Original subtitles

-=Sync&Corrected by Misiek666=-

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I'm shaking.

No! - Is that visible?

- No, don't be nervous. - I'm shaking.

Lock it. Mark.

My first impression of him was that he was... he was difficult.

I'll do my best. I might have to pause and then go into it.

And that is fine. We can do that.

OK.

You know, he was very driven. Incredibly focused.

He was a brat.

Just like a naughty child, I think.

He was a star.

And when stars enter a room, they suck out the oxygen.

He was a very good improviser.

He was very funny, sometimes.

Koko had it all.

What do you feel like his legacy was?

Koko's legacy?

Depends on who you're talking to.

He was a very special dog.

He was one in a million.

Fire.

The wheel.

The silicon chip.

All very impressive.

But the single greatest thing to happen to the human race

was the evolution of the domestic dog,

Canis lupus familiaris,

a direct descendant of the grey wolf.

Before they became man's best friend roughly 36,000 years ago,

wolves figured out that if they didn't threaten humans,

then humans would do all the hard work for them.

In return for food and protection,

the wolves would help humans find their way.

And so, over time, an unlikely kinship formed

and the wolf evolved into the tame domestic dog.

Humans and dogs would share a special bond

side by side, for millennia to come.

Mankind and cat, however...

..well, that's an entirely different history lesson.

Over the centuries, these loyal hounds

became our most trusted companions and our protectors.

They find us when we're lost,

lead us when we're blind

and comfort us in our times of greatest need.

In return, we shelter them, feed them

and dress them up in ridiculous costumes.

Today, there are more variants of dog

than any other living mammal,

with best estimates placing the total number of dogs on Earth

at approximately 560 million.

But every now and then,

a truly extraordinary, selfless, heroic,

one-in-560-million dog comes along.

A dog capable of inspirational feats

that lift the human spirit.

A dog we build shrines to.

A dog with its own unique tale.

From Japan, Hachiko, the loyal Akita,

who spent nine long years waiting at a train station

for the return of his master who had tragically passed.

From the United States, Bobbie the Wonder Dog,

a Scotch collie who journeyed thousands of miles

in order to find his way home.

And from Australia, Red Dog,

the red cloud kelpie who wandered the outback and beyond

in search of his missing master.

But there was once a dog who walked a very different path.

A dog with a very different story,

whose face was seen around the world,

whose name was heard far and wide

and who, frankly, did very little to deserve it.

His name...

..was Koko.

You see, Koko was a very different type of dog.

He was a star -

a very famous star -

and he loved it.

Koko was some of the best talent

I have ever interviewed in my 30 years.

He was a dog that took to people.

He just loved to be around people.

It's amazing - as much recognition as anyone

you normally see on the front page of a newspaper.

What actor would I compare him to?

He was the best-paid dog in Australia.

I gave him little meaty bits.

Koko's a massive...!

He had great charisma, great soul,

great depth inside of him.

I mean, Koko meant everything.

It takes a special dog to connect with so many people.

Koko was the first to do everything out of the litter.

He was the first one to open his eyes

and get up on his little legs.

He was pretty bossy over the rest of the litter.

He would just walk over the top of them.

Didn't matter.

I've got a present for you.

Look at that.

It was earned. He always knew that he was clever.

You look gorgeous, Koko.

Or should I say, Smart n Bossy.

What made him special is he wanted to be with you.

He wanted to listen to you.

He wanted to absorb what was happening around him.

That was just the way he was.

30 years, I've had kelpies.

A kelpie is a dog that's developed in Australia

for Australian conditions.

They can do anything.

He's one of the most important workers

in Australia's great woollen industry -

the kelpie, who works big mobs of sheep over wide, open areas.

Kelpies are sheepdogs, basically.

They're quite intensely selected for their brains

and their working ability and ease of training.

To me, they are

the intelligentsia of the dog world.

A typical kelpie who wanted to please.

You look at a kelpie and say 'jump'.

The first thing a kelpie would say is "How high?"

Farmers who've bred them are pretty non-forgiving.

So they were selecting the brightest, hardest-working,

involved dog that they can find.

They've got to have the ability to read the mind of the owner

and I think that's developed to a large degree in kelpies.

- -Well done, Johnny Boy.

I've heard different stories

about the origin of the kelpie.

I've certainly heard there's a fair bit of dingo in it.

The dingo isn't actually a dog.

It's a unique species called Canis dingo,

a contentious detail amongst specialists.

It's said that 3-4% of kelpie genes

come from this wild Australian mammal.

Allegedly.

This mix created a new breed -

smart, intuitive animals

which were perfected for life in the outback.

The curiosity that was in that dog was wonderful

and his ability and his will to learn was exceptional.

He's pretty good, you know.

He was like a sponge.

He does all his own stunts too.

And loved jewellery.

He used to chew jewellery all the time.

If I had a watch band on, he'd chew the watch band.

If you had a button on a shirt,

he'd find it.

I see great things for you, little one.

You're gonna be a star!

Koko had a lot of personality.

It was natural to him.

That was just the way he was.

I always took my puppies

down to the bakery -

best bakery there is in Victoria -

and they would socialise with everyone in the street.

- Hi, Louise. - Hey, Carol.

Just gotta look at everything, don't you?

I used to take him down there

so that they got used to different noises

so that the temperament was nice and even.

Stay.

Good boy, Koko.

Well-socialised dogs are a pleasure.

Oh, there you are! Ladies.

Oh, these scones smell even better than usual.

- Oh, you've got the... - I succumbed.

They're so good!

He just adored people.

Very affectionate.

Didn't matter who it was, he loved everybody.

Carol, he's adorable.

Are you ready for the show this year, Koko?

Don't worry, little one. You're a shoo-in!

He'll be the winner for sure.

You think he's gonna beat out old Gwendolyn this year?

There she is.

Gwendolyn Myers was the reigning champion

of the local dog show circuit with 200 wins under her belt.

Her prize show dog was Beatrice.

