Sheep and Wolves
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''Sheep and Wolves'' (russian: Волки и овцы: бе-е-е-зумное превращение, lit=Wolves and Sheep: Cra-a-a-zy Transformation, translit=Volki i ovtsy. Be-e-e-zumnoe prevrashchenie) is a 2016 Russian
computer-animated Computer animation is the process used for digitally generating animations. The more general term computer-generated imagery (CGI) encompasses both static scenes ( still images) and dynamic images (moving images), while computer animation refe ...
fantasy
comedy Comedy is a genre of fiction that consists of discourses or works intended to be humorous or amusing by inducing laughter, especially in theatre, film, stand-up comedy, television, radio, books, or any other entertainment medium. The term o ...
film, directed by Andrey Galat and Maxim Volkov. The original story, Wizart Animation's first, contains elements of the fairy tale ''
The Wolf and the Seven Young Goats "The Wolf and the Seven Young Goats" (german: Der Wolf und die sieben jungen Geißlein) is a fairy tale collected by the Brothers Grimm and published in Grimm's Fairy Tales (KHM 5). It is of Aarne-Thompson type 123. The tale has obvious resemblan ...
'' and the concepts of a
wolf in sheep's clothing A wolf in sheep's clothing is an idiom of Biblical origin used to describe those playing a role contrary to their real character with whom contact is dangerous, particularly false teachers. Much later, the idiom has been applied by zoologists to v ...
. It is about a carefree wolf who likes to hunt sheep, but one day finds that he has been magically transformed into a sheep himself. The film was directed by Andrey Galat and Maksim Volkov, with Wizart and CTB Film Company as joint production partners. Although critical reactions were mostly positive in its native country, the film received generally negative reviews elsewhere, with the script, plot, characterizations and lore being heavily criticized; though the animation received some praise. It won the Golden Unicorn Award for best animation film, the Grand Prix from the Seoul Guro International Kids Films Festival and the
Catalina Film Festival The Catalina Film Festival is an annual event that takes place at the end of September on Catalina Island, situated in Los Angeles County within the city of Avalon, California. Founded by Festival Director on Truppa Catalina is known as "Hollywo ...
Crystal Trophy. Despite the film's poor reception and disappointing box office performance, a theatrical sequel titled '' Sheep and Wolves: Pig Deal'', was released in 2019.


Plot

A sheep named Ziko is attempting to document the outdoor wildlife, when he stumbles upon the wolf Grey, and flees screaming back to his village of sheep, located near a newly arrived pack of wolves in the
ravine A ravine is a landform that is narrower than a canyon and is often the product of streambank erosion.potion A potion () is a liquid "that contains medicine, poison, or something that is supposed to have magic powers.” It derives from the Latin word ''potus'' which referred to a drink or drinking. The term philtre is also used, often specifically ...
, which he hopes will make him change so Bianca will love him again. However, the potion transforms him into a ram. Fleeing from his former pack mates, Grey gets knocked out, only to wake up in the sheep village under Lyra's care. Grey struggles to cope with being a ram. At first, he tries to convince himself that he's only dreaming, but accepts the truth, until he remembers that it was Mami who gave him a potion. Finding the gypsy camp deserted, he returns to the sheep village. The wolf pack believes that Grey ran away, scared to fight Ragear. The next morning, Grey is invited by Shia and the talkative Moz to attend the tournament. When Grey finds himself fighting the champion Louis the Fierce, he resorts to biting, which angers everyone. Grey soon earns the friendship of the herd afterwards when he protects Lyra and Shia from two wolves. At a welcome party, Grey foolishly inspires Shia to go fight wolves, but the lamb is captured by Ragear, after witnessing him murder Magra and take over the wolf pack. Grey and Moz rescue Shia, but Ragear is informed that Grey has been turned into a ram. He incites the pack to kill all the sheep in the village. Feeling lonely, Grey returns to the mountains, where he encounters Bianca, who tells him of Ragear's takeover and Magra's death (though unaware that Ragear killed him). He is photographed by Ziko, who then informs the village that Grey is a spy for the wolves. Grey furiously leaves the village, but Shia recognises him as the wolf who spared his life in the meadow. Grey nevertheless leaves, until he is discovered by Mami. The hare informs him that the wolf pack will attack the village, but Grey can transform back to a wolf if he reaches a certain tree by noon the following day. Grey nevertheless returns to the village to warn the flock. He encourages them to fight back. The next morning, the wolf pack is thwarted by various traps and defences, until they chase the sheep into a cave, only to be sealed inside with water flooding in. Not wishing his pack to drown, Grey saves the pack, only for Ragear to seize Shia. The lamb reveals that Ragear was responsible for Magra's death, and Grey challenges Ragear to a fight for leadership. Mami and Bianca arrives to give Grey the potion to turn him back to a wolf, but nothing happens. Continuing to fight Ragear, Grey is brutally attacked and buried under a pile of rocks, only to emerge as a wolf, sending Ragear falling over a waterfall. Humbled and having learned maturity while as a ram, Grey proposes to Bianca and they are married in the sheep village, the wolf pack and the sheep herd living together in peace. Nearby, Mami explains that the potion she and Bianca gave Grey was just
spring water A spring is a point of exit at which groundwater from an aquifer flows out on top of Earth's crust (pedosphere) and becomes surface water. It is a component of the hydrosphere. Springs have long been important for humans as a source of fresh w ...
, and his transformation came from having learned responsibility. She looks on as the village of sheep and wolves celebrate their new united community.


