Cartuna Acquires North American Rights to Latvia’s Oscar Submission Dog of God

Rotoscoped visions of faith and madness collide in Latvia’s Oscar submission Dog of God, coming to North America via Cartuna.

Cartuna has acquired North American distribution rights to Dog of God, the acclaimed animated feature from Latvian filmmakers Lauris Ābele and Raitis Ābele, following its screening at the Sitges Film Festival. The company will release the film theatrically in 2026.

Dog of God is a dark, hallucinatory period horror-fantasy set in a 17th-century Livonian village, where religious fervor, accusation, and otherworldly phenomena converge. The film follows villagers as a missing relic, whispered witchcraft, and a self-proclaimed werewolf called the “Dog of God” upend their fragile order. Rendered in meticulously crafted rotoscope animation, the film blends the grotesque, the poetic, and the absurd with folkloric dread.

Dog of God was written and directed by Lauris Ābele and Raitis Ābele, with co-writing by Ivo Briedis and Harijs Grundmanis, and produced by Kristele Pudane, Raitis Ābele, and Giovanni Labadessa. The film has been selected as Latvia’s official submission for the 2026 Academy Awards in the Best International Feature Film category, and has been shortlisted by the European Film Awards for Best Animated Feature. Having premiered at the Tribeca Festival and screened at more than 30 festivals worldwide—including the Fantasia International Film Festival and London's FrightFest—the film has drawn praise for pushing the boundaries of adult animation, described by Variety as “a cult favorite amongst enthusiasts of dark fantasy, graphic novels and genre-stretching absurdist cinema, à la Yorgos Lanthimos.”

“Dog of God is one of those films that defies categorization—it’s part parable, part fever dream,” said James Belfer, Founder and CEO of Cartuna. “It’s bold, unsettling, and darkly funny in all the best ways. Lauris and Raitis have such a singular vision and we’re thrilled to champion it to audiences who crave something truly new in animation.”

Director Raitis Abele was equally excited by the partnership, proclaiming, “The distributors I talked to were impressed and afraid. Cartuna was no exception.”

Brothers Raitis and Lauris Ābele are Latvian directors, producers, editors, and screenwriters, often collaborating with their youngest brother Marcis Ābele, who serves as director of photography. Known for blending arthouse sensibilities with genre filmmaking and a strain of dark Baltic mysticism, the Ābeles have developed a distinctive voice within European independent cinema.

Dog of God marks Cartuna’s latest acquisition in its growing slate of daring, artist-driven animated, live-action, and hybrid features. The company, founded by James and Adam Belfer, has become a champion for unconventional voices in animation, producing and distributing projects that push the boundaries of form, tone, and technology. Acquisitions this year include Boys Go to Jupiter, Dead Lover, and Tamala 2030: A Punk Cat in Dark. Upcoming releases and additional acquisitions will be announced later this year.

The deal was negotiated by Justyna Koronkiewicz of Media Move on behalf of the filmmakers and James Belfer for Cartuna.