She was the only thing standing between Koko

and victory.

Well, she's gonna be a tough one to beat this year.

Do you think you stand a chance?

What do you think, Koko?

Koko just wanted to please Carol,

so if that meant entering this show and becoming a winner,

well, that's what he'd have to do.

And with that, Koko entered into the cutthroat world

of professional show dogging.

Dog shows have been around for the better part of a century.

Every blue-blooded canine

from the conventional to the exotic

competing for dogdom's top spot

and that includes the Chinese crested hairless.

The dog show really is an ultimate elimination contest.

Dogs get knocked out at various stages of competition

and at the end of the day,

you've ended up with your best seven dogs.

I don't think people have realised

that it's a fabulous hobby.

It's a really great hobby to show dogs.

♪ You ain't ever seen an animal quite like that... ♪

Every dog show contestant

is vying for the top prize -

the coveted Best in Show.

It's the supreme thing, it's why we all show dogs -

to win Best in Show.

The typical dog show is made up of three parts.

Athletics...

..modelling...

..and musical canine freestyle.

Yep. Dancing with your dog.

It's a thing.

Anyway...

The dog's brain at a dog show...

If you're lucky, it loves it

and that's where it becomes a pleasure to show a dog,

because the dog thoroughly enjoys going to a dog show

and exhibiting.

If they don't like it, you can tell straightaway.

The truth was Koko really enjoyed show dogging.

Next up, Klassikelp Smart n Bossy.

And at first, he was really good at it.

He was the ant's pants.

You know, he always thought that he was the top dog.

The rules of what make a good show dog

are a little complicated.

The guidelines are a lot complicated.

We want moderate-size ears, a width of skull.

The skull and the foreface approximately equal.

We want a length of neck

that is neither too short nor too long.

Good forequarters, strong forequarters.

Two-thirds rib cage, one-third loin.

Straight hindquarters.

And we want a lovely shape over the croup

down to the tail set

so that the tail is carried down and out, gently.

It's important that the tail stays down.

Koko had it all.

He was a lovely, lovely dog.

I think he knew he was special all the way through.

I really do.

You know who doesn't think you're special, Koko?

Beatrice, the current grand champion.

And her owner, Gwendolyn Myers.

A show dog, to become an Australian champion,

what they need to do is they get 100 points.

And those points are earned

by being either the best bitch, or the best dog, of your breed.

In the context of show dogging,

'bitch' is a technical term meaning 'female dog'

and not a naughty word.

When Koko had his big win,

he won Best Exhibit in Group

in the working dog group at Kyneton.

I couldn't believe. I was over the moon.

You get one point for every dog you beat.

If you are lucky enough to get a Best Exhibit in Group,

then that's 25 points,

and they go towards your 100 points

for an Australian champion.

And our new champion is Klassikelp Smart n Bossy!

Koko got his championship when he was 11 months old.

He was a young dog.

That was mind-blowing. That was really good.

It's just that Koko decided that he was...

He was going to be the stud of all time!

- ♪ What do we tell 'em, boys? ♪

♪ We can't be beaten... ♪

Oh!

Hello?

I had a phone call from a lady

who wanted to use a kelpie at stud.

And that's where we all came undone.

I said I had a couple of males,

but I had a young male

that she could use.

So she used him at stud

and he had eight beautiful babies.

They were gorgeous puppies.

One became an international athlete.

One became the face of a successful dog food brand.

One went on to a prestigious career in search and rescue.

And this one is no longer allowed to sleep on the couch.

Over a period of the next month or two,

Koko became, um...

What would you say? Arrogant.

When we took him to the show ring,

he thought every chick in the paddock was his.

He became full of himself.

And up went the head and up went the tail and...

..he strutted.

He just became a 16-year-old kid that can't think clearly.

He started to show poorly,

because of his mental attitude at that time.

For the tail to be up,

he has what we call a flat croup,

which is the back end of the dog, where the tail is.

The croup is not correct.

But it's something that would ruin the balance in the dog.

The way Koko held his tail

I believe was his attitude.

He should never have carried it that high.

It's unreal that he had the ability to carry it that high.

But he did.

If they don't match up what we want in the show ring,

that's not the dog's fault.

We didn't pick very well when we actually chose that dog.

So we decided we would pull him from the show ring for a while

and let his brain mature a little bit.

We've had a few pets over the years.

♪ I'm tired of the city life... ♪

Our dogs are a part of us.

If we keep a dog, then it never leaves our place.

♪ I should stay

♪ But I've got to get my sun... ♪

They're all family.

Four-legged members of the family.

♪ Ain't nothing you can say

♪ Snake eyes on a pair of dice... ♪

Koko!

- ♪ And we got to go today... ♪ - There you go!

♪ Take me to the April sun in Cuba

♪ Oh-oh-oh... ♪

They stayed for life.

And Koko would have stayed

if history hadn't have changed everything.

♪ So right... ♪

It's Red Dog. Born Paraburdoo.

He died in Roebourne, 22 November 1979.

And he roamed the Pilbara and beyond.

And, yeah, it's erected on behalf of his many friends

by a mate who took him for his last ride.

So, yeah, just my little tribute to the old fella.

♪ Mailman came this morning

♪ Brought a message by... ♪

I was involved with him all the time I was here,

until he died.

Red Dog was a mate of mine

and I was one of many mates of his.

♪ Sorry that I... ♪

And by all accounts he was,

you know, quite a unique animal.

He was adopted by the miners as a mascot.

They said he had his own bank account.

He was part of a union as well.

A wanderer and a drifter,

the legendary larrikin Red Dog

formed an expansive family throughout the Pilbara

made up of miners, local residents

and diverse community members

whose lives he intersected with

on his search for his lost master.

Yeah, there was a lot of single guys there in those days.

They were lonely,

and the thought that they'd have a dog that came and went

probably appealed to them.

Yeah, we knew him - like most people up here

that have been up here as long as we've been up here.

