The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse (film) facts for kids
Quick facts for kids The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse |
|
|---|---|
.png)
Official release poster
|
|
| Directed by |
|
| Produced by |
|
| Screenplay by |
|
| Starring |
|
| Music by | Isobel Waller-Bridge |
| Editing by | Aidan Bennett |
| Studio |
|
| Distributed by |
|
| Release date(s) | 24 December 2022 (United Kingdom) 25 December 2022 (United States) |
| Running time | 34 minutes |
| Country |
|
| Language | English |
The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse is a heartwarming animated short film from 2022. It was directed by Peter Baynton and Charlie Mackesy. Jon Croker and Mackesy wrote the story, which is based on Mackesy's popular 2019 book. The film features the voices of Jude Coward Nicoll, Gabriel Byrne, Idris Elba, and Tom Hollander. They voice the four main characters.
In early 2020, the book became a bestseller. Many producers wanted to make it into a movie. Cara Speller got the rights to the story. She worked with Matthew Freud to produce the film. They created NoneMore Productions for this project. J. J. Abrams also helped produce it through his company, Bad Robot Productions. The animation was created remotely during the COVID-19 pandemic. Over 120 people from more than 20 countries worked on the film. The book's drawings looked loose and unfinished. The animation team wanted to keep this style. They used pencil ink for the characters. The backgrounds looked like watercolor paintings.
The Boy, the Mole, the Fox and the Horse was released in the United Kingdom. It showed on BBC One and BBC iPlayer on December 24, 2022. In other countries, it was available on Apple TV+ on December 25, 2022. Critics loved the film. It won the Best Animated Short Film at the 95th Academy Awards. It also won the Best Short Animation at the 76th British Academy Film Awards.
Contents
Story of Friendship and Home
The film begins with the Boy lost in a snowy forest. He meets the friendly Mole, who offers to help him. The Boy is looking for a home, which he has never had. He also hopes to grow up to be a kind person. As they explore, they find a river. They decide to follow it, hoping to find a town.
Meeting New Friends
A hungry Fox starts hunting them. The Boy and Mole hide in a tree until the Fox leaves. Later, they hear the Fox in trouble. They find him caught in a trap. The Fox threatens the Mole, but the kind Mole frees him. The Fox leaves, feeling ashamed. The next morning, the Mole accidentally falls into the river. The Fox chases after him. The Boy worries, but the Fox saves the Mole. The Boy and Mole continue their journey. The Fox follows them from a distance.
Eventually, they meet the Horse. The Horse feels like an outcast from other horses. The group quickly becomes friends. They explore important ideas like kindness and understanding. The Boy later sees village lights. He hopes he is close to finding a home. But the next day, the village is gone.
A Special Horse
The Horse then shares a secret. He is actually a pegasus, a winged horse. This made other horses jealous. But his new friends accept him just as he is. The group flies together on the Horse's back. They search for the village again. The friends say goodbye to the Boy. But he decides not to go to the village. He realizes that home is wherever his loved ones are. The friends stay together, looking up at the stars.
Meet the Voice Cast
- Jude Coward Nicoll as The Boy
- Gabriel Byrne as The Horse
- Idris Elba as The Fox
- Tom Hollander as The Mole
Making the Film
How the Idea Started
"We’ve had different forms of hardness, you know, whether it’s pandemic and isolation or whether it’s economic I think everyone’s just feeling exhausted. It seems to me that if we’ve ever needed kindness, we need it now. And I don’t think there’s any human on Earth who couldn’t use a bit more kindness or comfort or hope or a healing. It was lovely to read from people’s messages during the pandemic about the book and I hope that film can do something similar in this time."
In 2019, Charlie Mackesy published his illustrated book. It was based on sketches he shared on Instagram. These sketches showed conversations between a boy, a mole, a fox, and a horse. The book became a huge success. Over 250,000 copies were sold by early 2020. Many producers wanted to turn it into a full-length movie. But producers Cara Speller and Matthew Freud asked him to make an animated short film instead.
Cara Speller found the book and loved it. She felt it had great potential for a movie. She contacted Mackesy and Freud to discuss a short film. Speller believed it was important for Charlie Mackesy to be central to the film's creation. She said he had strong instincts about what works. Speller and Freud started NoneMore Productions to fund the film. J. J. Abrams and Woody Harrelson also joined as producers. Speller found it interesting that Mackesy learned more about his own characters while making the film.
Peter Baynton directed the film. Jon Croker co-wrote the script. Jude Coward Nicoll, Gabriel Byrne, Idris Elba, and Tom Hollander voiced the characters. Finding the right voice for the Boy was tricky. Jude Coward Nicoll was new to acting. He was chosen from 300 people who auditioned. The team wanted a voice that sounded fragile and vulnerable. They wanted listeners to feel protective of the Boy. Baynton noted a lovely connection between Nicoll's and Hollander's voices. Even though they recorded separately, it felt like they were together.
Animation and Art Style
The film had a large international team. Over 120 to 150 people from more than 20 countries worked on it. Production started during the COVID-19 pandemic. This meant everyone had to work from their homes. Speller said they looked for the most talented artists. Their location didn't matter. She called it an amazing effort. Mackesy felt making the film was very moving. He said it was a journey of kindness and friendship.
Baynton explained that Charlie's drawings are very detailed. Even though he draws quickly, he knows animal and human anatomy well. The challenge was to turn these drawings into hand-drawn animation. They wanted to show subtle emotions through the characters. Mackesy's style was loose and unfinished. So, the animators drew characters with pencil lines. Then they added loose ink to give them shape. The backgrounds looked like hand-painted watercolors. This matched Mackesy's original art.
The animation team worked closely on character models. They were led by Tim Watts, Gabriele Zucchelli, Setareh Erfan, and Mike McCain. During the art and storyboard process, artists were encouraged to use a looser inking style. Baynton also talked about the character designs. He noted the realistic Horse, Fox, and Boy. Then there was the Mole, who looked different. He was small and graphic, like a "little doorstop." This contrast was charming. For animation, they kept the realistic look for the Boy, Fox, and Horse. The Mole had a bolder, more animated style.
The Film's Music
Isobel Waller-Bridge created the film's music. She said the music came from Charlie Mackesy's energy. It also came from the book's material. She listened to Charlie and how he saw the world. She paid attention to why he made the book and film. The music was an extension of that energy. The choice of instruments, like the piano, was very important. Many of these choices came from Charlie himself.
The sound design and music were created at the same time. The score was even written before the film was finished. The orchestra parts were played by the BBC Concert Orchestra. Geoff Alexander conducted them. An 18-track album of Waller-Bridge's music was released. It came out on December 23, 2022, by Sony Masterworks.
Film Release
In October 2022, it was announced that Apple Studios would distribute the film. It would be an Apple Original Film worldwide. The only exception was the United Kingdom. There, the BBC released it. Two trailers were released on December 9 and December 12, 2022. A two-minute clip was shown on Collider on December 21. The short film first premiered on BBC One and BBC iPlayer on December 24, 2022. It then streamed globally on Apple TV+ the next day.
