Bearing with loneliness

Sometimes, 10 minutes is all one needs to take an audience through the emotional ups and downs of life, and that too, without using words. ‘Bear Story’, a 2014 short 3D animation film directed by Gabriel Osorio from Chile, South America managed to do just that.

The silent film tells the story of an old, lonesome bear who stands at the corner of a street each day and uses his small wooden theatre (a diorama) that contains tin puppet bears of his own making, to play a story to the passers-by for a coin.

At his control, the marionettes are set in motion and a story unfolds inside the box for passers-by to see through a peephole. The story within the box is that of a tin puppet bear that longs to escape the circus to rejoin his family. His frustration is conveyed through the music and expressions each time he glances at a photo of his wife and child – his motivation for escape. The implication is that the old bear standing at the street corner recalls his own time with his family before being separated from them.

Speaking about the film, director Osorio says, “The story is inspired by my grandfather who was one among the many exiled from Chile in the 1970s. When I was a kid, I knew I had a grandfather but met him only when I was 15 years.” The film, which has an open ended narrative, is an allegory of the struggles of families of those exiled during the ‘70s. Osorio explains that his choice of animal in the film is because bear is the classic animal used in circuses in Chile.

Director Osorio currently has two children’s TV series ongoing in Spanish titled ‘Flipos’ and ‘Mueliny Perlita’.