One of Hollywood's most iconic sets, used over the decades for dozens of films, isn't a set at all. It's in the middle of nowhere, and filmmakers have been drawn to its magic.
Straddling the Utah-Arizona border is the natural wonder of Monument Valley, but its journey of becoming an icon of the American Southwest began as a gamble from settlers of the area, Harry and Mike Goulding.
"Harry found himself trying to reinvent himself and what had out there and he heard that John Ford was doing a movie called "Stagecoach" with a breakout star named John Wayne," Ross Rutherford, the manager of Goulding's Lodge, said.
After experiencing devastation from the Dust Bowl, the Gouldings traveled to meet John Ford.
"Harry and Mike set to LA with their last $60," Rutherford said.
It was the Hollywood pitch of the Century.
"He showed him some pictures of the beautiful background back here and within two weeks, the had a film crew out here filming" Rutherford said.
John Ford and John Wayne kept coming back for many other films such as "The Searchers" and "She Wore a Yellow Ribbon."
"They really set history with that first movie "Stagecoach,"" Rutherford said.
Stagecoach did much more than launch the career of John Wayne, it also defined the look and character of the Western. But this isn't just a Hollywood story.
"Times were so tough with the local Navajo," Dave Kusell, a road-tripper stopping by Forrest Gump Point, explained. "Food was scarce, they were weak and hungry."
The movie productions brought food, jobs and resources to Navajo families facing difficult times.
"The director John Ford did a lot to help the locals at a time when the locals needed a lot of help," Kusell said.
There became a tradition of creating a partnership with the Navajo when Hollywood comes to film.
"They have ask Navajo Nation first, regarding to make some movies and all that," Harold Daniels, a member of the Navajo Nation and former movie extra for "Back to the Future III", explained.
And for some Navajo, that means playing some parts themselves.
"We ran for was a couple of yards with the horses," Daniels said. "We used the costumes and all that."
Evan decades later, filmmakers continue to look back to Monument Valley for its grand scale.
"She said go ahead and do the run," Kusell said while explaining why he and his girlfriend stopped at at Forrest Gump Point. "I said are you kidding me? Okay fine, I'll do the run."
Films like Forrest Gump continued to turn even a highway shoulder into a prime destination.
"He had come to a conclusion," Kusell said. "He had found what he wanted to find. This location, I don't think, was relevant. It could have been in the middle of Iowa; the point is, he found what he needed to find."
Perhaps the draw to the valley is that tourists and filmmakers alike find something that they're profoundly looking for.
"To see these monument is kind of one of those things in person," Rutherford said. "You know, film and video just didn't capture how grand they are."
Perhaps they find a place where they can begin a new story and to get the courage to hop back on the horse to see what will come next.