The main four-legged character of the series almost immediately became friends with actor Nikita Panfilov. Now, in a friendly way, he steals sandwiches from him.
– Since the first season, the Shepherd Graf was filmed in the project, – tells “Antenna” dog owner, cynologist Vitaly Musevich. – He even managed to work in the police. Once I had a rest with the dog handlers. At night, during the alarm, he was accidentally taken away, confused with a combat partner. As a result, he put the robbers on the trail. At the beginning of the fourth season, his son Mukhtar (born in 2012) began to replace him, since the Graf was already physically difficult (he died in August 2018, when he was 11 years old). Mukhtar is now growing up two 9-month-old heirs – Nick and Nord. I am already starting to prepare them for the continuation of “Dog”. I always take it with me to the shooting so that they get used to it. I train in my free time.
Mukhtar and Graf are different in character. The first one is more hooligan, sometimes it can be hurtful. The second, on the contrary, did not behave like that. He was like plasticine. Immediately he grasped everything that he showed him in front of the stage. Mukhtar needs to be explained longer.
The working day for the dog, like everyone else, lasted 12 hours. But she was not very tired, as she participated only in general and close-up plans. And during the breaks, the pets either walked or slept. By the way, Mukhtar loves to get into other people’s open cars while walking. It is impossible to expel him from there!
The main training took place right in the frame. If I was not sure that the dog would immediately execute everything according to the script, then I carefully worked it out in advance. Constantly wondering how it is profitable to shoot the dog and how it is best for him to act in front of the camera. It often happened when the four-legged at the rehearsal does everything perfectly, but not in the frame. He just doesn’t understand why duplicates are needed. Then you have to motivate him through play and goodies. Mukhtar’s favorite delicacy is smoked sausages. He is ready to sell his soul for them! But they can rarely be given, as they are harmful to the dog. Basically, the dog’s diet includes boiled chicken, beef and special food.
It is not easy when active scenes (where Mukhtar needs to run, jump, do somersaults according to the script) are filmed in the evening, and passive scenes (where he should be sick or sleepy) are filmed in the morning. After all, the usual regime is built the other way around. Therefore, again, you have to play it somehow. If possible, I ask the team to adjust the shifts to the dog.
You cannot be sure how the dog will behave on set. Any factor can distract her. For example, Mukhtar is not indifferent to cats. If I don’t notice that she has worn around somewhere nearby, then the race begins. I also remember how the Count, being in the frame near the lake, fell off and flopped right into the water. Because he really wanted to plunge at this very moment! In one of the scenes, the stuntman had to shoot, and then the Count began to attack him. It so happened that the stuntman pulled the trigger right during the bite. There was a deafening sound 10 centimeters from the dog’s ear. After that, for four months he was distrustful of such episodes. There was a slight panic. Mukhtar is not afraid of anything.
Nikita Panfilov almost immediately managed to make friends with four-legged partners.
– The dogs were fed only by me and Nikita, so that they obey the actor, – continues Vitaly. – He often walked with them. The dogs even slept at his house. In general, it is desirable for the main character in such a project to be at least a little bit of a dog handler. Along the way, I told Nikita what to do. After a couple of days, the actor and the dog became friends. True, there were moments when, for example, Mukhtar could grab Panfilov by the butt. Not because of aggression. Sometimes the artist did not stand in the shot as rehearsed, so the dog had a “glitch”. Later, she fell in love with quietly snatching sandwiches from Nikita’s hands. Could open someone’s bag and take out food. I note that the dog did not behave like that before filming. He was accustomed to the fact that you can not take anything without asking. But filmmaking is still discouraging. Dogs are very addictive to movie owners. They even get bored when there is a big break between the seasons. At the sight of their favorite actor, they rush to him with joy.
However, Mukhtar did not manage to find a common language with all the artists.
– He does not digest Misha Zhonin, the performer of the role of Captain Gnezdilov, – says the dog handler. – According to the script, his character is a walking convulsion. This behavior provokes the dog. It happened that he bit Misha’s ass. But Zhonin was not much offended by this. I’m used to it.