Cast


Wolves

* Alexander Petrov (Russian) and
Tom Felton Thomas Andrew Felton (born 22 September 1987) is an English actor best known for playing Draco Malfoy in the film adaptations of the ''Harry Potter'' fantasy novels by J. K. Rowling. Born in Surrey, Felton began appearing in commercials and ...
(English dub) as Grey. :Grey was Petrov's first voice role, and he had considered leaving the film after his first recording takes for the character were unsuccessful. However, he was persuaded by director Maxim Volkov to keep practicing his voice talent and started enjoying working for the film."ВОЛКИ И ОВЦЫ: бе-е-е-зумное превращение"
(PDF) (in Russian). СТВ. p. 3. Retrieved 18 July 2017.
*
Elizaveta Boyarskaya Elizaveta Mikhailovna Boyarskaya (russian: Елизаве́та Миха́йловна Боя́рская, born 20 December 1985) is a Russian theater and film actress. Biography Early life and education Elizaveta was born on 20 December 1985 ...
(Russian) and
Ruby Rose Ruby Rose Langenheim (born 20 March 1986) is an Australian model, actress, disc jockey and television presenter. Rose was a presenter on MTV Australia (2007–2011), followed by several high-profile modelling gigs, including Maybelline New York ...
(English dub) as Bianca. :Bianca went through the most re-drawings, sketches and 3D models out of all the film's characters. The designers intended to achieve a "pretty" and "decisive" style for her. The character was originally planned to have light skin, but the final result for her was a wolf with darker blue fur given the light color "looked bad" with Grey. As Boyarskaya explained, considering that Bianca was "so beautiful", she had to speak her lines at a much higher pitch than she was comfortable with, which caused her to "almost reak hervoice."СТВ. p. 7. *
Sergey Bezrukov Sergey Vitalyevich Bezrukov (russian: link=no, Серге́й Вита́льевич Безру́ков, born 18 October 1973) is a Soviet and Russian film and stage actor, singer, People's Artist of Russia, the laureate of the State Prize of th ...
(Russian) and
Jim Cummings James Jonah Cummings (born November 3, 1952) is an American voice actor. Since beginning his career in the 1980s, he has appeared in almost 400 roles. Cummings has frequently worked with The Walt Disney Company and Warner Bros., including as th ...
(English dub) as Magra. *Andrey Barkhudarov (Russian) and Rich Orlow (English dub) as Ragear. * Yuriy Tarasov (Russian) and
Thomas Ian Nicholas Thomas Ian Nicholas (born July 10, 1980) is an American film actor, film producer and singer. Nicholas is best known for playing Henry Rowengartner in '' Rookie of the Year'', Walt Disney in ''Walt Before Mickey'' and Kevin Myers in the ''Ameri ...
(English dub) as Skinny and Yuri Menshagin (Russian) and
Lex Lang Lex Lang (born November 12, 1965) is an American voice actor and voice director, who has provided voices and served as a director for a number of animations and video games. He is best known for voicing Doctor Neo Cortex in the ''Crash Bandicoo ...
(English dub) as Hobbler, the comic relief duo of the wolf pack. *Kseniya Bolshakova (Russian) and
Alyson Leigh Rosenfeld Alyson Leigh Rosenfeld (born March 21, 1987) is an American stage and voice actress, best known for voicing Bonnie, Nurse Joy, and Sophocles in the ''Pokémon'' anime and Rio on '' Yu-Gi-Oh! Zexal''. Early life Alyson Leigh Rosenfeld was born ...
(English dub) as Sarabi and Ekaterina Afrikantova (Russian) and
Emily Bauer Emily Bauer Jenness is an American voice and stage actress. She has worked in a number of English language dubs of Japanese anime shows including Shinobu in '' Ninja Nonsense'', Megumi Morisato in '' Ah! My Goddess'' and Lastelle in '' Nausica ...
(English dub) as Leah (both uncredited), two of Bianca's friends.


