LYNN ROTH has been a constant on the big and small screens for more than 40 years. Breaking the glass ceiling as a television writer on shows like The Helen Reddy Show and Love, American Style, producing and/or writing a series like The Paper Chase or telemovie like Just My Imagination, or directing a film such as The Little Traitor, LYNN ROTH has made her voice known. And now, as writer/director of SHEPHERD: THE STORY OF A JEWISH DOG, she speaks louder than ever, but with sensitivity and caring that opens the eyes and the heart.
Adapted by Roth from the acclaimed book, The Jewish Dog, by Israeli author Asher Kravitz, SHEPHERD: THE STORY OF A JEWISH DOG, gives us a new perspective on the Holocaust; an almost first-person account as seen through the eyes of a German Shepherd named Kaleb. A dog knows no religion, no race, no ethnicity. A dog only understands kindness and love no matter the source. And that is one of the biggest lessons to be learned from this story and this film.
With August Maturo as her “human” lead, a young Jewish boy named Joshua, Ken Duken as an SS officer with a softer yet ambiguous side, and several German Shepherds all playing different aspects of the Jewish dog “Kaleb”, Roth delivers a powerful and emotional look at history and humanity.
I spoke at length with Lynn in this exclusive conversation as we discussed adapting Kravitz’ book to not only make it cinematic, but shift voice and tone, important factors given her desire to make the film more family-friendly in order to open a dialogue and expose the younger generation to the atrocities of the Holocaust. You can feel kindness and caring in Lynn’s voice, something that is reflected with every frame of the film we see on screen. Shooting in the late fall in Hungary, weather and topography became factors in the physical shoot, as did working with a predominantly non-English speaking cast and crew, not to mention child actors and dogs – many many many dogs. We talk about it all.
TAKE A LISTEN. . . .
by debbie elias, exclusive interview May 18, 2021
