SEARCH en hu ro

Our News .

Hollywood Gossip, New Projects, First Looks.
in Interviews / 08.09.2020

Lassie Come Home - Interview with director Hanno Olderdissen: “The audience can look forward to a modern film with a nostalgic feel and lots of fun.”

This weekend, Lassie Come Home (directed by Hanno Olderdissen) re-enters the Romanian cinemas. On this occasion, we bring you an exclusive interview with the Director of the movie, Hanno Olderdissen.

Hanno Olderdissen was born in 1976 in Bielefeld, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. He is known for his work on Robin (2008), Rock My Heart (2017) and What to Do in Case of Fire (2001) as well for the family film Wendy 2 - Freundschaft für immer (2018) and the series Der Bulle und das Biest (2019).

How did you approach the idea of bringing Lassie again into the big screen?
I wanted to create a film that was modern and interesting for the children but also has a classic nostalgic touch to honor the original Lassie Films and Series that we, as parents and grandparents know from our own childhood.

When did you first read the book by Eric Knight? How does this movie differ from the book?
I read the novel once, when I started working on the project together with the Producer Henning Ferber and Screenwriter Jane Ainscough. The Novel has a very epic story that goes over many months and has many chapters. The Story of the movie concentrates more on Lassie and her owner Flo and how they overcome adventures and obstacles to find back to each other.

Working on the two episodes of Der Bulle und das Biest helped you in directing this new Lassie movie?
It was a good “practice” for me to shot a TV Series with an bullmastiff. There I already got to know our excellent dog trainer Renate Hiltl and her crew. It surely helped and prepared me for directing Lassie.

After Rock My Heart and Wendy 2 - Freundschaft für immer where the “stars” were horses, now you bring this iconic dog back on the big screen. It seems that you are an animal lover, like me. Do you have a pet?
Unfortunately, I live in the City and have a Job, that involves a lot of travelling, so my lifestyle is not suitable for a pet. But when I was a little boy I lived in the countryside and my father trained racehorses, that I used to ride, when I was a child. Later I was very keen on showjumping.  And we had a little Jack Russel Terrier. So, yes: I am an animal lover.

Do you have something to transmit to the audience from Romania and Hungary, the two countries where Prorom will release the movie? What should the audience expect when they go see this movie?
I think the audience can look forward to a modern film with a nostalgic feel and lots of fun, adventure, drama and two very sweet and beautiful dogs.

Interview by Emanuel Lăzărescu.
Foto ©Denis Behnke.