The Dancing Dogs of Dombrova is a Canadian comedy-drama film, directed by Zack Bernbaum and released in 2018.Julie Crawford, "Filmmaker draws on sibling rivalry for storyline". North Shore News, November 23, 2018. The film stars Katherine Fogler and Douglas Nyback as Sarah and Aaron Cotler, Jewish Canadian siblings who are travelling together to their grandmother's hometown of Dąbrowa Górnicza, Poland, to fulfill her dying wish of being reunited with the cremated remains of her dead childhood dog.Amy Longsdorf, "'El Camino' brings 'Breaking Bad' to new levels". Courier-Post, October 25, 2020.
The cast also includes Doroftei Anis, Silva Helena Schmidt, Stefan Vizireanu, Adrian Matioc, Marius Stanescu, Dana Talos, Alexandra Murarus, Boris Melinti, Pali Vecsei, Vlad Robas, Ciprian Scurtea, Valentin Spaeth, Liviu Vlad and Alina Lipovetchi.
Production Bernbaum acknowledged that the film was inspired by aspects of his own real family life, including drawing from his own relationship with his sister, choosing Dąbrowa Górnicza as the setting because that was his own grandmother's real hometown, and basing its title on his grandmother once saying that his sister's dog was dancing when it jumped up and down excitedly at a family gathering, but stated that the film was not meant to be understood as autobiographical.
Despite being set in Poland, the film was shot principally in Romania, as coproducer and cinematographer Stephen Chandler Whitehead had established professional connections there from prior work.Andres Guzman, "A (Socially Distanced) Conversation with Zack Bernbaum". The Underscene, September 28, 2020.
Distribution The film premiered on October 27, 2018, at the Austin Film Festival,Joe Gross, "'Ben is Back,' 'Widows,' 'Green Book' to play Austin Film Festival". Austin American-Statesman, September 25, 2018. and had its Canadian premiere in the Borsos Competition program at the 2018 Whistler Film Festival.Jordan Pinto, "WFF ’18: A Colony wins three Borsos prizes". Playback, December 3, 2018.
Critical response Amy Longsdorf of the USA Today syndication service wrote that "it takes a while for the picture to get going as filmmaker Zach Bernbaum struggles to get the sad/funny balance just right. But once Sarah and Aaron begin dissecting their complicated relationship, 'Dancing Dogs' finds its groove, allowing audiences to eavesdrop on the secret places in the characters' lives."
Awards It was screened at the 2019 Canadian Film Festival,Victor Stiff, "Canadian Film Fest 2019 Announces This Year’s Lineup". That Shelf, March 5, 2019. where the film won the award for Best Feature Film and Bernbaum won for Best Director.Jordan Pinto, "The Dancing Dogs of Dombrova wins best feature at CFF". Playback, March 25, 2019.
Courtney Small of Cinema Axis wrote that the film "is a crowd-pleaser filled with wit and genuine emotion. You will love these characters flaws and all."
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