Along with being the producer of Jared and Jerusha Hess’ latest film, “Gentlemen Broncos”, Mike White also plays the role of Dusty. In the film’s unusual world, in which 17-year-old Benjamin Purvis (Michael Angarano) has his prized science-fiction story stolen by his idol, Dr. Ronald Chevalier (Jemaine Clement), at a writers camp, Dusty is an odd, scraggly-haired member of the Purvis’ church who takes his giant albino snake with him everywhere.

At the press day for the film, Mike White talked about working with his friends, the Hesses, and bonding with the snake, known as Peaches.

Writing and producing partners Jared and Jerusha Hess, who are also husband and wife, have made a career out of championing the underdog. With their quirky sense of humor and their inspiration from the unlikeliest of places, the duo’s success with “Napoleon Dynamite” and “Nacho Libre” have carved them a niche in Hollywood that they are quite happy with.

At the press day for “Gentlemen Broncos”, the Hesses talked about working with special effects for the first time and assembling the cast for this film about an outsider with big dreams trying to achieve what he wants to do in life. Continued after the jump:

I’ve finished up ingesting, digesting, and recovering from a half-week of Austin’s Fantastic Fest to inform about the films experienced on Day 1, which opened the festival with Jared Hess’ new film “Gentlemen Broncos”.  I’ll admit that the appeal of the big films each year gets me excited – such as this year’s portfolio of “Antichrist”, “Ninja Assassin”, and “Daybreakers” amongst others – it’s the small films that knock me out of my seat knowing little about them that keep me coming back year after year and Day 1 provided one right at the outset.

Continue to read for my Day 1 film experience, and keep checking back for more on the festival in regards to the films named above, as well as some relatively unknown titles that may deserve your attention, and some other potentially big titles that go unknown even to the attendees until the lights dim.

When Jared Hess’s (“Napoleon Dynamite”, “Nacho Libre”) new film “Gentlemen Broncos” was announced as the opening film at next month’s Fantastic Fest, I figured a theatrical release date wasn’t too far behind. It seems my assumption was correct as Fox Searchlight has just announced an October 30^th release.

Unfortunately, their announcement didn’t say if it’s a limited opening or a wide release. But any release date is great news as Jared’s new film stars Michael Angarano, Jennifer Coolidge, Jemaine Clement, Mike White and Sam Rockwell. If you don’t know about the film, the synopsis is after the jump: