Dog of God
In a 17th-century Swedish Livonian village, constant rain and drunkenness prevail. When a stolen relic sparks witchcraft accusations, an 80-year-old self-proclaimed werewolf named the Dog of God arrives with a mysterious gift: The Devil’s Balls. This triggers a chain of unexpected events that climaxes in a wild sexual rave party, transforming the village into a frenzy of unleashed desires.
While the Latvian film “Flow” won Best Animated Feature at this year’s Academy Awards, giving the country its first-ever Oscar, the aggressively adult and visually wild “Dog of God” is something else entirely for Latvian animation. Employing rotoscope animation, siblings and co-directors Raitis and Lauris Ābele have crafted a delirious and horror-tinged fever dream of psychedelia that harkens back to the audacious and edgy animation days of filmmakers like Ralph Bakshi and cult classics like “Heavy Metal”. – Matt Barone
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Lauris Abele and Raitis Abele are brothers and Latvian filmmakers, born and still residing in Riga. Raitis Abele is a clinical psychologist and studied film art at New York Film Academy. Mostly they work together with their third brother Marcis Abele (D.O.P.) as a trio.
Vennad Lauris, Raitis ja Marcis on Läti filmitegijad, kes töötavad enamasti koos. Raitis on hariduselt psühholoog, kuid on filmihariduse saanud New Yorgi Filmiakadeemias. Lauris on omandanud filmirežii eriala Läti Kultuuriakadeemias. Marcis on aga õppinud samas koolis filmioperaatoriks. Vendade rahvusvaheline edu algas Raitise ja Laurise koos lavastatud lühifilmiga „Castratus the Boar“, mis pälvis 2015 Tampere lühifilmide festivalil grand prix. Kolm aastat hiljem valmis vendadel draamadokumentaalfilm paganlikest traditsioonidest, „Baltic Tribes, Last Pagans of Europe“. „Rahutud meeled“ on vendade esimene täispikk film. Lisaks filmide tegemisele on Lauris ja Raitis teinud muusikat kahele rokk- ja post-metal bändile Soundarcade ja Sonntags Legion.