Who Let the Dogs Out

Who really came up with that song you can never get out of your head?

Who Let the Dogs Out You thought the answer to the question was obvious, right? The Baha Men. In fact, the origin story of the smash hit is murkier than anyone could imagine. When artist and curator Ben Sisto embarks upon an obsessive eight-year quest in search of the answer, he uncovers a deep well of controversy and legal battles. His pursuit of the truth is relentless, and the result is an engrossing and entertaining meditation on copyright and originality in art.

Who Let the Dogs Out (2019) on IMDb

Festivals

LaurelSXSW - World Premiere
LaurelHot Docs - Official Selection
LaurelSIFF 2019 - Official Competition

Reviews and More

The film takes viewers to the Bahamas, Trinidad, England, Florida, New York, Seattle, Michigan and finally to Texas all in an effort to answer the timeless question: who really did let the dogs out? ” – Variety Q&A

His feat is mightily impressive; he’s made the perfect explainer documentary for our culturally-appropriated times, all while keeping audiences engaged and laughing.” – Observer

How can a question be asked that many times and nobody has bothered to get to the bottom of it?” – Daily Beast

Along the way the film uncovers deeper veins that question the very nature of creativity itself” – POV Magazine

There’s way more to it than I thought. There’s more to this song than you thought.” – The Mutt Q&A

Playlist

Listen to the ultimate Who Let the Dogs Out? playlist on Spotify, curated by Ben Sisto himself:

The Producers


Brent Hodge - Director

Brent Hodge is a filmmaker best known for his documentaries A Brony Tale (Netflix), I Am Chris Farley (Spike/Paramount), Pistol Shrimps (NBC) and most recently Freaks and Geeks (A&E). Hodge is also the show runner and director for Season 1 and 2 of the series A User’s Guide To Cheating Death (BBC Earth). He has won and been nominated for multiple Leo Awards, a Canadian Screen Award in 2014 for directing The Beetle Roadtrip Sessions with Volkswagen and most recently won a Founders Award for Pistol Shrimps at Michael Moore's Traverse City Film Festival.






Aly Kelly - Producer

Driven by a passion to realize filmmaker's visions, Aly Kelly is a documentary producer based on the east coast of Canada. Predominantly producing with Hodgee Films, Kelly is best known for award winning documentaries such as Freaks and Geeks: The Documentary (A&E), Pharma Bro (Blumhouse Productions) and Who Let the Dogs Out: The Documentary (Telus)







Ben Sisto - Producer

Ben Sisto is an artist and organizer living in Brooklyn, NY with his wife Elizabeth and daughter, Lee. Over the past 20 years, Ben has averaged being involved with about 2 public events – readings, receptions, exhibitions, boat parties, fashion walks, you name it – per week. Ben's given talks at Eyebeam Art+Technology Center, King's College (London), Yale, the University of Virginia, The American Repertory Theatre (Boston) and many-a-dive-bar. He's shown work at Printed Matter (NY), Artists Space, Harvard, Spring/Break Art Fair (NY) and a bunch of other spots. Ben's also been on a quest for about 8 years to answer one of the most important questions in all of pop history: Who let the dogs out? His research project, Who Let Who Let the Dogs Out Out? has received positive press from A/V Club, Vice and others, and is currently the subject of a documentary film (2019) following his research from Seattle to Jacksonville, FL; from London to Austin, Tx.

Making The Film




Director's Statement
As a filmmaker who specializes in documentaries that capture pop culture at their finest and their weirdest, I love the 'Who Let the Dogs Out' story. While directing ‘Freaks and Geeks: The Documentary’, I was able to understand the impact a single piece of creative work can have on the greater psyche, and wanted to continue in this vein. This is a story that goes beyond the song; it is about art and who truly owns it.

I was drawn to make a film about Ben Sisto’s live presentation on 'Who Let the Dogs Out' because of the honesty and love that is clear in his research. I’d never really thought about the question of who exactly let the dogs out but quickly realized we needed an answer. This film gives you that answer and more.

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