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Animal Stories
Featuring tales of magical lions, crafty polar bears and mischievous mice, this selection of stories about animals is fun viewing for kids of all ages.
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Frank the WrabbitJohn Weldon 1998 9 minIn this animated short, Frank proves he’s no ordinary rabbit. He's a highly intelligent "wrabbit" with a philosophical world view that affords him great comfort. Unfortunately, his outlook is challenged when the farmer's carrots disappear. His quick wit allows him to survive and prosper. In Frank the Wrabbit, filmmaker John Weldon tells a deceptively simple tale with a subversive twist. -
Old DogAnn Marie Fleming 2020 3 minAfter losing his best friend, an elderly pug named Henry must depend on his owner for help and companionship. Writer/director Ann Marie Fleming (Window Horses) makes visible the tender work of caretaking in her new animated short, Old Dog. All dogs (and people) should be so lucky and so loved.
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Hinterland Who's Who: Blue Jay1972 1 minA short public service announcement of the blue jay.
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BalakrishnaColin MacKenzie & Aparna Kapur 2019 15 minWhen an extraordinary new resident – Balakrishna, an Indian elephant – arrived in the town of East River, Nova Scotia, in 1967, no one was more in awe of the creature than young Winton Cook, who became inseparable from his mammoth new friend. Using painterly animation, photographs and home-movie treasures, Balakrishna transmits the wistfulness of childhood memories, while evoking themes of friendship and loss, and issues of immigration and elephant conservation.
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Cat Meets DogPaul Driessen 2015 11 minA mysterious invitation of a romantic nature kicks off this adventure of parallel lives and parallel worlds. Acclaimed animator Paul Driessen’s latest short is a wandering tale of desire and disappointment told in four different story-windows. As an anthropomorphic cat and dog meander through their alternate and intersecting realities, each story-window ends on a cliffhanger and transitions to another tale.
Even though the pursuit of romance fuels our protagonists’ journeys, it is ultimately each character’s unique persona that determines their fate. The dog in this capricious tale is by turns impulsive, adventurous, and goal-oriented, while the cat we meet is typically thoughtful and confident, yet subdued. Ultimately, our characters’ wayward adventures in love and life reveal their animalistic nature—a primal force found beneath “civilized” exteriors.
Featuring a lively soundtrack, this film employs Driessen’s signature mixture of drama and comedy to explore the ways in which life can surprise us when the choices we make determine the outcome of our journeys. -
The Lion and the MouseEvelyn Lambart 1976 4 minThis animated short by Evelyn Lambart is a visual adaptation of the famous Aesop fable "The Lion and the Mouse," in which a mouse proves to a lion that the weak and small may be of help to those much mightier than themselves.
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The ZooJulia Kwan 2018 11 minThe Zoo follows the parallel lives of a polar bear cub in a popular city zoo and a Chinese boy who visits him until they’re both in their twilight years.
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CatuorJudith Klein 1970 3 minThis film is about cats--actually, one very clever cat. The title is a play on the French quatuor, meaning quartet, but the chorus is not the usual alley-cat variety. The cat in this film is talented indeed. He is both pianist and piano, trumpet and trumpeter and, if need be, even becomes the music--a pulsing rock and roll--or a whole swarm of alley cats.
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Hinterland Who's Who: The Polar Bear1973 1 minThis very short documentary from the Hinterland Who's Who series introduces viewers to the polar bear, one of the largest bears in North America. See first-hand how they swim, hunt, and raise their cubs.
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MeltdownCarrie Mombourquette 2012 1 minIn this short animation, a polar bear must try his luck finding a job in the big city when the last of his Arctic ice environment disappears. It’s hard fitting into the human world, however, so this bear finds a more creative solution to his predicament.
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Monsieur PugJanet Perlman 2014 9 minWho is Monsieur Pug? Why, a dog with bad cholesterol and high blood pressure! And a dog who loves his pie and ice cream. Who relaxes by making origami. In other words, definitely not your ordinary pooch! For he’s also a paranoiac, convinced he’s the target in a vast conspiracy, and pretending to be a pet, the better to hide from his pursuers. Schizoid, perhaps? Hmm… but is Monsieur Pug even a real dog to begin with?
A delirious fable about a particular brand of modern madness—that brought on by the omnipresence of smartphones in our lives—Monsieur Pug is directed with verve by Janet Perlman, whose The Tender Tale of Cinderella Penguin was nominated for an Academy Award as Best Animated Short in 1982.
Monsieur Pug is one strange film about the life of one strange dog! -
Hinterland Who's Who: The Bison1973 1 minThis very short documentary from the Hinterland Who's Who series introduces viewers the bison.
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The Bear and the MouseF.W. Remmler & Ingmar Remmler 1966 7 minA variation on a fable by Aesop ("The Lion and the Mouse") in which a mouse aids a mighty lion who had once spared his life. This children's film casts real animals – with a big brown bear in the role of the lion, and proves that little friends can prove to be great friends indeed.
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Hedgehog's HomeEva Cvijanovic 2017 10 minIn a lush and lively forest lives a hedgehog. He is respected and envied by the other animals. However, Hedgehog’s unwavering devotion to his home annoys a quartet of insatiable beasts. Together, they march off towards Hedgehog’s home and spark a tense and prickly standoff.
