Brother Bear

When an impulsive boy named Kenai is magically transformed into a bear, he must literally walk in another’s footsteps until he learns some valuable life lessons. His courageous and often zany journey introduces him to a forest full of wildlife, including the lovable bear cub Koda, hilarious moose Rutt and Tuke, woolly mammoths, rambunctious rams and more!

General Information

Brother Bear is the forty-third Walt Disney Classics. It was produced by Walt Disney Feature Animation Florida and released on November 1, 2003, by Walt Disney Pictures and Buena Vista Distribution. It was the third and final Disney animated feature produced primarily by the Feature Animation studio at Disney-MGM Studios in Orlando, Florida. The studio was shut down in March 2004.

Movie Timeline

• 1994 – Bears project first heard of.
• 1998 – Ideas of a native boy who was born as a shape bender was first heard and worked on. Name change to Shadow Bear to reflect the change in story. The story was eventually scrapped.
• 2001 – Story once more changed. The cub Koda replaced Grizz in the story.
• October 23, 2003 – Theatrical release (limited).
• November 1, 2003 – Theatrical release (nation-wide).
• March 30, 2004 – The availability of the film’s DVD release.

Alternate Names

Brother Bear is also known as:

• Bears,
• The Shape Bender, and
• Shadow Bear.

The change of name was mostly due to the change in story.

Box Office

In its theatrical run in the US, Brother Bear amassed $85,336,277. However, Brother Bear goes on to amass $165,061,000 worldwide, more than Lilo and Stitch which was also produced by the same studio.

Voice Cast

Brother Bear stars the voices of:

• Joaquin Phoenix as Kenai,
• Jeremy Suarez as Koda,
• Rick Moranis as Rutt,
• Dave Thomas as Tuke,
• Jason Raize as Denahi,
• D.B. Sweeney as Sitka,
• Joan Copeland as Tanana,
• Michael Clarke Duncan as Tug,
• and other additional voices.

Awards

• 2003 Academy Award Nominee: Best Animated Feature Film Of The Year – Aaron Blaise & Robert Walker
• 2003 Annie Award Nominee: Outstanding Achievement In An Animated Theatrical Feature – Walt Disney Pictures
• 2003 Annie Award Nominee: Outstanding Individual Achievement In Character Animation – Byron Howard
• 2003 Annie Award Nominee: Outstanding Individual Achievement In Character Design In An Animated Feature Production – Rune Brandt Bennicke
• 2003 Annie Award Nominee: Outstanding Individual Achievement In Effects Animation – Jason Wolbert
• 2003 Annie Award Nominee: Outstanding Individual Achievement In Music In An Animated Feature Production – Phil Collins & Mark Mancina
• 2003 Annie Award Nominee: Outstanding Individual Achievement In Production Design In An Animated Feature Production – Robh Ruppel
• 2003 Annie Award Nominee: Outstanding Achievement In Voice Acting In An Animated Feature Production – Jeremy Suarez as the voice of Koda
• 2003 Annie Award Nominee: Outstanding Achievement In Writing In An Animated Feature Production – Tab Murphy, Lorne Cameron, Davis Hoselton, Steve Bencich, & Ron J. Friedman

Source

The content of this page was compiled from various sources:

• Wikipedia’s article on Brother Bear,
• Box Office Mojo’s page on Brother Bear,
• Brother Bear: A Transformation Tale, written by H. Clark Wakabayashi.