The first of TVC's animated adaptations. Raymond Briggs touching tale is
brought faithfully to our screens, with the producers retaining the soft crayoned
style of  the original panels. As in the book, there is no dialogue, but the tale
does not require any. A beautiful score by Howard Blake fills the void. And
he also composed THAT SONG accompanying James' magical flight to the
north pole, where he meets Father Christmas. The whole is topped by a
simple live-action addition, with a voice-over  from David Bowie, no less.

Oscar nominated - best animated short 1983
BAFTA winner - best animated short 1983

         
   
The sequence at the North Pole and the rendezvous with Father Christmas
is a new addition. In the book, they fly over the South  Downs to Brighton Pier.


        

The rights to our frosty friend are held by 'Snowman Enterprises Ltd',  who
have their own website, featuring plenty of  Snowman info, plus a rundown
of the various tie-in books and merchandise they've licensed.

The pictures presented here come from the soundtrack album.


  

I recall when the film came out it was originally slated for UK release with
Steven Spielberg's 'E.T'. The official line from Amblin/Universal was that the
film wasn't ready in time. But that wasn't upheld by the British press, who
suggested they had passed on the toon because there were too many
similarities between the two tales. I distincitvely recall 'The Daily Mail'
printing a bold-typed article about Spielberg apparently 'running scared'
of the film, which was infintely superior to 'E.T.' - I've still got the
clipping somewhere...

See also: Bibliography - The Snowman
                Filmography - Father Christmas
                Bibiliography - All In A Day


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