The animated rotoscope horror film Dog of God just world premiered at the 2025 Tribeca Film Festival in the “Escape From Tribeca” track which is devoted to “cult” films.
The film is a Hard-R adult animation film filled with grotesque imagery and adult content. It hails from the country of Latvia, which won the Oscar for Best Animated Film earlier this year for Flow. This film is the exact opposite in terms of content.
Cherry the Geek TV spoke with the Dog of God directors Lauris and Raitis Abele about the film, the animation process, the grotesque imagery, sound design, and music score, and more. You can watch the full interview by clicking on the link below:
Dog of God is a visually arresting animated feature inspired by the remarkable true story of the 1692 Livonian werewolf trial of Thiess of Kaltenbrun—one of the last and most unusual werewolf trials in European history.
Set in Northern Europe (modern-day Latvia), the film re-imagines the Baltic werewolf myth not as a tale of monstrous transformation, but as the echo of a fading pagan and shamanistic worldview. These werewolves—known as the “Dogs of God”—descend into Hell not to spread terror, but to fight witches and demons, protect crops, and secure the well being of peasants.The narrative centers around the archetype of the Trickster Arrival, with old man Thiess—an 82-year-old peasant who boldly declares himself a werewolf during a church robbery trial—turning the courtroom into a stage for cosmic confrontation and social subversion. Through him, the film explores human flaws, regrets, desires, and the resilience of those living at the edges of empire.
At its heart, Dog of God is both a historical detective story and a spiritual journey into a lost worldview. It shines a light on the buried history of the Baltic region—long silenced under Soviet rule—and reclaims a folklore that speaks to resistance, survival, and the power of belief.Visually, the film draws from classical Latvian and Estonian art as well as the mythic intensity of Bosch, Moebius, Frank Frazetta, Mike Mignola, H.R. Giger, and Heavy Metal magazine. With the help of visionary artist Harijs Grundmanis, the film’s satirical and sometimes absurd visual style pushes the historical werewolf and witchcraft genre into bold new territory—infused with dark, almost Monty Python–like humour and a surreal, anarchic edge.Rendered through rotoscope animation, Dog of God channels both medieval mysticism and modern psychedelia—offering a bold new lens into the soul of Northeastern Europe. If there’s one phrase to describe this forgotten corner of the world some 300 years ago, it would be: The Kingdom of Werewolves. But not the werewolves we think we know.
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