This is one of the sweetest commercials EVER! Great job, Budweiser! A puppy wanting to be near a horse friend so much that he keeps breaking out of his yard so he can visit his friend!
In the commercial, it looks as if this puppy and horse are real friends. They may or may not be in reality. The magic of camera, that certain quality that a dog has to convey an emotion…that’s commercial!
So what kind of dogs do well in commercials? Personality and skills count. A dog that’s shy about meeting strangers would be stressed on a commercial set. And a dog that’s uncomfortable in unfamiliar situations would also be stressed. These are just a couple of thoughts to help you decide should you had dreams of getting your dog into the entertainment industry. So let’s say your dog is comfortable around strangers and feel fine in unfamiliar situations.
What does it take for a dog to be in a commercial?
What’s the next criteria? Well-trained. Since there can be lots and lots of distractions on the set, how is your dog in following your command and not get distracted everytime there is movement nearby? Does your dog have the discipline to stay focused on you (or whoever is working with the dog) even when there’s distrations around?
Keep in mind that during the commercial, your dog would not be on a leash. Is your dog able to follow command off leash, when you are at a distance?
Now for abilities. Yes. Stars are not made on personality alone! If you’ve been training your dog to do tricks, put those down on a resume. Yes, dogs need resumes too!
For example, can your dog limp on command? Crawling, bringing you things? When you take photos of your dog to send to the casting agent, capture moments when your dog is at her cutest.
Also take some short videos (maybe 3 to 5 minutes) when she is performing tricks. This way, if an agent likes the way your dog looks in the photo, and ask to see what your dog can do, you have these videos at your finger tips to send them immediately!
If you enjoy this video, here is another dog commercial by Subaru.