Cartuna (Boys Go to Jupiter, Hundreds of Beavers, Nova Seed) 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 International Fantastic Film Festival. The company will release the historical fantasy-horror film theatrically in 2026.
“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.”
Raitis Ābele added, “The distributors I talked to were impressed and afraid. Cartuna was no exception.”
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, co-written by Ivo Briedis and Harijs Grundmanis, and produced by Kristele Pudane, Raitis Ābele and Giovanni Labadessa. Brothers Raitis and Lauris are Latvian directors, producers, editors and screenwriters, often collaborating with their youngest brother Marcis Ābele, who serves as the film’s 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.
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. Following its premiere at the Tribeca Festival, Dog of God has screened at more than 30 festivals worldwide — including the Fantasia International Film Festival and London’s FrightFest.
Dog of God marks Cartuna’s latest acquisition in its growing slate of 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.
The deal was negotiated by Justyna Koronkiewicz of Media Move on behalf of the filmmakers and James Belfer for Cartuna.
