The Painted Desert selected Higgin to direct the film, as well as naming the stars of the film, William Boyd and Dorothy Burgess. Later in the month it was reported that Higgin would head to Arizona to begin location scouting for the film, accompanied by fellow director, Tay Garnett, however in August Higgin began scouting in the Arizona desert with the screenwriter, Tom Buckingham. It was announced that the film would employ over 300 extras. Higgin was familiar with the area, having working in and around Flagstaff, Arizona as a lumberjack prior to his entering the film industry. Towards the end of August
Black Rock Desert Wilderness Black Rock Desert Wilderness The Black Rock Desert Wilderness is a U S Wilderness Area in Nevada under the Bureau of Land Management. It is located in the east arm of the Black Rock Desert playa east of the Black Rock Range and west of the Jackson Mountains. The wilderness has a land area of 314,829 acres, or 1,274.1 km². It is the largest U.S. designated wilderness area that is managed solely by the Bureau of Land Management, and the largest that is not located within a National Forest, National Park (or Preserve), or National Wildlife Refuge. It is located