Fern Levitt

Last updated

Fern Levitt
Fern Levitt with her dogs, Odin and Brody.jpg
Born1955 (age 68–69)
Hamilton, Ontario, Canada
Education York University
OccupationFilm director
Known for Sled Dogs
Television Turning Points in History
FamilyMarried to Arnie Zipursky

Fern Levitt is a Canadian-born animal activist, documentary producer and director. Her films focus on human rights, the Holocaust, discrimination against African-Americans in the US, animal welfare, and socially relevant issues. She is best known for her 2016 documentary Sled Dogs , which aired on the CBC Documentary channel. It explores the Iditarod, raising allegations of animal cruelty among breeders, trainers and kennelers of the event's sled dogs. [1] [2] [3]

Contents

Documentaries

About her work, Levitt said "You don't do it for the money. I love telling these stories because if these people, Gorbachev, Havel and others, can take a stand under such impossible circumstances, then I have a responsibility to do it, too." [4] Admitting to being a fan of Gorbachev, "I think he is the greatest leader this world has ever had,” she said. “To come from that (repressive) environment and do what he did was amazing. I was completely caught up in Gorba-mania.” Levitt has also filmed and interviewed former US president's Bill Clinton and George Bush, former Czech leader, Vaclav Havel, and former president of Georgia, Eduard Shevardnadze. [5]

Motivation To Create "Sled Dogs" Documentary

Levitt and her producer husband, Arnie Zipursky, were interviewed about the life of these dogs, specifically the quality of their surroundings, their treatment, and their reactions to witnessing their behaviour in captivity. They went dogsledding in 2010 outside Huntsville, close to Algonquin Park and shared their observations. Levitt described the layout  they encountered upon arriving, explaining that the dogsleds are "set up" with dogs waiting for them. However, "you don't see where the dogs live." So they both decided to return later to see where the dogs lived and were shocked at the scene in front of them: over 200 dogs in a field, covered in mud, running frantically in circles because they were chained to posts. "There was urine and excrement everywhere, and they looked so thin," Levitt recalled. After learning all this, Levitt recalls feeling horrified about their recent participation. At that moment, Levitt recalls, standing amidst the chaos and suffering, Levitt and Zipursky felt they needed to make up for their recent participation in dog sledding. Zipursky recalls his conversation with a caretaker on-site, finding out that the dogs were used for 9 to 10 years and then shot. They immediately put a 9-year-old husky, destined for the same fate, in their car to take home. However, the idea for the documentary wasn't thought of until witnessing the same conditions, later in Whistler. [6] [7]

In Whistler, BC, Levitt witnessed the same pattern of conditions and was told by the local caretaker that, "this is an anomaly, and never happens, I knew differently at that point," shares Levitt. The idea to create "Sled Dogs" was born. [6] CTV's Molly Thomas confirmed these findings with a hidden camera on W5. [8]

During The Filming

During her work on "Sled Dogs" (216), Levitt researched the subject of animal treatment in the industry. As Levitt's research progressed, she uncovered numerous cases of animal abuse, which led her to produce a film to raise awareness and shut down the industry. The film highlights the lives of dogs trained from a young age and then often confined to short chains for pulling tourists or racing. The film also exposes the unfortunate cases of dogs that are killed when they are no longer useful, such as the 100 animals that a recreational sledding company near Whistler, British Columbia, shot. [9]

In an interview with the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC), she stated, "I was absolutely shocked. To me it looked like a concentration camp of dogs," and "Most Canadians have no idea what goes on in the sled dog operations." [10]

The People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA) gave Levitt's Documentary to a representative of US banking institution, Wells Fargo. A Globe and Mail article reported that this major corporate sponsor was "disturbed by its content" with withdrew their sponsorship of the Iditarod Trail Sled Dog Race. [11] [7]

Release in Vancouver

The Vancouver Humane Society created a press release about Sled Dogs (2016) to let people know that the release of the documentary's premiere will be screened as part of Whistler’s Documentary Strand program, and that the location was picked because of its proximity to where 100 sled dogs were "brutally murdered, sparking outrage throughout North America." The timing of the screening was noted by Levitt to be a "critical moment when the public is waking up to the treatment of animals and demanding change. The audience will be outraged when they discover the legal abuse of ‘man’s best friend’ under the guise of sport and entertainment." [12] [7]

Levitt called The documentary a "definitive call to action." According to Producer Arnie Zipursky, documentaries hold immense power in the modern world as they offer a platform to educate viewers on various issues. In the case of Sled Dogs, the documentary not only sheds light on hidden truths but also inspires the audience to drive positive change through increased awareness [12] [7]

According to Bruce Cowley, the senior director of Documentary Channel, "Sled Dogs" offers an unfiltered and honest view of an industry that needs to improve. After watching the film, viewers will have a different perspective on dog-sledding and dogs in general. [12]

"Sled Dogs" explores the lesser-known aspects of the sled dog industry, shedding light on the living conditions of these animals during the off-season. Rather than focusing on the commonly promoted image of sled dogs as tourism and sports icons, the film presents a sincere and moving account, encouraging viewers to delve deeper into the topic and reconsider their perceptions of the industry. [7] [12]

The documentary film "Sled Dogs" features four interconnected stories that take place across various locations in North America, including Alaska, Colorado, Wyoming, Quebec, British Columbia, and Ontario. [12]

The Impact of "Sled Dogs" Leading To Investigations

In a segment titled "Dogs In Distress”, CTV's W5, North America's longest-running current affairs show, employed a hidden camera during its investigation into the mistreatment of dogs reported by Levitt. The episode shared the account of an activist who travelled across Canada, and found roughly 2,000 dogs, all on chains, frantically running in circles. During the program, Levitt described receiving troubling news in 2020 from an ex-employee, reporting the use of a homemade gas chamber  used in the killing of dogs at Expedition Mi-Loup, a dog sledding outfit  in Quebec. Levitt stated, "I had to find out if this was true, that they had built a gas chamber, and were gassing puppies." Levitt described receiving word that the former employee had written to the SPCA in Quebec and to the Ministry of Agriculture about the allegations, but "they didn't do anything," said Levitt. [3]

According to W5, Levitt, after both the SPCA and the Ministry neither confirmed or denied any wrongdoing at Expedition Mi-Loup, decided to investigate the story herself. She had her contact draw up a map to the camp in Quebec and arrived at midnight in the dark accompanied by a few friends. What she found shocked her. Levitt describes a closed plastic box, with a gas line leading to a canister of welding gas. She opened the box and was horrified. Corpses of dogs murdered by gas were  found in the plastic storage container. In the next room was a deep freezer full of puppies and  2 adult dogs. Levitt described the puppies as if they were "sleeping, except they had been frozen to death." [3] [13]

In the aftermath of these revelations, Quebec authorities arrested three individuals involved in the gassings of dogs at Expedition Mi-Loup. [13]

"Quebec provincial police say three people are facing animal cruelty charges in Quebec City in connection with the discovery of dogs and puppies gassed, frozen to death in freezers and hanging at a sled dog company. The Sûreté du Québec says Antoine Simard, 41, Elisabeth Leclerc, 39, and 58-year-old Édouard Parent were charged with animal cruelty and neglect at the Quebec City courthouse on Thursday after being arrested the day prior." [13]

List of Documentaries

Awards and nominations

Fern Levitt's awards and nominations
1999Each of Us Has a NameBest Documentary, Chicago International Film Festival Won
2002Come out Fighting: The 761stChris Statuette, Columbus Film FestivalWon
2003Sakharov - Conscience of a CountryBest Historical Documentary, Houston Film FestivalWon
2004Gorbachev's Revolution [28] One World [28] Won
2006The Velvet Revolution 21st Gemini Awards for Best Biography [29] Nominated
20097 Days of Remembrance and HopeBest Documentary, Chicago International Film Festival Won
2016Sled Dogs [30] Best Editing in a Documentary, Canadian Screen Award Nominated
2016Sled DogsFemale Director, Documentary category, Alliance of Women Film Journalists EDA AwardNominated
2016Sled DogsWorld Documentary Award, Whistler Film Festival Documentary Award [31] Won

Other

Levitt is a trained social worker. She moved into making television in 1990, her first job was as a researcher for TVOntario. [4] She was[ when? ] an instructor at the Toronto Film School. [32]

Notable Mentions

In 2001, about Levitt's documentary "Little Rock Nine", prior to it being aired on Turning Points of History, John Doyle (The Globe and Mail) wrote "Not many Canadian documentary filmmakers get an interview with Bill Clinton but Fern Levitt got him and he's got a lot to say in The Little Rock Nine, a good documentary about the bitter desegregation of an Arkansas school in 1957. That's when nine students attempted to attend an all-white school in Little Rock, a right they were guaranteed by the courts. The Governor of Arkansas sent the National Guard to stop them and President Eisenhower sent the army to protect them. Footage from those days is still shocking, revealing as it does a level of racism, bigotry and hatred that is unfathomable." [33]

In 2017, Helen T. Verongos (New York Times) wrote, "It’s easy to fall in love with the animals in “Sled Dogs.” It’s thornier to sift through the words of the handlers and mushers — many of whom seem to genuinely care for the dogs — and determine how pervasive abuse is in dog-sledding ventures." [9]

Controversy Over Song Choice for "Gorbachev's Revolution"

Barbara Kay, a political columnist from The National Post wrote an article about a feature song chosen by Levitt for the soundtrack of "Gorbachev's Revolution" (released in 2004). Kay explains that during the editing for the documentary, Levitt put together a sequence showing the Berlin Wall coming down, and wanted to hear children singing a "sweet peace song" during this historical moment. Levitt had contacted a choir director for Toronto's well-known Claude Watson School of the Performing Arts, who tentatively agreed for the choir sing in the film. and the two discussed songs, one of them was "Lay Down Your Arms" (LDYA) by Israeli composer Doron Levinson. [34] [22]

The song "Lay Down Your Arms" was composed by Doron Levinson as a tribute to fallen soldiers during the 1973 Yom Kippur War. The lyrics are inspired by a peaceful vision described by the prophet Isaiah, where weapons are transformed into tools for agriculture. Levitt settled on this song for the Berlin Wall scene, and informed the choir director, and soon received a message saying the choir would not perform LDYA stating it was because it was "written by an Israeli soldier." [34]

Levitt met with the choir director, the school principal, representatives from the teachers' union, and the Canadian Jewish Congress. The Toronto District School Board's non-discrimination policy was recited and the school principal agreed that the composer's country of origin should not have been grounds for a refusal. The article states that the choir director's claim for refusing the song was that it was "not a high quality song." [34]

Congregation Habonim Toronto Youth Choir performed their rendition of "Lay Down Your Arms" for Fern Levitt's documentary, "Gorbachev's Revolution." Congregation Habonim Toronto Youth Choir performing at the opening of the Yad Vashem Holocaust Memorial at Earl Bales Park, Toronto, June 2, 1991.jpg
Congregation Habonim Toronto Youth Choir performed their rendition of "Lay Down Your Arms" for Fern Levitt's documentary, "Gorbachev's Revolution."

Levitt filed a complaint against the choir director with the Toronto District School Board. After an investigation, the Board cleared her of any wrongdoing, stating that there was no evidence to support Levitt's claim. However, the Board did not inoclude Khaskin's corroborating testimony in its investigation. [34]

The song was still used in Levitt's documentary.[ citation needed ] LDYA was performed by The Habonim Youth Choir from Congregation Habonim Toronto. [35]

