Celebrating our love of dogs at film festival

A brand-new film festival featuring a cinematic celebration of dogs and their people is to premiere in Edinburgh.

The Top Dog Film Festival is a collection of canine-inspired short films, all celebrating the unbreakable bond between dogs and humans. From the wild world of the wolf to the pampered pooches of the dog grooming world, and all of our four-legged friends in between, these stories are moving, uplifting and inspiring.

Tour director Nell Teasdale said: ‘Humans and dogs share a precious, heart-warming bond, and this brand-new collection of films celebrates the canine companions that enrich our lives.

‘Whether you’re a dog owner or just like dogs, these films are guaranteed to make you laugh, cry and fall in love with man’s best friend all over again.’

Featuring a carefully curated collection of stories from independent film-makers all around the world, the Top Dog Film Festival originated in Australia and is touring the UK for the first time in 2019. The tour kicks off in Edinburgh on 18 May, and continues with dates around the country in autumn.

Film highlights include:

Arthur: On day four of a gruelling adventure race in Ecuador, Team Peak Performance from Sweden were closing in on the race’s leaders, when a surprise addition to the team changed their course. The athletes were approached by a then un-named stray dog, severely injured with a large wound on its back. This chance encounter led to a 10,000km journey for one dog to join a team and find a home.

The Dogist: After unexpectedly losing his corporate job, Elias Weiss Friedman, aka @thedogist, set out into the streets of New York City with a camera and a squeaky tennis ball. Since then he’s photographed and captured the personalities of 30,000 dogs all around the world, racking up an impressive 3.2 million followers on Instagram along the way. He can also imitate three different barking noises with frightening accuracy… but luckily for him, New York is a place where you can walk down the street woofing and no-one pays you any attention.

For more information and to book tickets, see www.topdogfilmfestival.co.uk.