He'd stay the night, and then

next day, you'd wake up, he'd be gone,

you wouldn't see him for six months.

He was a good dog

but he stunk, because he'd never had a bath.

Some people didn't like him.

He was pretty flea-ridden at times.

The collar that I still have that he wore

had on it 'Red Dog' and in brackets 'Blue'.

Think it's the old Australian expression.

Anyone who's got red hair is called 'Blue'.

Because he had a really close attachment to this area,

I believe he's still out there, wandering around.

This dog is a centrepoint for town

and a centrepoint for a lot of tourists.

Then, of course, the story gives everybody

a reason to come to Dampier.

Red Dog's story was told and retold over and over again

and eventually became an international best-selling book

by this guy.

It was fairly remarkable - a dog that was so independent.

Temperamentally, he was rather more like a cat,

and yet treated everybody as an equal.

Acted as though it had certain inalienable rights,

like the right to stop a car.

I don't know... I've never heard of any other dog like that.

Like a lot of bestsellers,

someone wanted to turn it into a movie.

'Red Dog' is a story about stories.

This guy.

It's really actually not a story about Red Dog.

It's really a story about the people

that Red Dog encounters in his journeys and in his life.

And I thought that was the genius

of Louis de Bernières's book

and of Dan Taplitz's screenplay.

I read it and went, "Ooh, this is it."

Red Dog had to be a very specific kind of kelpie

that was around at that time.

And kelpies are actually trained

in show situations to have their tail down.

It was very important -

the iconic image, the iconic silhouette of Red Dog

is the dog running with its tail up.

We have to find a dog whose tail goes up. That is a given.

So the casting of the dog was absolutely critical,

which is why we spent so much time

trying to find the right dog.

Probably took about 18 months.

Who uses paper maps anymore? How old is this?

Kriv drove up to Dunolly, which is two hours from the airport.

Well, depends on how you drive.

Yes?

Carol Hobday?

Oh!

- You must be the film director. - Right!

- Is it 'Kreeve'? - 'Kriv'.

No-one ever gets it right.

Oh!

Oh, well, let's make it official.

We're here for 'Red Dog' and, uh...

Do you have any kelpies?

And she said, "Yeah, I've got a whole backyard full of them."

Well, great! Um...

- Can I see them? - Oh, I'm sorry! I'm sorry!

Would you like a cuppa? I'll pop the kettle on.

- Love one, Carol. - Terrific.

Do you like scones? I've been baking.

Scones? Scones and puppies?

You're an angel, Carol.

- Come on. Come on in. - Rightio.

She had, you know, the kennels back there

and we went out in the kennels, and dogs barking everywhere.

And she pointed out Koko.

And I remember she took him out into the backyard.

He just was the dog.

It was incredible.

He had the iconic Red Dog shape,

the tail was up

and I looked into his face

and his eyes just connected with mine.

And he had that incredible spark.

You look for that magic behind the eyes, that alchemy

that, you know, the lens and the actor has.

And some dogs have it, some dogs don't.

His face used to light up

and his face would come up with all these expressions.

And you'd think, "A dog can't look like that." But he did.

99% of directing is casting.

If you haven't cast the film right,

there's no amount of direction you can do to save yourself.

So, rolling.

OK, Koko, I'd just like to try a couple of expressions.

You know, just wanna sort of just see where we can take them.

Now, Koko, try that little snarl.

Ooh, the snarl's great.

Pff! Fantastic.

Let's try a really concentrated look

where you're really concentrating.

Good. Now why don't you try the confused look?

Great. Try it the other way.

Actually, do it like you did the first time.

You are Red Dog. It's great, you know?

Ah, jeez, there's one final thing

I just wanna talk to you about.

I know you're aware of it, but look,

we're gonna have to dye you red.

But, you know, the film is called 'Red Dog'

and you've gotta be red.

There are ugly dogs and there are handsome dogs.

Koko was a handsome kelpie.

Which brings me in a roundabout way to say...

Look, I think that we have found our Red Dog.

What do you think about that, Koko?

Len!

Len, they wanna have him in the movie!

Who?

Koko!

Oh! Hold on, I'll just go get him.

Anyway, you must be a dog lover?

Yes.

Yeah, look - basically I had to lie to get the gig, you know?

I'm actually allergic to dogs.

How many have you got?

Three.

What breed?

Um, they are...

So I'm in the kitchen. You know, she's just made a cup of tea.

And I turn around to her and I say, "Look,

"can we buy Koko?"

And she looked at me and said...

Oh, no. No, no, no, no, no.

I don't sell my adult dogs at all.

They stay home and they're our pets.

And I realised, "OK, this could go either way."

"But..."

I could lend him to you.

Carol! I could kiss you!

I won't. I won't!

Yeah, nah, couldn't find him!

Thank you, Carol.

I promise you that this is the best decision

that you or Koko will make in your entire life.

And Koko got into the van,

'cause he was used to just jumping into a van.

That was his life. That's what he did.

And I just looked and I thought, "Oh, that's my baby!"

He was my baby. He was the youngest dog that I had.

That's... That's my b...

That's my baby!

Thank you, everyone. That's been...

You better do a bloody good job.

Yep.

That was what we thought.

I cried all the way home.

- 'Bye. - 'Bye!

♪ Am I ever gonna see your face again?

♪ Am I ever gonna see your face again? ♪

♪ Without you near me... ♪

You are going to be a big star, Koko.

Yes, your name up in lights, you know?

With Lassie, Benji, Rin Tin Tin, Milo, Otis.

One of them. One was a cat.

- Or Kamir.

Oh, he's our lead dog.

Yeah, he's the... He's the top dog.

You'll be slightly under Kamir.

What, you didn't think

you'd get the lead role that easily, did you?

No, no. You see, it takes more than one dog to make a movie.

There were four Benjis...

..and 11 Lassies.

Filming 'Red Dog' - well, that would be no different.

I'd actually worked with a dog called Kamir.

Beautiful dog, but there were a couple of issues with Kamir.

