09/09/2025 - Set in 17th-century Livonia, the animated picture follows a series of mystical events, blending history with folklore

Latvia has chosen Lauris and Raitis Ābele’s animated feature Dog of God [+see also:
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Following a thorough evaluation of the titles submitted, the national selection committee unanimously opted for the film, highlighting its boldness, innovation and use of the rarely employed rotoscope technique. Set in 17th-century Livonia, the picture follows a series of mystical events, blending history with folklore.

The feature had its world premiere in June at the Tribeca Film Festival in New York, where it garnered widespread recognition and positive reviews. The committee stressed that Latvia has already carved out a reputation internationally through its “unusual animation”, and the choice of Dog of God continues to strengthen this strategic positioning.

The film is scheduled for its national premiere in Liepāja at the beginning of September, before heading to Riga and other Latvian cities. The helmers, who have longstanding ties with Liepāja, underlined their wish to bring the project first to local audiences.

Latvia has a long tradition of Oscar submissions, beginning with Jānis Streičs’ The Child of a Man in 1991. In recent years, the Baltic republic has submitted titles including Aigars Grauba’s Defenders of Riga (2008), Viesturs Kairišs’s January [+see also:
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trailer
film profile] (2022), Ilze Kunga-Melgaile’s My Freedom [+see also:
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film profile] (2023) and Gints Zilbalodis’s Flow [+see also:
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interview: Gints Zilbalodis
interview: Red Carpet @ European Film …
film profile] (2024), which earned worldwide acclaim and scooped the Academy Award for Best Animated Feature as well as countless other accolades, including the most recent LUX Audience Award (see the news).

Dog of God now joins this lineage as Latvia’s latest contender on the road to the Oscars.