by Diana Bocco, Contributor
What does it take for a dog to become a movie star? Turns out, it’s all about personality. In fact, more than the right look or resume, movie and TV producers look for dogs that are outgoing, easily trainable, motivated to learn, people-friendly, and easy going with novel situations, according to Joan Hunter Mayer, MBA, CTC, CPDT-KA, CBCC-KA, a Certified Professional Dog Trainer with over 14 years of experience in the entertainment industry. “[A dog who] reacts positively to different sounds and situations—basically ‘bomb proof.’”
Movie Training vs. Real World Training
Training a dog for movies and commercials is in some ways similar and in some ways different than day-to-day or “real world training,” says Blake Rodriguez, the owner and founder of Dream Come True K9, a dog training and rehabilitation center, and a regular trainer for movie and TV dogs, including some current work for a show on Investigation Discovery. One big difference when training for TV and the movies as opposed to real life? In show business, you are often looking for task-specific things. “Sometimes TV training is more demanding, pressuring, and distracting than real life training,” Rodriguez says.
This isn’t surprising, since with movies and TV, there is often a specific situation where a dog would need to perform behaviors that are filled with extra distractions, explains Hunter Mayer. “An entire film crew, unknown people and places, noises, smells,” Hunter Mayer says. While the actual “performance” might be similar to what dogs would do in real life (sit-stay, down, greeting people, riding in a car), the “behind the scenes” is certainly different and much more challenging, according to Hunter Mayer.
Choosing the Right Dog
Finding the right dog for a role is not that different from casting the right actors. In many instances, TV producers reach out to trainers to find a dog. “Usually, they ask for a certain breed or look and it’s up to the trainer to dig deeper and find the right temperament for what is required (more important than the look in many ways),” explains Rodriguez. “Usually trainers have their go-to dogs, personal dogs or client dogs that they are familiar with, but on some occasions might seek out a shelter/rescue.”
In this time and age, auditions aren’t that rare either—and pet owners often send in pics and videos for a chance to be part of the Hollywood shine. “For me, it’s always been TV people reaching out to me after finding me and my work online somewhere or hearing about me through the grapevine,” Rodriguez says.
Training a Dog to Be a Star
No dog can become a star without first learning some basic concepts. “Basic tricks that I believe are essential for a dog to have a lasting career in advanced acting, scenes, and movies requires focus, impulse control, motivation, drive, and a solid relationship with the handler,” says Rodriguez. “But there are many dogs that make it to the big screen that aren’t the best trained dogs but are good enough to do a trick or two after x amount of takes and look cute doing it (usually a commercial).”
While training puppies is probably easier—they’re eager to learn and full of energy—adult dogs can become movie starts as well. “You can definitely teach older dogs—they have life experience they bring with them,” says Hunter Mayer. “They just have to be motivated the right way, communicated with in a way they understand that is positive and not fear-based.”
In the end, it’s more about the dog’s personality rather than his or her age. You usually want a really motivated and focused dog and, according to Rodriguez, preferably a calm focused dog versus an anxious focused dog. “You typically want a happy-go-lucky dog that isn’t easily distracted or at the very least is super focused and obsessed with one thing to the point where nothing else [is] around it,” Rodriguez adds.
The Life of a Movie Star Dog
Here’s something you might not be aware of—most movie or TV roles are played by more than one real-life dog. The famous Lassie was played by nine different dogs, all males. During shoots, the “official” Lassie would not play any scenes that would get his coat dirty or wet. For those shots, they would use one of Lassie’s brothers.
Plus, using doubles mean all dogs got breaks. “Filming for movies is long and it would not be fair in some situations to continue to work a dog take after take and expect the same enthusiasm or focus,” explains Rodriguez. “In other situations, some dogs might be better at some things than others.”
In the end, it’s all about the “what ifs” of life, according to Hunter Mayer. “Human actors have stand-ins, doubles, and stunt persons,” says Hunter Mayer. “It’s nice to have back-ups in case an animal gets sick, scared, or doesn’t respond in a timely manner.”