Stay. Good boy, Kamir.

No! Not 'Come here'.

Go back. Back!

Oh, why'd you name a dog 'Kamir'?

That was slightly awkward sometimes.

Great performer, strange name.

I mean, your tail, fantastic.

His face is where the money is, though.

I'm talking to a dog.

♪ Am I ever gonna... ♪

'Red Dog' had three dogs -

Koko, Kamir, the film's leading dog,

and Old Red.

He didn't do much. He just needed to look old.

But he did prove that you can teach an old dog new tricks.

They can do anything.

Their ability is probably restricted only by

the ability of the person to train them.

Koko, stay.

No! Koko, stay! Koko, back.

No, Koko! Cut! Go back.

It was a pretty... pretty intense regime.

We basically broke the film down into these lists.

Checklists, there's schedules

as to when the dog has to be able to do this by

and so on and so forth.

So it was a pretty intense period for Koko.

There was a lot of jumping through hoops,

a lot of playing dead, coming forward.

You know, just getting him really salty.

Getting him really up to speed.

And then the tricks would become more complex.

Push, push, push, push, push, push! Push! Good boy.

And that took a good sort of four months

to get him up and running and ready for the camera.

Koko was finally ready to hit the big screen

and Kriv had become very close to the stars

who would help him tell his story to the world.

♪ Am I ever gonna see your face again? ♪

Yeah, well, they say, "Never work with animals and children."

And you know what?

They're right.

It's a nightmare.

Do you want an antihistamine?

Should be great.

Yeah, yeah.

But Kriv's allergies would be the least of his problems.

♪ Working hard All day, all night

♪ Oh, come gather round, y'all... ♪

It was probably the hardest few weeks of my life.

Koko had never seen a film set before

but it certainly didn't seem

that much different to a dog show.

I'm travelling to set now. Of course with the dogs!

Seeing as that's all I do now, is walk dogs.

Some people gave him scratches, others gave him treats.

But Koko, he just wanted to meet everyone.

Oh, sorry, sorry. - That's OK!

- Mind of his own. - So you walk dogs now?

Yeah, yeah, it's what I do, is just walk these beautiful dogs.

You know, that and keeping the show on the road.

- That's debatable. - Well, thanks, yeah, great.

Hey, you've got a bit of...

- Will! - I've gotta go anyway. Sorry.

See you around.

Months of Kriv's hard work was about to pay off...

..provided he could impress his boss.

I'd be lying to say

that 'Red Dog' was an easy shoot.

It wasn't.

Right from the beginning, it was tough.

We didn't have enough money. We didn't have a lead actor.

You name it, we went through it.

Nelson, meet your two leads, huh?

I mean, they're both playing the same dog,

but they're the dynamic duo.

You get what I mean, anyway. What do you think?

Mmm.

Hey, June?

It was my responsibility to find an actor.

It was Kriv's responsibility to find the dogs.

Kriv had actually delivered.

No, you can tell him we've found a...

Hey, get down.

No, no, not you.

And we were really cutting it fine.

What?

Then who else... No.

Hey, I'm sure he will get to like you.

He just needs to get to know you.

Yeah?

OK.

Alright, let's find make-up and get you two dyed, huh?

♪ I've been working hard

♪ All day, all night. ♪

Cut! Brilliant.

The dye test.

We'd been shooting all that week,

just shooting actors - shooting non-animal stuff,

getting a lot of that out of the way.

And I remember turning up on set.

And I called it Black Friday.

It was a Tuesday, but it was Black Friday.

And I just sensed something wasn't right.

Gary.

And people wouldn't look at me in the eye.

Uh...

We're making a film called 'Red Dog'

and the dog's gotta be red,

and our dogs are brown.

The real Red Dog was red because he lived in the Pilbara

and was covered in red dust,

but kelpies, especially show kelpies,

are bred to be chocolate brown.

And we thought it'd be relatively easy

to dye the dogs red, but...

..somehow that was not the case.

And I looked at my first,

and I'm going, "How'd the dye test go?"

Let's walk and talk.

Now, I don't want you to overreact.

I just had this really sick feeling.

Is that Kamir?

Do you think that's gonna come out?

Nope.

And I looked at everyone

and no-one would look me in the eye.

It was probably one of the worst moments I've ever had.

We had to make a film that was called 'Red Dog'.

And the dog was nothing at all red!

So bad news is this does kind of bugger with our schedule.

Good news, we've still got Koko.

So what you see right here,

this is the new red colour.

What we need to do now is put another coat on

and that colour will come through like a Pilbara red.

Well, at least you're the right colour now.

Mmm, very red.

Yeah, Pilbara red.

- Yeah. Yeah. - Mmm.

- Kamir looks great. - No, no, that's Koko.

Yes. Yeah, he's our man.

He's our dog, I mean. He's the top dog.

I'd bought, you know, crates full of antihistamines

and just stocked myself up.

- Are you allergic to something? - No.

Yes. Yup, it's, um...

..my shampoo.

It's got eucalyptus and patchouli in it.

Anyway, the kids give it to me.

I should just throw it out,

but I don't want to break their hearts.

- Wasn't there two dogs? - No.

Only one. Only ever one dog.

Whoa! What is that?

That's a stray. Yeah, that's a stray.

Anyway, woof! Out you go!

You've gotta bark. Shows them who's boss.

I was suffering terribly from the hay fever.

- Are you sure you're alright? - Yeah.

- Are you alright? - What?

I found another terrific actor.

- Oh, jeez.

Shhh.

Hi, June, how are you?

He's dropping out of the movie.

What? He did what? What?

Ah... OK.

Well, we just bought him the motorbike he wanted.

Who else is available?

I was just trying to keep it together.

He takes a bit of getting used to.

Ready to shine?

You can act, right?

Talking to a dog.

Come on.

We were all stressed out. I was fighting with the DOP.

No, no, no, no, no, Koko! Koko, get back.

Koko wasn't working.