Sheep

* Katia Iowa (Russian) and
China Anne McClain China Anne McClain (born August 25, 1998) is an American actress and singer. McClain's career began when she was seven years old, portraying Alexis in the film ''The Gospel'' (2005), and then China James in '' Daddy's Little Girls'' (2007). Sh ...
(English dub) as Lyra, a ewe with red curly hair who runs a hair salon. : Iowa and McClain also sang the film's theme song "Raised High." * Yuriy Galtsev (Russian) and
Ross Marquand Roscoe Wayne Marquand (born August 22, 1981) is an American actor. He has played Aaron on the television series '' The Walking Dead'' since 2015, Red Skull and Ultron in various projects connected to the Marvel Cinematic Universe, and has voice ...
(English dub) as Ziko, a neurotic photographer ram. *Diomid Vinogradov (Russian) and
Peter Linz Peter Linz (born June 28, 1967) is an American puppeteer. His most prominent role is being the performer for the character Walter who was introduced in the 2011 feature film ''The Muppets''. Since 1991, Linz has performed on ''Sesame Street'', ...
(English dub) as Moz, a talkative, socially awkward ram in love with Lyra. * Andrey Rozhkov (
Russian Russian(s) refers to anything related to Russia, including: *Russians (, ''russkiye''), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries *Rossiyane (), Russian language term for all citizens and peo ...
) and Cummings (English dub) as Klif, a seagull pretending to be a sheep. * Nikita Prozorovskiy (Russian) and
Tyler Bunch Tyler Bunch, also known as H.D. Quinn, is an American puppeteer, puppet designer, director, and actor. Career In addition to his work for the Jim Henson Company, Bunch has created and performed puppets for PBS, Nickelodeon and Disney's Th ...
(English dub) as Belgur, the superstitious, aged leader of the sheep village. *Aleksandr Noskov (Russian) and
Jim Cummings James Jonah Cummings (born November 3, 1952) is an American voice actor. Since beginning his career in the 1980s, he has appeared in almost 400 roles. Cummings has frequently worked with The Walt Disney Company and Warner Bros., including as th ...
(English dub) as Baron, Mami's gypsy partner and entertainer rabbit. *
Ekaterina Semyonova Ekaterina Semenova (Russian: Екатерина Семёновна Семёнова; 18 November 1786–13 March 1849) was an actress in the Russian Empire. Life Semenova became a student in the Saint Petersburg Theatre School in 1790 where she wa ...
(Russian) and
Alyson Leigh Rosenfeld Alyson Leigh Rosenfeld (born March 21, 1987) is an American stage and voice actress, best known for voicing Bonnie, Nurse Joy, and Sophocles in the ''Pokémon'' anime and Rio on '' Yu-Gi-Oh! Zexal''. Early life Alyson Leigh Rosenfeld was born ...
(English dub) as Shia, Lyra's mischievous younger brother. *Irina Vilenkina (Russian) and
Sarah Natochenny Sarah Natochenny (born September 20, 1987) is an American voice actress and film editor. She is best known for voicing Ash Ketchum and various other characters in the English dub of ''Pokémon'' since 2006, as well as Alicia in the 2006 video game ...
(English dub) as Xavi. *Eduard Dvinskikh (Russian) and Marc Thompson (English dub) as Ike, a gluttonous but good-natured ram. * Dmitriy Filimonov (Russian) and
JB Blanc Jean-Benoît Blanc is a French-British actor and director of film and television who has worked on animations and video games in Los Angeles. Early life Blanc was born in Paris, the son of an English people, English mother and a French people, ...
(English dub) as Louis, dubbed "King Louis the Fierce", the much-adored Horns & Hooves Tournament fighting champion.


Other animals

* Tatyana Shitova (Russian) and Jennie Grace (English dub) as Mami, a gypsy jackrabbit. *Oleg Morozov (Russian) and
Tyler Bunch Tyler Bunch, also known as H.D. Quinn, is an American puppeteer, puppet designer, director, and actor. Career In addition to his work for the Jim Henson Company, Bunch has created and performed puppets for PBS, Nickelodeon and Disney's Th ...
(English dub) as Bucho, an ox living in the sheep village.


