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Ah Those Little Humans! [Ah ces p'tits humaines!]

Romaine Gautraut, 2019

In this musical tale, a polar bear tries to find solutions to the problems caused by melting ice caps. He seeks help from humans, but their solutions do not help him. The polar bear becomes increasingly desperate and angry, but the humans don’t like this, and cut off his head.

Please note that this film contains distressing content. Caution should be exhibited if showing to younger primary school pupils. In one scene, the polar bear is shown in a guillotine and the blade is released. In the next scene, the polar bear is shown sitting on his ice, next to his head. No blood is shown.

Clip Details

Genre: Fairytale, Musical

Country of Origin: France

Medium/Content: 3D Animation, Colour, Sound

Clip Length: 03:40

Age Group: P5-P7, P1-P4

Classroom Activities

  • Why are humans referred to as ‘little’ in the title?
  • How does colour help tell the story?
  • The filmmaker plays with scale for effect. What is the effect of the size of the human hands in comparison to the polar bear? What is the effect of the size of the bear in comparison to its habitat? How does the composition of the shots fit into this (e.g. at 01:02 and 02:24)?
  • How does the music help to make the beheading scene more shocking?
  • The polar bear does not die, despite being beheaded. Is this a happy ending then?
  • What is the filmmaker’s message?
  • Consider other films and stories which deal with environmental issues, either explicitly or implicitly (e.g. ‘FernGully’, ‘The Lorax’, ‘WALL-E’). What do they have in common with this film? What are the differences?
  • The film puts the polar bear in the role of rebel or revolutionary, and humans in the role of tyrannical ruler. What other films feature this sort of relationship? How do they usually end? Is this borne out in history?
  • The film features an animal who cannot speak for itself. Write a voiceover from the point of view of the polar bear, trying to persuade humans to live sustainably.

Clip Details

Genre: Fairytale, Musical

Country of Origin: France

Medium/Content: 3D Animation, Colour, Sound

Clip Length: 03:40

Education Level: First Level