The Vintagent Selects: A collection of our favorite films by artists around the world.

ANGELS OF DIRT (2024)

Run Time: 1:26:00
A Film By: Wendy Schneider
Key Cast: Charlotte Kainz, Tammy Kirk, Jennifer (Snyder) Pankey

FILM MAKERS

Wendy Schneider is an award-winning independent filmmaker in Madison, Wisconsin, who has written, directed and produced feature documentaries on Butch Vig’s legendary Smart Studios (“The Smart Studios Story”) and teen self-injury (“CUT”). Schneider is also an activist, musician, and record producer/engineer who brings a DIY ethos and a social consciousness to everything she does.

The Vintagent featured the trailer for Angels Of Dirt back in 2017. Now, after several years of in person screenings and awards won, we are thrilled to announce that on February 13th 2026, the FULL FILM premiered on YouTube, and is available to watch for free!

SUMMARY

Equal parts inspiration and heartbreak, director Wendy Schneider charts the life and career of the amazing Charlotte Kainz, a “small-town girl” who grows up among the racers and pit mechanics at a rural Wisconsin motorcycle track. Developing a taste for speed and a talent for Flat Track racing at age four, young Charlotte dedicates her life to racing and never looks back. Shot over the course of 17 years, this intimate and engaging documentary is an all-encompassing portrait of a fearless young woman with an innate desire and knack for competing and succeeding in a sport very few women, much less young girls, ever thought to compete in.

Charlotte Kainz was born on September 20th, 1996. She learned to ride motorcycles from her father, Jack, when she was just 4 and began racing flat track at age 5. Charlotte raced as an amateur at Aztalan Cycle Club – an AMA District 16 track in Lake Mills, Wisconsin. She grew up as a part of Aztalan’s tight-knit racing community and was known to be a fierce competitor. She was also funny, kind, respectful, and had a beautiful heart. As a teen and young adult, Charlotte became an inspiration and mentor in her community. She was hard-working, confident, and poised to achieve her dream of becoming a professional motorcycle racer.

In 2015, after years of hard work and dedication, Charlotte registered as an AMA professional motorcycle racer. Her number was 35L. Racing on her 450cc, and her dream bike, a Harley-Davidson XR750cc motorcycle, she spent the last few years of her life competing as one of very few women in the sport. On September 25th, 2016, while racing her XR750 in California, Charlotte was involved in an accident that cut her life and career short. Charlotte Kainz made a lasting impression on her community and the racing world. And her passion for racing lives on in her friends, family, and fellow riders.

RELATED MEDIA

Film Website
Want to Support Angels of Dirt? Order merch on their website, including Flat Tracker, a children’s book by Charlotte Kainz.

 

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