Related Research Articles

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References

  1. ↑ Rockingham, Graham (16 September 2019). "Hamilton-born filmmaker documents treatment of sled dogs". The Hamilton Spectator. ISSN   1189-9417 . Retrieved 14 December 2023.
  2. ↑ "Iditarod sled dog race engulfed in dog-doping scandal". The Globe and Mail. 24 October 2017. Retrieved 14 December 2023.
  3. 1 2 3 Oliver, Sara (16 February 2022). "'Dogs in Distress' Reveals Dog-Sledding Industry Cruelty". PETA. Retrieved 10 April 2024.
  4. 1 2 Posner, Michael (9 March 2005). "The fine art of grovelling". The Globe and Mail. Retrieved 9 December 2023.
  5. ↑ "Study finds increase in repeat divorces". YFile. York University. 11 March 2005. Director makes documentary of Gorbachev. Retrieved 1 April 2024.
  6. 1 2 WFF16 - Sled Dogs - Interview with Fern Levitt and Arnie Zipursky. eBOSS Canada. Retrieved 7 April 2024– via www.youtube.com.
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 "About Sled Dogs Film: The Journey Behind the Documentary". sleddogsfilm.com. Retrieved 9 April 2024.
  8. ↑ W5 uncovers living conditions of Sled Dogs. CP24 . Retrieved 7 April 2024– via www.youtube.com.
  9. 1 2 3 Verongos, Helen T. (27 July 2017). "Review: 'Sled Dogs' Exposes Abuse of Working Animals". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 27 July 2017. Retrieved 13 December 2023.
  10. ↑ Brend, Yvette (19 November 2016). "Mushers bracing for Sled Dogs' scathing indictment of industry". CBC NEWS. Retrieved 1 April 2024.
  11. ↑ "Filmmaker, PETA say Canadian doc played role in Wells Fargo's move to pull Iditarod sponsorship". The Globe and Mail. 26 May 2017. Retrieved 1 April 2024.
  12. 1 2 3 4 5 "Sled Dogs, Directed by Fern Levitt, The First Documentary to Reveal the Truth About Commercial Sled Dog Operations, To Have World Premiere at 2016 Whistler Film Festival" (PDF). Vancouver Humane Society. 1 November 2016. Retrieved 8 April 2024.
  13. 1 2 3 Rowe, Daniel J. (12 September 2022). "3 charged in Quebec City after dozens of sled dogs found gassed, frozen, and hanged: police". Montreal. CTV News . Retrieved 10 April 2024.
  14. ↑ Reid, Alison (1979). Film Canadiana: The Canadian Film Institute Yearbook of Canadian Cinema, 1978-1979. Ottawa: Canadian Film Institute. p. 25. OCLC   30743734.
  15. ↑ Castro, Glenda (1984). Film Canadiana 1980-1982. Ottawa, Canada: Canadian Film Institute. p. 128. ISBN   077220084X.
  16. ↑ Each of Us Has A Name: March of the Living. Jewish Remembrance. Retrieved 14 December 2023.
  17. ↑ "William White". Voices of Acadia. Acadia University. Retrieved 14 December 2023.
  18. ↑ Captain of souls : Reverend William White. Scattering of seeds : the creation of Canada. Vol. 32. White Pine Pictures. 1999. OCLC   71765288.
  19. ↑ "Filmmaker's visit helps students prepare for conversation with iconic civil rights activist Carlotta Walls LaNier". Branksome Hall . 3 June 2021. Retrieved 9 December 2023.
  20. ↑ Come Out Fighting: The 761st - The Black WWII Battalion That Liberated Hitler's Camps (Fern Levitt). Jewish Remembrance. Retrieved 14 December 2023– via YouTube.
  21. ↑ Sakharov - Conscience of a Country - 2003 (Dir. Fern Levitt). Jewish Remembrance. Retrieved 14 December 2023– via YouTube.
  22. 1 2 Gorbachev's Revolution - 2004 (Dir. Fern Levitt). Jewish Remembrance. Retrieved 14 December 2023– via YouTube.
  23. ↑ "Toronto Jewish Film Festival 2008 programme" (PDF). tjff.com. 28 April 2004.
  24. ↑ "Film captures passion of Nazi opponents diary". Calgary Herald. 28 April 2008.[ failed verification ]
  25. ↑ 7 Days of Remembrance and Hope (2009). Jewish Remembrance. Retrieved 14 December 2023– via YouTube.
  26. ↑ Levitt, Fern (16 October 2012). "Paws for Autism". IMDb (Documentary). Retrieved 14 December 2023.[ user-generated source? ]
  27. ↑ Edwards, Kyle (6 March 2018). "'I'm hoping the Iditarod ends:' The Canadian filmmaker trying to stop epic dog-sled races". Sports. Maclean's . Retrieved 14 December 2023.
  28. 1 2 D’Agostino, Anthony (1998). "From the Wall to Stavropol: Gorbachev's German Policy". Gorbachev's Revolution, 1985–1991. London: Palgrave Macmillan UK. pp. 260–279. doi:10.1007/978-1-349-14405-1_11. ISBN   978-1-349-14407-5.
  29. ↑ The Velvet Revolution - 2005 (Dir. Fern Levitt). Jewish Remembrance. Retrieved 14 December 2023.
  30. ↑ Mullen, Pat (11 March 2018). "Canadian Screen Awards Preview: Picks and Foolish Predictions". Cinemablographer. Archived from the original on 3 August 2018.[ better source needed ]
  31. ↑ "Sled Dogs". Valley Morning Star. Harlington, Texas. 8 April 2018. p. T8.
  32. ↑ "Fern Levitt". Toronto Film School. Retrieved 9 December 2023.
  33. ↑ "John Doyle's picks of the week". The Globe and Mail. 9 June 2001. Retrieved 1 April 2024.
  34. 1 2 3 4 "Lay Down Your Arms". National Post. 19 May 2004. Retrieved 5 April 2024– via www.barbarakay.ca.
  35. ↑ Lay Down Your Arms - Israeli Peace Song. Jewish Remembrance. 21 October 2008. Retrieved 5 April 2024– via YouTube.
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