The Snowman (1982 TV special)

Directed by:	Dianne Jackson Jimmy T. Murakami (supervisor)
Written by:	Raymond Briggs (book)
Release date:	26 December 1982
Running time:	27 minutes
Available on:	VHS DVD Apple TV

“	I remember that winter, because it had brought the heaviest snows I had ever seen. Snow had fallen steadily all night long. And in the morning I woke in a room filled with light & silence. The world seemed to be held in a dream-like stillness. It was a magical day. And it was on that day, I made the snowman.	”
— Older James opening narration (only dialogue)

The Snowman is a 27-minute non-verbal animated special produced by Dianne Jackson for the fledgling Channel 4, based on a 1978 illustrated children's book by English author, Raymond Briggs. It was first shown on Channel 4 on Boxing Day of 1982 and was an immediate success. It was officially selected as one out of the 63 shorts in the 1983 Annecy Festival, won a BAFTA and nominated for the U.S. Oscar® for Animated Short Film. It has been shown every year since and has become a part of British and international Christmas popular culture.

Like the book, the film is non-verbal as the film also does. There is no spoken dialogue, except for the introduction (narrated by Older James) and the song "Walking in the Air". The story is told through picture, action & music. It was scored by Howard Blake who wrote both music and lyrics of the song and also composed and conducted the complete orchestral score for the film with his own orchestra, the Sinfonia of London. "Walking in the Air", however, was written specially for it and performed by an uncredited St Paul's Cathedral choirboy, Peter Auty.

In a list of the 100 Greatest British Television Programmes drawn up by the British Film Institute in 2000, voted for by industry professionals, the film was placed 71st. It was voted 4th in UKTV Gold's Greatest TV Christmas Moments.

In 2011, the characters in the film appeared in a commercial for IRN-BRU.

Synopsis

The films begins at a house in the English countryside where a young boy named James wakes up on Christmas Eve to see it snowing outside. He quickly gets dressed and heads outside to play in the snow. He eventually decides to make a snowman and uses coal, a tangerine and a hat and scarf to complete it. After completing the snowman, James is called into the house by his mother before going to bed.

James later wakes up and goes downstairs to check on his snowman. On the stroke of midnight, the snowman comes to life and is invited into the house by James. The snowman uses different fruit for a nose before trying on clothes from James' parents wardrobe. The pair then go to James' room before going outside and ride on James' father's motorbike through a forest. They then return to the house and go into the garage where the snowman cools off in a large freezer in there. The snowman pulls out a box from the freezer with a snowy scene on it. He goes back outside and looks to the sky before taking James' hand and taking off into the skies.

The pair fly over other houses and Brighton pier before finally arriving at The North Pole where they attend a snowman party hosted by Father Christmas, whose reindeer James meets before being given a present which upon being unwrapped, is revealed to be a snowman scarf. The snowman signals to James that it is time to go home. They return home where they have a farewell hug before James goes back to bed.

The next morning, James wakes up, gets dressed, runs downstairs, and goes past his parents who are eating breakfast at the dining room table. When James heads outside, he runs to the garden, expecting to see his snowman again. But when he reaches the garden, he sees the snowman has melted. All that is left are the coal buttons, the hat, and scarf, which are all on top of a small pile of melted snow. Finally, James takes out his scarf and mourns the loss of the snowman as the end credits roll.

However, the next year's winter, James builds his snowman again. And he (James) takes him (the snowman) to the North Pole, which is another story.

Song

Uncredited.

• "Walking in the Air"

Cast

All uncredited; Introductions Only.

Actor	Version	Character
Bernard Cribbins		Narrator
Raymond Briggs	Original version	Older James (Narration)
David Bowie	Airings from 1984 onward	Older James (Live-action)
Mel Smith	20th Anniversary (2002)	Father Christmas

On the UK DVD releases, there is an optional track where Father Christmas narrates throughout the special.

Gallery

See also

• Father Christmas
• The Bear
• The Snowman and the Snowdog

External links

• The Snowman at the Internet Movie Database