IAR Bear

Animation

Client IAR
Sound Design nabarro steel audio
Music Composer Jamie Wright

We were approached by the charity ‘International Animal Rescue’ to discuss their mission to help suffering bears in Armenia. The bears suffer terrible cruelty and neglect, surviving on scraps of food while being trapped in small, squalid cages. When faced with such a project how could we ever refuse to help their cause?

The charity had previously considered a 2D approach, but came to us to explore the possibilities of 3D. When we looked at the subject we knew it was very much a heart and minds piece and would need the warmth of real world hand-drawn textures. So after making our proposals and accepting the challenge we all settled on a style that would show visible 3D geometry with 2D textures.

It was clear from the outset that a 3D route would exceed any budgets available. However, we’d already fallen in love with the project, so we chose to put aside the constraints and create the best piece of work we possibly could within the timeline available.

First up was establishing the actual storyline. IAR had devised a story, but handed the creative reins over to Jim and Matt who developed it further. The opening scenes establish the mood and pace for what follows of an emotive, alarming and yet approachable animation. The intention was not to frighten viewers, but instead play upon more rational emotions.
A conscious decision was made to allow the music and cut away scenes to build tension. So for instance we never see the poacher shoot the adult bear. Instead the soundtrack sets the scene, before a large bang and a flock of alarmed birds allows you to interpret the unseen horror, without it being macabre. By doing so you feel personally invested in the film and not afraid of its message.

Those who are familiar with the Armenian countryside will also notice tiny details that have been included to create an authentic environment. The flora, fauna and some of the mountainous scenes depicted are all taken from the region. Even the soundtrack includes traditional Armenian instruments.

From the start we realised that the music and sound design would play an enormous part. So, we engaged the services of Leeds based composer Jamie Wright and sound designer Adam Nabarro- Steel. Their combined skills created a score that sits perfectly with the animation and highlights the emotive touch points of the storyline. The addition of the calming voice over provided by actor Peter Egan delivers the perfect finishing touch.

Behind the scenes

The final result is a film which is highly emotive, while being visually beautiful and deeply engaging. International Animal Rescue hope to not only raise awareness of the bears’ plight, but also alert the Armenian people to the presence of poachers and the appalling practice of caging bears in public places.

Northforge delivered a 2 minute film plus various 20” cutdowns that shall air across all of IAR’s social platforms and will be shared with International media channels to help them in their campaign to ‘Break the Cage’

Northforge have been a fantastic partner and a dream to work with from day one. They've always been passionate about the project and have gone above and beyond to create an animation we can be extremely proud of. We leant on Matt and Jim's experience throughout the project and they have always been extremely generous with their time, input and resources.
Everyone at International Animal Rescue thanks Northforge for all of their effort in creating such a beautiful animation, we can't wait to work together on another project in the future. Tom Mumford Digital Manager IAR