No! No, Koko!

Cut!

Koko!

I was fighting with Nelson.

I think Koko was picking up on the tension,

because we hadn't found an actor yet.

The stress was affecting him.

He was distracted.

He would walk away.

Literally, we'd be in a take and he'd walk away.

No, no, no, no, no, Koko! Come back here!

There were many shots he just wouldn't do.

Wouldn't have a bar of.

As we were going along,

I could see Kriv getting more and more uncomfortable.

Kriv was very, very stressed.

You could feel that the crew

knew that something wasn't right.

It was really, really tough.

It was a really tough couple of weeks.

I was stressed.

It's not easy making a film.

Yeah, he's not paying attention.

Can someone just grab Koko?

We were setting up for a close-up

when he had to eat the dog food from the bowl.

I took him aside. I said, "Look." I said, "Kriv.

"This is our last chance to pull the film together."

If this didn't work, it was game over for us.

OK. Oops!

Don't worry. That's for me.

They're for me, because of you.

I'm guzzling down 20 antihistamines a day

and it's not good for you.

No, this is...

Look, Koko, Koko, Koko, Koko, sit. Sit. Sit, please.

Apparently I was talking to Koko as if he was a human.

Now, in this scene, I'm going to put some food in here, OK?

I want you to eat it and then look up at the camera.

Can you do that? Not lick... Oh, that's not gonna...

You know, I was really, at this point,

you know, kind of at breaking point.

If you can't get this shot, we're in a lot of trouble.

See that guy?

You're being ridiculous.

I have a signed contract. He's gonna be here...

If you can't get this scene,

then he will be very angry with you

and very angry with me because of you.

Listen to me. You watch him get on the plane.

You watch the door close.

This is our one chance, mate.

You are literally the only dog we've got left.

I'm gonna take that as a...

..as a yes.

Good, OK. Uh-uh!

Good, good, good. Stay. Food. OK.

- Go! - Alright, ready. We ready?

We are ready.

Are you ready? OK, sound. Speed.

And we rolled.

Called action.

- Go! - -Eat! Eat! Eat!

Koko ate, looked up at camera...

..and it was like...

5.4 seconds!

Yes!

We all cheered. It was just like...

"We're doing this! This is going to happen. This is real."

Good boy.

And it was just a magical moment.

If we just concentrate on the task at hand,

we'll get there.

And that was the way I decided to move forward.

I apologised to everyone and went, "Look,

"this is how we're gonna make the movie.

"We've just gotta enjoy it.

"Relax and be there in the moment with Koko."

A very strange few days,

working without knowing who the actor was gonna be.

We were pointing the camera in one direction

and when we turned it towards where our star should be,

there was no actor.

And then he came out at lunch

and slips a bit of paper across the table.

And it's Josh Lucas.

I go, "Great! He'll do!"

It was one of those miraculous last-second telephone calls

from an agent who says,

"I've found this script and I know you love dogs

"and you should read it and tell me what you think tonight,

"because maybe tomorrow you'll go to Australia."

I actually really like working with animals and children.

I'm a dog lover - I have a great dog,

great relationship with the dog that I rescued.

And that was part of it, is my dog, you know,

has deeply impacted my soul as a person

and he's one of my closest friends.

Koko! Koko's a brilliant actor.

He's got magic, that dog, you know?

Like all great actors, you know,

there's something just magical inside of them.

When Josh arrived

and we had our John

and we saw the immediate connection

that Josh had with Koko

and how well they worked together

and how Koko was just becoming Red Dog in front of us...

♪ Come on, squeeze it

♪ Like you do

♪ Uh-huh

♪ Oh, baby... ♪

I knew then we were on our way.

Or so he thought.

Someone came up to me and said, "There's a problem."

The dog who had been performing perfectly for the past two weeks

was suddenly just not performing.

We were shooting an exterior at the caravan.

It's Koko, just standing there waiting for John

to return, looking out.

And we were rolling

and suddenly Koko just walks away.

And I follow him where he's walking

and it's Carol.

Nelson asked me if I'd like to go onto the set and have a look.

She was visiting. We were thrilled to have her there.

You're all red!

And... it was like, "Oh, right.

"What do we do now?

"Seriously, what do we do now?"

Cutting there! Five minutes, everyone.

Carol!

She was excited to see him

and he was excited to see her,

but Carol's presence was clearly having an effect on Koko.

I just think he put down tools.

- Let's just go this way. - Alright!

Let these people do the film.

It was an awkward moment where I had to tell her

not to turn up to set.

So it's great to see you, Carol.

Oh, you too, Kriv.

Hey, now, while we just get this shot finished up...

And I could see that Kriv wasn't very impressed

with... with the dog running away from the set.

And Kriv said, "Would you like to stand

"over there a little bit further?"

So I did.

- Here? - A bit further.

Is this OK?

A little bit further.

- How's this? - A little bit further!

And Kriv said, "Would you like to go and have coffee?"

Oh, hi, Nelson!

Hey. Hey.

You wanna... You gonna go and finish this scene?

Oh, yeah, yeah. OK.

And Koko was right back into it.

Go on. Go with Kriv.

Good boy.

A kelpie loves people

but they adore their person.

Back to it, everyone!

Not the person that owns the dog.

It's the dog that owns the person.

And the person Koko increasingly wanted to own

didn't act with him, didn't direct him,

didn't even feed him.

It was this guy.

Alright, I'll take you for a walk. Come on.

Come on.

We had some really challenging things

that we had to shoot, and this dog just pulled it off.

It was unbelievable.

You know, there were certain things even the trainer said,

"I'm not sure he's gonna get this."

And then he nailed it.

It's keeping us on our toes as actors

because when we come on set and we're about to do a scene,

you know, depending on what Koko does,

it kind of determines the scene,

not the way you thought it was gonna go.

Nelson and that dog went everywhere together.

I mean, everywhere.

The growing bond between Koko and Nelson

was becoming impossible to ignore.

