THE BEAR (an animated film) op.496 (March 1998)

Commissioned by: Channel 4/TVC/Miramax
Instrumentation: Girl soprano, tenor, bass 2121 2111 2pc pno/cel hp str
[Key to Abbreviations]
Note on Lyrics: Lyrics by Howard Blake
Duration: 26 mins
First Performance: Recorded 30/31 March 1998 Whitfield Street Studios sound engineer Mike Ross, Girl soprano (Charlotte Church), tenor (Martyn Hill), bass (Peter Knapp) and orchestra
Channel 4/Miramax animated film released on DVD 1999

Notes

Film based on the book by Raymond Briggs, directed by Hilary Audus, produced by John Coates

The animated film of 'The Bear' was made by the same team that made ‘The Snowman’ based again on a story by Raymond Briggs and first shown on Channel 4 TV on Christmas Eve 1998. It is like a companion-piece to ‘The Snowman’ except that the hero is a small girl – sung on the film by Charlotte Church.

A young girl, Tilly, visits the zoo with her mum and dad, but accidentally drops her best loved toy into the polar bear's pit. That night, Tilly cries herself to sleep, only to wake and find a huge polar bear standing over her- he's come to return her precious teddy.

So begins a magical friendship with some bear-size complications, the biggest problem being how to keep such an enormous pet hidden from her parents. Everything changes when The Bear hears a call of the wild from the spirit of The Great Bear who descends from the constellation in the sky to embark on an extraordinary night adventure across the City of London.

The Polar Bear is represented by a tenor and the Star-Bear by a bass-baritone. All three singers join in the song ‘Somewhere a star shines for everyone’, sung as they skate down the frozen Thames and again at the end.
 

Reviews

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				The Bear    (1998)       producers: TVC London for Channel 4    animation: 2D animation       run time: 29 mins
			On a daytrip to London zoo, Tilly drops her beloved teddy bear in the polar     bear pen. That night she's woken by a magical polar bear who has appeared    in her bedroom with - you guessed it - the self same teddy bear. Tilly does    her best to hide her new friend from her suspicious parents as they explore    her home together. As evening draws in once more, the Bear returns her    kindness by whisking her away on a moonlit tour of the London landscape,    and off into the night skies where he introduces her to the spirit of the Great    Bear - Ursa Major - before he heads north to his original Arctic home...    "The Bear" is adapted from Raymond Briggs' classic story - the fourth such    project by John Coates and his TVC team, and it's another gem on a par with    "The Snowman". Just like that magical film, it has a soft, crayoned look.    The story is once more told through a combination of animation and music,    with almost no dialogue. There's a rich choral element to the orchestration    and another wintery flight through the night sky. But never fear, "The Bear"    leaps and bounds across the screen very much on its own. It's exquisitely    produced in a widescreen format, and utilizes the developments in animation    techniques since "The Snowman"s arrival to enhance the viewing experience    considerably. The story is noticably darker too, and there's a particular intensity    invested in the scenes with the Great Bear. "The Snowman" leaves us grieving    for the loss of a special special friend. But when the Bear finally departs for    the Arctic, our sadness is tinged with hope and understanding. The Bear    is simply going home again, back to where he belongs.    Howard Blake picks up the musical baton once more. Where "The Snowman"    had soloist Peter Auty stirring our hearts, "The Bear" has the (then) angelic    talents of a young Charlotte Church. And it's a terrific score that compliments    the story very well indeed. However, in America, the distributors have still felt it    neccessary to add a narration to proceedings. The voiceover is spoken by the    rather lovely Judi Dench, but it's an unwise and rather unwelcome addition    - Shame on them!        » Those with a keen eye will notice that, at one point, Tilly and her parents        settle down to watch "The Snowman" on their tv. There are also three        fabulous in-jokes included in the night flight:    »  A mewling baby in its crib has the initials 'JC' sewn on its romper  suit.        A sly reference to producer John Coates, methinks.    » Tilly and The Bear's magical flight takes them past the window of        a frustrated pianist, who looks remarkably similar to real-life composer        Howard Blake.    »  Finally, we pass by the smiling face of The Man In The Moon, who        looks unquestionably like the one and only Mr Raymond Briggs!             Awards     1998 - Peabody Award for Broadcasting        The Bear on DVD     The Bear                 Region 2 / Cinema Club / July 2002      Raymond Briggs' The Bear/The Animal Train                 Region 1 / double bill / Miramax / December 2003        based on the book by Raymond Briggs       a TVC London production for Channel 4        director:             Hilary Audus      producer:           John Coates      exec prod:          Paul Madden      art director:        Joanna Harrison      music & lyrics:    Howard Blake      soloist:               Charlotte Church      spfx dir:             Richard Nye      adaptation       & st'board:         Hilary Audus, Joanna Harrison      line prod:           Catrin Unwin      head of       rendering:          Janet Archer       layout:               Jacques Gauthier, Richard Nye,                               Jack Stokes, Hal Clay      b'grounds:          Michael Gabriel, Paul Osborne,                               Michael Haywood      st'board       consultant:         Jimmy T Murakami      animation:          Roger Mainwood, Tony Guy, Peter Dodd,                               Nicolette van Gendt, Andy McPherson,                               Simon Williams, John Perkins, Jacques Gauthier,                                David Livesey, Dave Webster, Arian Wilschut,                               Joe Mulligan, Jonathan Hall, Joan Freestone,                               Sarah Vincent, Dave Unwin, Les Gibbard,                               Kevin Richards, Alan Green                               Debbie Dryland, Stella Benson, Stephen Harper,                               Juliann Franchetti, Monica Brufton, Ray Newman,                               Pauline Trapmore, Diana Tusheva-Molloy,                               Denise Dean, Darren Kardich      paint & trace       co-ords:             Sara Fairbank-Williams, Seb Markham      painters:            Carol Lesley, Jaqui Miller, Annette Brown,                               Rozlin Lambert, Debbie Davis, Denise Marshall      rend co-ord:       Lotty Pfeil      principal       renderers:          Janette Taylor, Norma Ricketts,                               Lydia Adams, Lynn Bailey, Penelope Wilson,                               Rachel Booth, Carol Hughes, Mike Adams,                               Tonia Thorne      head of       checking:           Erica Darby      checkers:          Guy Brockett, Nicci Angell, Cyrus Green, Ed Salkeld      editor:               Taylor Grant      voices:              Peter Knapp (Star Bear)                              Philip Sheffield (Polar Bear)                              Charlotte Church (Tilly)                              + Judi Dench (narrator - US version)         On the web       No links as yet, unfortunately...         index »   next »    TVC/John Coates ------------------- Barney The Bear Father Christmas Granpa The Snowman The Storystore Tale of Jack Frost When the Wind Blows The Willows in Winter Wind in the Willows World of Peter Rabbit Yellow Submarine ------------------- R. Briggs - Filmography
© TVC /C4 / F2007

Toonhound, 2007

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