according to a Chickasaw Nation press release. "Johnson’s story is a true Western epic, spanning from his birth in 1843, through the tumultuous years of the Civil War and its aftermath, and the Land Rush of 1889. Inspired by recounts of Johnson's life and the book 'The Chickasaw Rancher,' this story tells of Johnson’s time among settlers, cowboys, tribes, military and bandits."

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Johnson's father was English, and his mother was Chickasaw. His father left him after his mother died.

"It is a Chickasaw custom for motherless children to be reared by their own Chickasaw families," according to the Chickasaw Nation. Ultimately Johnson was able to build a ranching operation that had "over 35,000 head of cattle which grazed over a million acres of the newly-created Indian Territory."

The U.S. government relocated and imprisoned Native Americans at Fort Marion.

Johnson had friends and business associates among the Native American tribes represented by the people taken there, said Jeannie Barbour, creative development director for the Chickasaw Nation and content producer for the "Montford" movie. They faced "deplorable conditions," she said.

"Once Montford heard about this, he decided to make a trip to St. Augustine with members of his family," she said.

Some were released and returned home, though it's not clear whether Johnson and his family's efforts were the deciding factor in their release, Barbour said.

Telling the story

Though the movie was filmed mostly in Oklahoma, a few days of filming took place in St. Augustine at the Castillo de San Marcos and in St. Augustine Beach.

"The Chickasaw leaders on the film felt it was important to shoot where that actually happened in St. Augustine. There's a famous photo of those Indians seated on the steps inside the fort ― those steps are still there … kind of gave us a chill filming there. Made the scenes all that more powerful," Sirmons said in a press release.

The film employed local people for the crew, including Rick Ambrose, location manager, and Diane Maurno, who handled makeup for the St. Augustine shoots.

Stars in the film include Martin Sensmeier, Dermot Mulroney, Tommy Flanagan and Tatanka Means.

Connecting with the Chickasaw Nation

Through his history and reputation in the film industry, Sirmons was recommended to work with the Chickasaw Nation on the film "Te Ata."

The film is "based on the inspirational, true story of Mary Frances 'Te Ata' Thompson Fisher, a woman who traversed cultural barriers to become one of the greatest First American performers of all time," according to the Chickasaw Nation.

She was "an entertainer and storyteller" who "earned international fame presenting a unique one-woman show of First American heritage and culture."

That film also is on Netflix.

Through that project, Sirmons continued to work with the Chickasaw Nation on the movie about Montford Johnson.

Sirmons' background includes serving as Florida's state film commissioner and directing "The First of May" with Julie Harris and Mickey Rooney. His wife, Sherry, has worked in accounting roles on films such as "Blood Diamond."

Sirmons said he focuses his work on projects that are faith-based and family-friendly.

"And I'm going to read the script. And I have to be moved by it," he said.

Barbour said she hopes people who watch the movie will come to know about the courage and perseverance that Johnson and his family had.

"They were in a place that was very inhospitable that hadn't been settled yet. It was on the Western frontier. They were trying to make a life for themselves and for others. And he was successful. He came up from absolutely nothing," she said.

This article originally appeared on St. Augustine Record: 'Montford: The Chickasaw Rancher' film includes Castillo de San Marcos