Beauty and the Bear

The story of a young noble who is transformed into a polar bear by wicked magic is one of the most popular fairy tales in Norway. In 2024, Mikkel Sandemose directed The Polar Bear Prince, a 2D animated feature film based on the story. It went on to be a very popular film in Norway. So why are we talking about it now? While the film has been available for a while in Norwegian with English subtitles, now there’s an English dub version making the rounds. “The fearless, curious and adventurous Liv dreams of leaving her home in the village. She only truly feels like herself when exploring in the woods. One day, when she encounters a mysterious white bear, a friendship emerges and a powerful bond begins to form between the pair. Soon, Liv discovers that her new friend was once cursed by a witch.” Distribution is spotty, but there’s talk of it having a theatrical release in North America. We’ll keep you posted. (Fun fact: In 1991 Ola Solum directed The Polar Bear King, a live-action movie based on the same story.)

image c. 2026 Vivi Films