Between Bears

http://www.shortoftheweek.com/2010/08/16/between-bears/

Title: Between Bears
Directed by: Eran Hilleli
Hit or Miss: Hit

Israeli filmmaker Eran Hilleli's short "Between Bears" is one of the simplest yet most awe inspiring shorts I have seen in a while. By using a minimalistic style of animation, Hilleli is able to take us to beautiful landscapes and interesting characters in this visually stunning piece of work.

The plot is pretty simple in "Between Bears". Hilleli opens up by showing us a black bear shaves off all of his fur. As the fur falls, it takes flight into the forest. Flying around the forest, the pieces of fur find themselves trailing behind a group of mysterious characters, following them through a variety of landscapes and changing seasons. After a while of wandering, these characters finally reach a point where they cannot continue. As they stop, they see the black bear interacting with a polar bear atop of an iceberg.

Something interesting about this short is it's unclear story structure. As you watch the short, you might not fully understand what is happening, the motivation of the characters, or even why certain things are happening. While this sounds complicated, as the story isn't exactly "clear" or organized in a traditional narrative sense at times, you can enjoy that freedom to try to come up with your own interpretation as you watch it. You might find yourself asking yourself at times in the film, "Why does the bear shave?" or "Why are the people following him?" It's not clear and that's what makes this an interestingly interactive viewing as you or others you view it with might come up with entirely different interpretations.

This film's strongest point is definitely found within it's animation. What it lacks in coherent story, it fills with such beautiful frames. The style of animation here is absolutely stunning. I really liked how the animation was so simple yet really beautiful. The transition of seasons was one scene in particular that I found really visually interesting.