Santiago, Chile: not much is going on at the “Los Reyes“ (“The Kings“) skatepark because it‘s incredibly hot and there‘s barely any shade. “Who else is going to come besides us in this damn heat,“ complains one of the regulars. The park is their home, yet they have only borrowed it from Football and Chola, two big brown dogs that are the real rulers here.

Similar to Ceyda Torun‘s KEDI (Turkey, 2017), a portrait of cats and people on the streets of Istanbul, LOS REYES is about the co-existence between humans and animals in the city, but directs even more of the focus on the daily lives of the four-legged protagonists. The camera observes the two dogs on their turf calmly and attentively, as they pant and look for shade, play and sleep, getting close to their wet noses and coarse paws. The temperamental Chola likes to bark and chase passing motorcycles; Football is more relaxed and is satisfied by finding a plastic bottle he can hold in his mouth. Despite the very different temperaments, they are inseparable and their friendship is very heart-warming. “No one can tell me what to do,“ - the things that the kids in the skate park want is normality for the dogs. Directors Bettina Perut and Ivan Osnovikoff don‘t ignore the fact that this stray romance has a few hitches. While a pet is dry and comfortable indoors, Football and Chola brave the storm surges that completely change the dust-dry city landscape. And so there are nice days and sad ones, tragedy and happiness – simply a dog‘s life.

Eva Szulkowski

Translation: Elinor Lewy