As people started to see the magic on screen,

we realised that we had something pretty terrific.

I was focused on making the film.

I didn't expect to form a relationship with the dog.

Red Dog!

Little Koko, who plays Red Dog,

is like a little love bug, you know?

He loves a love, he loves a pat.

He's really a very gentle, very sweet little boy.

The best part of working with animals is

there's this alchemy that happens

with the camera and with you and with the scene

and it's just a beautiful thing.

I'd say he's pretty much like Bryan Brown.

He's sort of quintessentially Australian

and won't move too far out of their comfort zone.

Well, you know, I am a cat person.

My favourite day on set

was actually the last day of shooting

where we took this just one camera

and there was just me, a camera guy and Koko

and we got in a car and we just drove around and played

and they just filmed us playing.

It was, I think, the day that Koko was the happiest.

Koko meant everything.

I mean, without Koko,

it's like not having Brando in 'Apocalypse Now'.

Or not having E.T. in 'E.T'.

It was that critical.

You know, Koko was the movie.

And without Koko, the movie wouldn't be what it is.

- Cut!

That, folks, is a picture wrap on 'Red Dog'!

Good work, everyone. Thank you.

Go love that dog and pat his head.

There was always an agreement with Carol

that whilst I owned him for the duration of the filming,

that if he wanted to go back to Carol, he could go back.

- Hi! - Hello.

Oh, come on! Here!

- Koko! He's still all red. - Oh, it'll grow out.

Oh, you've had quite a trip, haven't you, Koko?

Come inside and have a cup of tea.

Oh, I can't - I've actually gotta drive all the way back

and get on the next plane.

- Really? Oh. - Yeah.

- Oh! - Yeah.

- But let's talk next week. - That'd be great.

Yeah.

Alright.

You look after yourself, eh?

Yeah, good boy.

Good boy.

- Here. - Thank you.

Thanks. Alright.

- Thanks, Nelson. - We'll talk, very soon.

OK. 'Bye now.

Come on, Koko.

Come on, Koko!

I would have loved to have brought him back home

and had him at home.

But when I saw him with Nelson,

I knew that he was already there.

He'd already found what Koko needed.

Go on then.

That's when I said, you know, that Len and I had been talking

and...

We've decided to gift him to you.

As a pet.

You're kidding?

And you're paying for that window.

No, I'm serious. You're paying for the window.

OK.

♪ I love the colourful clothes she wears

♪ And the way the sunlight plays upon... ♪

Doing the work that I do, every day's kind of different.

He'd often wake me up,

and he slept at the end of the bed.

G'day, mate.

I would give him a feed.

♪ I'm pickin' up good vibrations... ♪

And then we might go for a walk, go down the beach.

Good boy!

Good boy.

Oh, what a good boy!

♪ Excitations... ♪

And then the day would begin.

We'd just sort of share the day together.

He was my shadow.

I remember sort of some weeks after we'd wrapped,

for the first time, I took him for a walk.

It was before anyone had seen the film.

The film hadn't come out,

so no-one knew the film and no-one knew Koko.

And I took him down

the pedestrian mall in the Perth CBD.

All of a sudden, he just changed. He was on.

But we weren't actually doing any commands,

or we weren't doing any routines.

And what I realised was

he thought all the people walking in front of him

were extras.

He thought it was a big scene!

As I said, I took him everywhere that I went.

Yep, spaghetti, spaghetti.

Yeah, we're gonna have spaghetti

and then we're gonna have carrot.

Where is the bloody sp...

Hey! Thanks, mate.

Good boy.

Hey.

It was originally set to come out in Easter

and then...

I'm pretty sure that it was the first 'Thor'.

And the distributor got very, very nervous.

You can't put the dog up against Thor.

Wow.

The distributor had delayed the release.

That's, like, five months away.

Well, we don't know what to do.

Is Josh still gonna be available?

He wasn't.

I wanted to come back to do this press tour

and there were some limitations in terms of my schedule,

which was really what stopped it.

I was actually really looking forward to it.

You can't promote a film without a star.

No, well, find out who else is available.

Daddy, I'm hungry. Daddy!

- Spaghetti! - Yeah, it's coming!

Some spaghetti.

- Well, who then? Who?

- No. No, that's not...

Mate, you...

I think I'm having an idea.

Road trip?

So we decided to take the dog on the road.

I didn't have high expectations.

It was an unusual film.

The star was a dog.

We did Queensland first

and we would go to regional radio stations

and do interviews.

I have got Koko, the undeniable star

of the brand-new movie 'Red Dog'.

You reckon it's a good movie, mate?

And Koko was just killing it.

And then that night, we would do the screening.

Thank you for coming

and welcome to the world premiere of 'Red Dog'.

Have a great night. We love you. Thank you.

Then we'd bring the dog out

and it would just take it over the top.

I'm sad not to be there right now with the crew

and sort of celebrating the opening of this movie.

So the dog's going on tour?

Koko is doing a tour, yeah.

I must say I think that's probably a wiser call

from a production standpoint

because people are just gonna love that dog.

Just gotta love him, don't you? He's just gorgeous.

I just kind of had a broad grin.

- He just had personality. - I loved the dog.

It was everywhere.

There was posters in the main street.

Everyone was so proud of the fact that Koko was from Dunolly.

Thousands of Eagles fans are snapping up tickets

and heading east for Saturday's finals showdown

with Collingwood.

And the team is hoping some movie-star good luck

will rub off.

West Coast Eagles winning the Premiership.

They didn't.

Now to WA's newest celebrity,

Koko the kelpie.

Len, he's on the telly!

Quick, Len, you'll miss him!

Every time he was on TV, someone would ring me and say,

"Carol, have you seen so and so? It's on TV."

I'd say, "Oh, hold on a minute!" I'd have to change me channel.

A new redhead is in town.

Koko is the star of the new Aussie film 'Red Dog'.

He's gorgeous. Just absolutely gorgeous.

Audiences just love Koko.

