Cannes: ‘War Pony’ Poodle Brit Wins Palm Dog Award

If there were ever a clear sign that the Cannes Film Festival has returned to all its pre-pandemic glory, it was the ceremony for the Palm Dog, the beloved, unofficial awards show celebrating the best canine performances across the official selection and various sidebars, held a day before Cannes hands out its Palme d’Or.

In the end, it was Brit (Brittney to her parents), the fluffy silver poodle star of Riley Keough and Gina Gammell’s critically-acclaimed Un Certain Regard film War Pony, who was named top dog, winning the main prize on Friday with a runaway performance. Both Keough and Gammell accepted the award via a video link, describing Brit as “just a legend.” Like all four-legged winners, she will — eventually — receive the coveted embossed Palm Dog collar, although two non-thespian poodles (one white, one black) accepted the award in-person (in-dog?) on her behalf of Brit at the ceremony.

A favourite to take home Cannes’ canine prize since the film had its world premiere and hotly tipped by The Hollywood Reporter early on, War Pony was originally called Beast, literally the name of the poodle played by Brit (its name was changed shortly after being announced for the festival). Adopted by lead character Bill, Beast is often seen patiently waiting in the back of his car or babysitting her owner’s young children as he attempts to hustle his way around the Pine Ridge Reservation in South Dakota, and provides the backstory for one of his money-making schemes (poodle breeding).

Adding some emotional depth to War Pony’s top dog status, Beast was also the beloved pet of co-writer Bill Reddy (although Reddy’s Beast was a pit bull) and a companion whose death actually ignited the fuse that led to the film.

“He had a real connection to the dog, and it really affected us all,” Keough told The Hollywood Reporter before the festival. “And I feel like that [the day he died] kind of inspired the whole film, and we were like, let’s make a story about Beast.”

Earlier in the Palm Dog ceremony, a shared Grand Jury Prize went to Marcel, the eponymous terrier of French film Marcel! that played in Cannes’ Special Screenings lineup and the sheepdog from Icelandic Un Certain Regard title Godland.

The “Dogmatarian” award, for the bond between humanity and canines, went to Patron, the Ukrainian Jack Russell mine sniffer honored by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy for his service during the war that has been raging since Russia’s invasion of the country.

And the Palm Hound Dog was also awarded, named in honor of Baz Luhrmann’s rock biopic Elvis.

Palm Dog founder Toby Rose kicked off the Friday ceremony with his traditional introduction: “Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, dogs and bitches!”

For the first time ever, the Palm Dog also had corporate sponsorship, with backing from web 3.0 company Dogami.

Peter Bradshaw of the Guardian also spoke at the awards ceremony, highlighting: “This award has grown from a Chihuahua to a Rhodesian Ridgeback.”