Small Dogs Bark Loud
A brave young girl who faces grief and illness with her dog named Salto.
Small Dogs Bark Loud is a family documentary about Tuni and her best friend, the dog Salto.
In September 2021, Tuni’s half-brother took his own life, and her mother is diagnosed with terminal cancer. Because of the difficult circumstances, Tuni felt it was challenging to talk about her feelings. Shortly after her brother passed, she got a dog named Salto. It didn’t take long before Salto became her best friend - she even let him sleep in her own bed.
Tuni understands that time is precious so she creates a bucket list of things she wants to accomplish. She wants to dance in the rain, sell pearls with friends, and teaching Salto not to bark so they can go on vacation. At the bottom of the list is something that requires extra courage - visiting her older brother Håkon’s grave.
The film captures the story of a brave young girl, who confronts grief and illness, while also celebrating life and demonstrates how essential animals can be in helping us navigate through tough emotions.
In September 2021, Tuni’s half-brother took his own life, and her mother is diagnosed with terminal cancer. Because of the difficult circumstances, Tuni felt it was challenging to talk about her feelings. Shortly after her brother passed, she got a dog named Salto. It didn’t take long before Salto became her best friend - she even let him sleep in her own bed.
Tuni understands that time is precious so she creates a bucket list of things she wants to accomplish. She wants to dance in the rain, sell pearls with friends, and teaching Salto not to bark so they can go on vacation. At the bottom of the list is something that requires extra courage - visiting her older brother Håkon’s grave.
The film captures the story of a brave young girl, who confronts grief and illness, while also celebrating life and demonstrates how essential animals can be in helping us navigate through tough emotions.
Directors statement
The premise of the film is courage. Courage is the quiet, soft voice that encourages you to continue even when you are afraid. Courage nourishes, in bravery, and is the bridge between fear and action. It takes courage to grieve fully while also continuing living. In a culture where it's not always easy to feel safe to grieve openly, it takes extra courage.
I hope this film can make other children in the same situation as Tuni feel less alone, and dare to share their feelings, if only with a four-legged friend. I want to portray the strong bond between Tuni and Salto and show how important and meaningful the bond between animals and humans can be. I believe it is important to take children (9-12) as a target group seriously, by telling stories with complex subjects such as cancer and suicide, but keep the tone of the film light.
We will give Salto a human talking voice that comments on what Tuni is doing. Tuni does not hear or respond when he makes small comments. This is to give a comic relief to a film with a heavy topic. We will follow the family and their everyday life, and we want to create a contrast by occasionally adding some "magical elements" to spice up the scenes; small, subtle things that can give the feeling that she is going back in time and remembering her brother. We also want to use simple animation to make the film more playful and accessible to the target group
I hope this film can make other children in the same situation as Tuni feel less alone, and dare to share their feelings, if only with a four-legged friend. I want to portray the strong bond between Tuni and Salto and show how important and meaningful the bond between animals and humans can be. I believe it is important to take children (9-12) as a target group seriously, by telling stories with complex subjects such as cancer and suicide, but keep the tone of the film light.
We will give Salto a human talking voice that comments on what Tuni is doing. Tuni does not hear or respond when he makes small comments. This is to give a comic relief to a film with a heavy topic. We will follow the family and their everyday life, and we want to create a contrast by occasionally adding some "magical elements" to spice up the scenes; small, subtle things that can give the feeling that she is going back in time and remembering her brother. We also want to use simple animation to make the film more playful and accessible to the target group
NORA NIVEDITA (b. 1998) was adopted from India and grew up in Norway. She graduated from The Norwegian film school in 2020 with a bachelor's degree in creative documentary directing. Her graduation film Fucking Adopted has been nominated for several film festivals such as the Student Academy Awards and won the NewNordicVoice 2020 at Nordic Panorama, and Nymfeprisen 2021 at The Norwegian Documentary Film Festival. The film has been shown at schools all over Norway to start a conversation about identity and racism. Her last short documentary Show Me Your Face When You Look at a Stranger won Best Short Documentary at Nordic / Docs.
- DirectorNora Tvedt
- ProducerLillian Løvseth
- Production countryNorway
- Production companyLØV FILM
- Age9+
- Duration75 min
- GenreFamily
- TypesDocumentary, Live-action
- Year2024
- Spoken languageNorwegian
- Total budget€472,634
- Financing in place€247,489
Contact persons
Company profile
LØV Film specializes in producing creative documentaries, animation, and live-action fiction, both features and series. We focus on sustainable, green production and telling local stories with global appeal. We are committed to creating content that delivers powerful messages and fosters a positive impact.
The company was established in January 2024 by producer Lillian Løvseth and we are based in Lillehammer, Norway. We have several projects in development, three films in post-production and four co-productions ongoing.
Our main team consists of CEO and producer Lillian Løvseth, production coordinator and script writer Sigrid Sand, impact producer and documentary director Nora Nivedita, and CTO and animation director Anja Manou Hellem. In addition, we work on several projects with award-winning and experienced script writer Trond M. K. Venaasen, DoP Runar Sørheim, composer Stein B. Svendsen and editor Andreas Øhman.
The company was established in January 2024 by producer Lillian Løvseth and we are based in Lillehammer, Norway. We have several projects in development, three films in post-production and four co-productions ongoing.
Our main team consists of CEO and producer Lillian Løvseth, production coordinator and script writer Sigrid Sand, impact producer and documentary director Nora Nivedita, and CTO and animation director Anja Manou Hellem. In addition, we work on several projects with award-winning and experienced script writer Trond M. K. Venaasen, DoP Runar Sørheim, composer Stein B. Svendsen and editor Andreas Øhman.
Connecting with film industry, finding sales agent, broadcasters, distributors, festivals, financiers and getting audience feedback.
Goals at JCM
Representatives at JCM and contact details
Lillian Løvseth
lillian@loevfilm.no