Oh, I just walked out of the cinema and I just...

I just wanted to go home and hug my dog!

Everyone went with the Koko phenomenon.

We got to travel the entire country.

And I enjoyed that, and I think he did too.

Tonight, Sydney's world-famous Opera House

is the stage for Australia's

most prestigious screen industry awards.

No, I'm not going to be asking the dog questions.

It's just he's the first big star

to arrive on the red carpet here.

The film was nominated at the first AACTAs

and they brought Tim Minchin to do 'Red Dog'.

♪ They cast a dog in the leading role

♪ Against some Yank with a troubled soul

♪ And in the moment mutual love is found

♪ They kill the bloke then kill the hound

♪ And even though we think we're tough

♪ And we saw it coming from a mile off

♪ They have us sobbing like suckers

♪ Those manipulative f... ilm-makers

- ♪ Red Dog, Red Dog - ♪ Red Dog

♪ He was a dog and he was red

- ♪ He was a live dog, live dog - ♪ Live dog

♪ But by the credits, he was dead. ♪

He's pretty method, which is impressive.

I would have sworn I was watching a dog.

I taught him everything he knows.

What actor would I compare him to?

- Gregory Peck. - Colin Friels.

Schwarzenegger, OK? Why not?

And the Samsung AACTA Award for Best Film goes to...

..'Red Dog'.

Nelson Woss and Julie Ryan.

'Red Dog' was nominated for

a total of seven AACTA awards this year.

For it to do what it actually did blew our minds.

You'd be at a restaurant,

and suddenly you'd hear at the table next to you,

"You've gotta see this new film.

"It's called 'Red Dog'. There's this amazing dog in it."

More and more people were seeing him on screen

and falling in love with him.

It blew up.

Koko got invited everywhere.

London. Berlin. Dallas.

I heard 'dog' and my ears went up.

'Red Dog' is top dog at this year's Heartland Film Fest.

If you're an animal lover,

first of all you're gonna love this movie.

You're gonna love your dog even more.

The dog's expression was tremendous.

And the Golden Collar goes to Koko in 'Red Dog'.

He was it.

Koko got so popular, he was offered roles in other movies.

There's always one, whether it's a pig or...

There's always one with that extra bit of personality.

George Miller called me to ask me about Koko,

because he wanted to put him in 'Fury Road'.

You know, I said, "Yeah, he's great."

And he was in that opening scene,

you know, with Tom Hardy,

but they ended up replacing him

with that two-headed lizard thing.

Everything just became huge.

And we kind of knew that the reason it did

was Koko.

The next step was to take Koko and the film overseas.

And we had been asked

to do a gag on stage

and we wanted to say thank you

to the people that had seen the film.

There were... A couple of presenters introduced the film.

So the Event Cinemas IF Award for Box Office Achievement

goes to 'Red Dog'.

And then I was to go out and accept the award

and start thanking people.

But really, we all knew that

people didn't want to listen to me

and the gag was that I should shut up

and... and that Koko would run out.

And he did it.

He nailed it. He came straight out.

But I could see something was wrong.

I would never have to hold Koko on the lead

or hold him by his collar,

because he was so...

He was so good, he knew what he had to do.

He would just do it by my side.

I'd never have to hold him.

But I could see...

I could see the moment he came out on stage,

he wasn't comfortable.

I grabbed him by the collar...

..and then we walked off stage.

And...

..it's just because I was used to...

I was used to not... not...

..holding him, I let him go.

And he just ran.

He ran straight into the audience.

Man, I was so scared,

because I'd never seen him do that before.

I knew something was wrong.

I knew something was very wrong.

He wasn't enjoying it.

And as soon as I saw that,

I wasn't gonna let him do it anymore.

So this is a lateral X-ray,

showing Koko's heart from the side.

And his heart's quite enlarged.

It's causing the trachea to be displaced

up towards his backbone here

and the size of the heart is actually quite enlarged

both that way and that dimension as well.

The main symptoms you normally see early are

there's often a change in behaviour.

So the dog will become exercise-intolerant.

They're not gonna be so keen to go for a walk.

They're not gonna make the same distance they used to.

They tire out a lot quicker.

I liken it to any sort of pump.

You know, whether it's a fuel pump, whatever.

If the valves aren't working properly,

the pump isn't working properly.

Sometimes as it progresses,

you'll notice a change in breathing behaviour.

So they'll start panting, they'll have shallow breathing,

belaboured breathing.

The best we could do was

put him on some medication

that would make him comfortable

and let him continue enjoying being a dog.

We made sure that his condition was really closely monitored.

And the feeling was as long as he was happy

and enjoying being a dog and enjoying his life,

we would do everything that we could

to make sure it could be continued.

It's alright, mate.

Initially, when we started treating Koko,

Nelson informed us that his energy levels had picked up,

he was a lot more active again.

The coughing had resolved at least initially,

so he did see a marked improvement.

And now Koko's, you know, almost back to normal.

He's enjoying a good quality of life.

He's enjoying going for a walk in the park

and yeah, for the moment, he's stabilised well.

Earlier this week, Koko,

who's retired from his film career,

made a cameo appearance at the RSPCA's Malaga headquarters.

He was on hand to present...

I wanted to learn

everything I could possibly learn

about what was wrong with him

in the hope that we could help him.

And we did have great success with some of the medication,

and I wanted to let people know

and I didn't want people to go through

what we were going through.

He was my best friend.

He was very, very close to my daughter.

Just remember that he's a little old,

so just be gentle with him, OK?

Alright.

He got along pretty well with her.

He was back to his normal self...

..for a while and then, uh...

..he started to decline again.

Eventually, if the valves are just not functional enough,

nothing's going to fix the case.

It's catching up with him.

We're just taking it day by day right now.

Koko and I lived in a pretty unique spot.

Koko woke up that day...

..and...

..very quickly, I think, he knew and I knew that

his condition had deteriorated a lot.

I think... he had just had enough.

You could tell. He expressed it. He emoted it.