Exquisitely directed by Eva Cvijanović and based on the classic story by Branko Ćopić, a writer from the former Yugoslavia, Hedgehog’s Home is a warm and universal tale for young and old that reminds us there truly is no place like home. -
Hinterland Who's Who: Moose1963 1 minThis very short documentary from the Hinterland Who’s Who series introduces viewers to the moose.
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AdventuresMichael Rubbo 1968 10 minThis short live-action film tells the story of little raccoon who encounters many adventures when he strays from home to explore the world.
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Every Dog's Guide to Complete Home SafetyLes Drew 1986 10 minThis hilarious short animation offers over 40 safety tips for homes with infants and young children. The film's hero is a very earnest, somewhat pompous, but endearing dog called Wally. A "professional" in home safety, Wally is assigned to a house with an infant whose parents have little safety consciousness. Accidents and near-accidents succeed each other with lightning speed, constantly putting Wally to the test.
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The Magic LionCharles Githinji 2004 6 minThis animated short is about a Kenyan boy who goes on a quest to save the life of his sick grandfather. In his search for healers in a mysterious village, he encounters a strange lion caught in a trap. Upon being freed, the lion gratefully takes the boy on an adventure.
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Hinterland Who's Who: Black Bear1978 1 minThis very short documentary from the Hinterland Who’s Who series introduces viewers to the black bear.
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How Dinosaurs Learned to FlyMunro Ferguson 1995 5 minThe dinosaurs were headed for trouble. They ate nothing but junk food. They never brushed their teeth. They stayed up all night. And though they loved jumping off cliffs, they didn't like the landings much. The early mammals tried to warn them. "Keep that up and you'll all be extinct!" they said. But the dinosaurs just laughed... and over time, they evolved into birds.
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The Animal MovieGrant Munro & Ron Tunis 1966 9 minAn animated cartoon to help children explore why and how animals move as they do. A little boy discovers that he cannot compete with a monkey, a snake or a horse by imitating the way they move. He can only outdistance them when he climbs into a vehicle that can travel in any environment, proving that the human capacity for technological invention creates a wholly different relationship to our environment.
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That MouseMichael Rubbo 1967 14 minIn this children’s film, a white mouse cavorts about the forest, mostly on the back of a bumbling black bear, creating such a stir that other forest creatures (a deer, a tortoise, a hawk and a hound) have to put a stop to it. Animals speak with human voices and “act” out their parts.
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Peep and the Big Wide WorldKaj Pindal 1988 34 minThis series of three 10-minute films features Peep the chicken, Chirp the robin and Quack the duck. On their travels, they meet a cat, a ladybug, a turtle and a frog who speaks from both sides of his mouth. Narrated by Peter Ustinov, these films are great for young children aged 3–5.
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The DinglesLes Drew 1988 7 minCreated by award-winning animator/director Les Drew, this animated short features Doris Dingle and her family of three cats. Sure to appeal to children of all ages, The Dingles shows what happens when an unexpected violent wind disrupts the family's idyllic life. The film is based on the book The Dingles, written by Helen Levchuk and illustrated by John Bianchi.
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The Garden of EcosCo Hoedeman 1997 10 minIn this animated short, animals and plants are living peacefully together in a large garden until predators attack and ravage their habitat, stealing food and destroying plants. This creates an imbalance that leads to war. A fable that poetically describes how conflicts between 2 different groups in the same community can upset the natural balance of an ecosystem.
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I Want a DogSheldon Cohen 2003 10 minIn this animated short by Sheldon Cohen, young May wants a dog more than anything else in the world. She thinks about dogs all the time; she talks about them, reads about them and covers the walls of her bedroom with dog pictures. But every time she asks her parents for a puppy, they tell her to wait till she's older. But sticking to her motto of "If at first you don’t succeed, try again," May comes up with an ingenious idea to change her parents' minds. Based on the book by Dayal Kaur Khalsa.
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In Search of the Bowhead WhaleBill Mason 1974 49 minThis adventure film features Scott McVay, an authority on whales, and filmmaker Bill Mason. The objective was to film the bowhead, a magnificent inhabitant of the cold Arctic seas brought to the edge of extinction by overfishing. With helicopter and Inuit guide, aqualungs and underwater cameras, the expedition searches out and meets the bowhead and beluga.
Please note that this is an archival film that makes use of the word “Eskimo,” an outdated and offensive term. While the origin of the word is a matter of some contention, it is no longer used in Canada. The term was formally rejected by the Inuit Circumpolar Council in 1980 and has subsequently not been in use at the NFB for decades. This film is therefore a time-capsule of a bygone era, presented in its original version. The NFB apologizes for the offence caused. -
The Hungry SquidJohn Weldon 2002 14 minIn this animated short, Oscar® winner John Weldon spins a tall tale about young Dorothy and her myriad troubles: absentee parents, bad hair and a menagerie that devours her homework. But when her pet squid rampages through town and people finally realize that the homework-eating creatures aren't a figment of her imagination, Dorothy realizes that it's time to get the situation under control.
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Hinterland Who's Who: Grizzly1972 1 minThis very short documentary from the Hinterland Who’s Who series introduces viewers to the grizzly bear.
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Return of the Swift FoxJy Chiperzak 1988 26 minThe swift fox is one of the many lost species that has suffered from the cultivation of the prairie grasslands. An innovative program has been implemented to reintroduce the swift fox into its original habitat in Alberta and Saskatchewan. Documenting the history and human misuse of this fragile ecosystem, this short film illustrates the precious balance between human and wildlife use of the environment.
