Dog Warriors Director Andrew Abrahams Highlights the Movie’s Heartfelt Moments and Relatable Themes
In a recent discussion, filmmaker Abrahams highlighted the delicate balance he sought in his latest project. “On one hand, we want to show the reality,” he stated. “On the other hand, we don’t want to scare people away. One of the principal issues around this film is that people love dogs so much that they don’t want to see them suffering. Even the thought of them suffering is too much for them. They can see people being killed or other animals, but dogs, it’s way too close to home.”
Despite his efforts to mitigate the film’s graphic content, Abrahams acknowledged the challenges of its subject matter. He noted, “I did take out some of the goriest scenes I captured. Nevertheless, the subject matter makes it a hard sell.”
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According to Abrahams, the film has sparked fear among potential viewers. “We get a lot of people who are afraid to see the film, and we hear that a lot,” he said. “We’ve heard that from distributors, even — that they’re afraid that people will be afraid to see the film. I call it ‘the must-see film you thought you couldn’t watch,’ that it’s something that you’re afraid of watching, but it’s not that difficult to get through.”
However, he added, “Your mileage may vary.” During a recent film festival screening, one viewer walked out during a particularly challenging segment.
Abrahams was inspired to create the film after Janette Warren alerted him to the practice of dog meat consumption. He aimed to raise awareness without reducing the project to mere advocacy. The involvement of combat veterans working to rescue dogs provided a compelling narrative framework.
“I don’t wanna make advocacy films,” he emphasized. “I like that a film is nuanced. I want the viewer to come away to make their own decisions. I want them to struggle with the complexities of an issue. As much as it’s sort of clear where my sympathies lie, my sympathies also lie with the dog meat farmers. This has been their trade for their whole life. They don’t know anything different. So it will affect their livelihoods. I have sympathy for that. It’s not black and white.”
As Dog Warriors arrives following its premiere at the 2024 Raindance Film Festival, the landscape in South Korea is shifting. The government has announced a ban on the sale and consumption of dog meat, set to take effect in 2027.
“There’s a lot of pushback from the Dog Meat Association,” Abrahams noted. “They’re threatening to cause all sorts of mayhem if that law goes through. But it did pass. It didn’t happen because of our veterans, although we’d like to think they played a part, that all the people came together to make that change happen.”
Stay tuned for the panel video set to be released on Tuesday.
