When a lonely polar bear can't find a friend... he makes one. 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. This independently produced 2D hand drawn film was painstakingly created entirely by Aaron Blaise over 3 years.

What's left behind the scenes

The idea for the film came to Aaron Blaise 10 years ago, but he only started drawing when he found funding and time. It took him three years to create the film. Blaise was the director, screenwriter, and editor of the project.
Over 11,000 drawings were included in the short animated film.
The images in the cartoon are deliberately simplified to give the impression that they were created by a polar bear.
There is practically no sound in the cartoon. Initially, Blaise experimented with using voice-over and sounds that bears might make, but then he chose silence (excluding musical accompaniment and natural ambient sounds), realizing that it would be better to focus on the visuals rather than the audio.
The Northern Lights were animated using traditional methods – frame by frame, without the use of corresponding computer programs.
Aaron Blaise drew the bear based on other images of polar bears in cinema, and in particular, his involvement in Disney’s animated film 'Brother Bear' (2003). He later said that it was as if 'muscle memory had kicked in'.
The film was animated using computer programs that are used by many 2D animators. Aaron Blaise decided that this most closely resembled traditional animation drawn on paper with pencils.
One of the most difficult scenes to animate turned out to be the melting scene, because it was necessary to show how the bear melts and deforms, but in a way that the bear remains recognizable until the very end.
Initially, it was supposed that in the finale, the polar bear would simply meet a female polar bear, but then Aaron Blaise decided to show snow sculptures made by the cubs.
Aaron Blaise came up with the idea for the film 10 years ago, but he only began drawing once he found the funding and the time. It took him three years to create the film. Blaise served as the project's director, screenwriter, and editor.
There is practically no sound in the animated film. Initially, Blaise experimented with voice-overs and sounds that bears might make, but he eventually chose silence (aside from the musical score and natural ambient sounds), realizing that it would be better to emphasize the visual imagery rather than the audio.
Aaron Blaise drew the bear based on other depictions of polar bears in cinema and, specifically, his experience working on Disney's animated film 'Brother Bear' (2003). He later remarked that it was as if his 'muscle memory had kicked in.'
The film was animated using computer software commonly used by many 2D animators. Aaron Blaise decided that this most closely resembled traditional animation drawn on paper with pencils.
Initially, it was intended that the snow bear would simply meet a female snow bear in the finale, but Aaron Blaise later decided to show snow sculptures crafted by bear cubs.