Snow Bear is the latest film from film director and animator Aaron Blaise. Blaise has worked on several Disney projects as an animator, from Aladdin to The Lion King. Notably, he co-directed Brother Bear. Per the Tribeca website, here is the logline for Snow Bear.
Set in a rapidly changing world, “Snow Bear” tells the story of a polar bear in an unforgiving environment on his quest to find a friend.
Tribeca
Blaise animated and directed Snow Bear entirely by himself. Additional crew includes Mark Mancina (Speed, Twister, Tarzan, Training Day, Brother Bear, The Haunted Mansion, Moana, The Sea Beast) and Marlon E. Espino as music composers on the project.
The Beauty of Snow Bear
Given Blaise’s time at Walt Disney Animation Studios, it is no surprise that this piece looks much like a 2-D animated Disney film. This works very much in the film’s favor. In a time when most animated movies are done in 3-D and cranked out en masse, and more and more AI-generated content floods our screens and lives, it is a relief to see something done with so much passion and care by a single person. It’s a reminder of the boundless talent humanity has. Every single frame is gorgeous and painstakingly animated to capture the beauty of the Arctic.
Blaise is effectively able to communicate so much visually. And the score from Mancina and Espino pairs perfectly with the animation, heightening the emotion of every scene. It’s a great reminder that, first and foremost, film is a visual medium.
Beyond just being emotionally moving, the film is very funny. All the visual gags hit and help to enhance the mood. Ultimately, this humor and raw emotion make Snow Bear a touching journey about finding friendship in an increasingly unfamiliar world.
Hope in Desperate Times
While Snow Bear is focused mostly on the friendship one can find in the world, it also touches greatly on the dangers of climate change and how that affects the world around us. The film acknowledges that the climate crisis is very real and will affect all of us severely. At the same time, it reminds audiences that, together, we can find meaning and hope even in the most desperate of situations. It is a call to action to find community and work with them to make the world a better place. There are no easy answers in our strange and confusing world, but together, at least it becomes more bearable.
Even without its environmental themes, its focus on friendship would be more than enough to make Snow Bear a compelling piece. It’s a simple but deep enough theme that it becomes relevant to anyone. Not to mention, using animals provides the necessary cognitive dissonance for one to forget their biases and solely see the emotions of it all.
The Verdict on Snow Bear
Snow Bear may be entirely predictable, but thanks to Blaise’s stunning hand-drawn animation, along with Mancina and Espino’s soundtrack, it becomes more than the sum of its parts. Snow Bear is the first film in a long time to recapture the magic of early Disney films, but it also manages to surpass it. It’s pure concentrated emotion of the best kind and worth seeking out for anyone curious about it.
Score: 5/5
Aaron Blaise’s Snow Bear is now playing at the Tribeca Film Festival!
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