Where in the world is Rafael Septien?
According to the nation’s foremost authority on everything factual or not, Wikipedia, Septien lives in his native Mexico ad sells time shares. Aside from that, we haven’t heard much about the former Dallas Cowboys place kicker since a Dallas Grand Jury indicted him on charges of mishandling a minor way back in 1987. After pleading guilty to the charge of indecency with a minor later that year, the Cowboys leading scorer between 1978-1986 has fallen out of the public eye pretty much completely.
In fact, the last time we read the name was last year, when the Dallas Observer reported that Septien’s 1978 NFC Championship ring was up for auction--that is until today, when the news that Septien had a hand in inspiring an upcoming art house film came in from left field. From the email:
SEPTIEN -- written, directed and starring triple threat Michael Tully and based on an idea by David Gordon Green -- centers on a former star athlete named Cornelius who suddenly returns to the family farm after vanishing from high school 18 years ago. Upon his return, it becomes evident that Cornelius is not the person he once was - he spends his days as a reclusive sports hustler, challenging strangers to one-on-one pick-up games of basketball, tennis and even horseshoes.
Obviously, the film takes its title from the former Cowboys kicker. But why?
Well according to Tully, the film's writer, director and star, “the word ‘Septien’ captures that nostalgia we feel towards our boyhood sports idols and the disillusionment we experience when we find out our heroes are not the people we thought them to be.”
The film is set for release next week in select cities and is available nationwide for video-on-demand. You can find more at SeptienFilm.com.
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