Wantagh filmmaker depicts animal cruelty

John Lazzaro of Wantagh has had a passion for filmmaking since he was young. “I’ve always had a fascination about storytelling, the way people tell stories, and how stories impact different people,” he said.

Masters of Cruelty, Lazzaro’s most recent short documentary at 25 minutes long, addresses animal abuse in New York, specifically on Long Island.

“The film focuses on how Nassau and Suffolk County SPCAs (Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals) prosecute animal crimes,” Lazzaro said.

Lazzaro uses a 2016 Wyandanch case as the spine of his documentary. In that case, a group of puppies were neglected for weeks before being rescued. The case shows how New York as a whole handles animal abuse cases, specifically involving dogs, according to Lazzaro. During the film, he interviews a Nassau County District Attorney about the specifics of animal abuse laws.

Animal abuse laws in New York fall under the category of Agricultural and Market laws, Lazzaro said. The maximum penalty for aggravated animal abuse in New York is two years in prison.

“That is interesting just because a lot of these crimes are very barbaric and horrific,” Lazzaro said. “Almost always, the perpetrators are not brought to justice.”

Lazzaro said he also focused on how Nassau and Suffolk County handle abuse crimes differently. Through research, Lazzaro found out Nassau County is stricter in animal abuse cases, where Suffolk County has historically responded in a more “lax” manner.

Lazzaro said he learned a lot through creating Masters of Cruelty.

“The thing that probably resonated with me is that the laws in regards to animal abuse… definitely need to change,” Lazzaro said. “I think that the maximum sentence needs to be increased. I think the penalties need to be increased.”

Lazzaro started creating Masters of Cruelty the day before his 30th birthday in May 2017. He finished the film in January 2018.

Masters of Cruelty is the sixth documentary Lazzaro has created. His fourth film, created in 2010, is called Hindsight and addresses the heroin epidemic on Long Island. Hindsight won the Best Humanitarian Film Award at the Long Island International Film Expo in 2010.

Lazzaro entered Masters of Cruelty into the 2018 Long Island International Film Expo. He said it did not win any awards, however it made the official selection to be publically screened to an audience of about 40 people on July 17.

He also entered Masters of Cruelty into the New Hampshire International Film Festival and will hear back from them in the Fall as to whether his film was accepted.

Lazzaro is currently not working on any documentaries but anticipates continuing to create films in the future.

Documentaries that have inspired Lazzaro include: Bowling for Columbine (2002), Grizzly Man (2005) and In the Shadow of the Moon (2007).