Koko was outside in the garden.

I remember he loved that garden and he...

He did a walk-around. He did one lap of it.

I called the vet, Jerome,

and I said, "You better come round.

"He's not looking good."

And Jerome came around and he said that

it's probably got to the point

where he's no longer comfortable.

And he looked at us

and...

..you could just tell -

he... he said, "I'm ready."

And Jerome was ready

and...

..and Koko...

..was gone.

This is gonna break me up.

I'll never forget the phone call I got from Nelson.

And that was just before Christmas.

And my phone rang, my mobile, and I answered it.

And he said, "Oh, it's Nelson here."

And I said, "Gee, you don't sound very good."

I didn't know what to say to him

because I felt as though I'd been stabbed with something.

To lose a dog is heart-rending.

It tears a part of you away.

It's like losing a limb.

You know, you spend your time afterwards

putting an extra bowl on the table

that is no longer going to be emptied.

And it's like losing a part of you.

The canine star of the hit film 'Red Dog' has died.

Koko became Australia's best-known dog

after the film's release last year.

The 7-year-old red kelpie

died of heart disease in Perth.

The kelpie who starred in

the hit movie 'Red Dog' has died.

7-year-old Koko, the dog's real name,

died this morning from heart disease.

'Red Dog' told the story of a red cloud kelpie

who roamed the Pilbara outback...

It was the shelter's idea.

They wanted to celebrate his life.

The sort of two or three days after Koko passed away

and we started getting donations in,

it was just astronomical.

The phones ran off the hooks.

There was just donations coming in,

just an outpouring of grief

as if people had actually lost their own dog.

Koko brought all the communities,

basically, round Australia, together

and all the communities in Australia liked Koko.

Koko's legacy definitely lives on here at Shenton Park.

More than anything, he's helping to save dogs in need.

I think it was something

that when the shelter decided to build a statue,

they wanted to celebrate.

It was just probably one of the most moving moments

that I had with the dogs.

I only owned Koko in the last years of his life.

Koko was bred by Len and Carol Hobday in Dunolly, Victoria,

and Carol gave me perhaps the greatest gift

that anyone could give, which was

she allowed me to keep Koko after filming.

He was a different dog.

It didn't matter who you were

or what your background was,

he'd walk straight up to you

and he was interested to get to know you.

If you were open to getting to know him,

he would immediately connect with you.

When you think about that, that's pretty special.

A lot of times, you're not open to connecting with people,

whereas Koko did that unconditionally

and had a way of breaking through people's barriers.

I remember sitting in front of the monitor.

Nelson had gone to get a coffee or something,

and Koko was there

and my hand was just sort of like this at the chair.

And I just felt something, and he was wanting a pat.

And I felt, really, "Oh, that's so sweet."

He could always tell I had a vibe, I think.

There was always a bit of a tension there

but it was just a really nice, lovely moment.

I just gave him a good little scratch around the ears.

Yeah, and then I had to put cream on my hand

for the next two weeks.

They accept you completely,

I think is what it is.

You know, human beings, we always have

these strong, complex interpersonal relationships.

There's a lot of judgement involved.

And dogs, I feel like, not only don't judge you,

but they totally accept you for who you are

the same way you gotta accept a dog for who he is.

When the movie was out,

I went to one of the theatres in Melbourne for the premiere.

And Nelson was there and Koko was there.

And the audience loved it, and he was on.

And he was loving it.

But all of a sudden you could see him. He was like...

He could smell something.

And when he saw me... Oh, go away.

When he saw me,

he just went spare, he really did.

And as I cuddled him, he started to chew me necklace!

I couldn't believe it.

I thought, "OK, this is still Koko."

He might be a star, but it was still Koko.

I think it's a psychological need to be loved.

And a dog will give you that.

Doesn't matter what you are, what you look like,

your dog will love you

unconditionally.

In life...

..sometimes you have unique and special relationships.

They can be with your family

or your friends

or your dog.

And you should enjoy them.

You should make the most of them and be there in the moment

no matter what else is going on in your life

or what you think's important

or whatever's stressing you out,

because those relationships and those moments

don't last forever.

Koko was always in the moment

and when you were with Koko,

you were in the moment... with him.

And I cherished that, loved that.

I think everyone's dog or everyone's special companion

can make you feel that way.

One...

..two, three.

Every now and then

a one-in-a-million dog comes along.

A one-in-560-million, if we're being completely honest.

Koko's tale can finally take its place

amongst the pantheon of legendary dogs

that came before him

and the many, many more still to come.

But the truth is, as you know

if you're lucky enough to have a dog,

stories like Koko's, as incredible as they are,

aren't unique.

Everyone's dog is special.

No matter who we are,

these wandering souls bring us all together,

fill us with their love

and change our lives for the better.

Even when we dress them up in ridiculous costumes.

Oh, good boy!

♪ Every time I see your face

♪ It reminds me of the places we used to go

♪ But all I've got is a photograph

♪ And I realise you're not coming back anymore

♪ I thought I'd make it

♪ The day you went away

♪ But I can't make it

♪ Till you come home again to stay

♪ I can't get used to living here

♪ While my heart is broke, my tears I cry for you

♪ I want you here to have and hold

♪ As the years go by and we grow old and grey

♪ Now you're expecting me to live without you

♪ But that's not something

♪ That I'm looking forward to

♪ I can't get used to living here

♪ While my heart is broke, my tears I cry for you

♪ I want you here to have and hold

♪ As the years go by and we grow old and grey

♪ Every time I see your face

♪ It reminds me of the places we used to go

♪ But all I've got is a photograph

♪ And I realise you're not coming back anymore

♪ Every time I see your face

♪ It reminds me of the places we used to go

♪ But all I've got is a photograph

♪ And I realise you're not coming back anymore

♪ Every time I see your face

♪ It reminds me of the places we used to go

♪ But all I've got is a photograph... ♪

Don't they call that a wrap?

Uh, yep.

I watch too much TV!