Concept

The story of ''Sheep and Wolves'' is loosely based on the elements of the German fairy tale ''
The Wolf and the Seven Young Kids "The Wolf and the Seven Young Goats" (german: Der Wolf und die sieben jungen Geißlein) is a fairy tale collected by the Brothers Grimm and published in Grimm's Fairy Tales (KHM 5). It is of Aarne-Thompson type 123. The tale has obvious resembla ...
'' and the concepts of a
wolf in sheep's clothing A wolf in sheep's clothing is an idiom of Biblical origin used to describe those playing a role contrary to their real character with whom contact is dangerous, particularly false teachers. Much later, the idiom has been applied by zoologists to v ...
. Director Maksim Volkov explained that the staff at Wizart conceived a film of showcasing these ideas using a body-exchange story formula used in many popular comedy stories, describing it as a "funny and kind" idea to show to all viewers.СТВ. p. 4. The film features messages about friendship and how to properly deal with another group of people.CTB p. 4–5. Volkov described the sheep in the film as
elves An elf () is a type of humanoid supernatural being in Germanic mythology and folklore. Elves appear especially in North Germanic mythology. They are subsequently mentioned in Snorri Sturluson's Icelandic Prose Edda. He distinguishes "ligh ...
or
hobbit Hobbits are a fictional race of people in the novels of J. R. R. Tolkien. About half average human height, Tolkien presented hobbits as a variety of humanity, or close relatives thereof. Occasionally known as halflings in Tolkien's writings, ...
s and the wolves as warlike nomads: "It was important for us to create a contrast, since the protagonist turns from a wolf into a ram, and therefore acquires the qualities of another 'person' and loses traits peculiar to wolves." According to a writer for ''
Expert An expert is somebody who has a broad and deep understanding and competence in terms of knowledge, skill and experience through practice and education in a particular field. Informally, an expert is someone widely recognized as a reliable s ...
'' magazine, many film viewers noticed similarities between the plots of ''Sheep and Wolves'' and another Russian animated film that was released in Russian theaters in March 2016 named ''
Kikoriki ''Kikoriki'', known in the United States as ''GoGoRiki'' or ''BalloonToons'' and in Russia as ''Smeshariki'' (russian: Смешарики), is a Russian animated television series consisting of 307 episodes of 6 minutes and 30 seconds each, aime ...
: Legend of the Golden Dragon'' (2017). The film involves its protagonist Barash transforming into a caterpillar by wearing a helmet invented by a scientist at Kikoriki Island. The ''Expert'' journalist noted identical messages between the two films about a person not being himself to the point of not recognizing who he really is. The only difference these two films was the relationship aspects between characters. As the journalist analyzed, "Unlike the Smeshariki, where the personal relationships between the almost sexless heroes have already been established, the Romantic line is clearly drawn in the ''Wolves and Sheep'': the main character-Grey the wolf is not very clever trying to attract the attention of the wolf Bianca - this is one of the obstacles that he has to overcome in a duel with himself." The main characters in the film - wolves and sheep aren't completely animals. Instead the animators humanized them into anthropomorphic characters. The civilized animal characters live in a utopian forest society where they walk on hind legs. The sheep are depicted at the highest rung in the civilization ladder who live in houses and use industrial society household items. The animators presented the setting as a typical evergreen forest in
Central Russia Central Russia is, broadly, the various areas in European Russia. Historically, the area of Central Russia varied based on the purpose for which it is being used. It may, for example, refer to European Russia (except the North Caucasus and ...
although there are exotic elements added such as elephants as a reference to ''
The Elephants ''The Elephants'' ( es, Los Elefantes) is a 1948 painting by the Spanish surrealist artist Salvador Dalí. Background The elephant is a recurring theme in the works of Dalí, first appearing in his 1944 work '' Dream Caused by the Flight of a Be ...
'' by
Salvador Dalí Salvador Domingo Felipe Jacinto Dalí i Domènech, Marquess of Dalí of Púbol (; ; ; 11 May 190423 January 1989) was a Spanish Surrealism, surrealist artist renowned for his technical skill, precise draftsmanship, and the striking and bizarr ...
.


Production


Development

Wizart Animation began working on the ''Sheep and Wolves'' ever since 2012. The film was Wizart's first original story. The film became a joint venture between Wizart and CTB Film Company. Sergey Selyanov of CTB Film Company, took part in producing the film. The film was the directorial debut of Andrey Galat and Maksim Volkov. American scriptwriter Neil Landau ( ''Don’t Tell Mom the Babysitter’s Dead'', ''
Tad, the Lost Explorer ''Tad, the Lost Explorer'' (Spanish: ''Las aventuras de Tadeo Jones'') is a 2012 Spanish 3D computer-animated adventure comedy film directed by Enrique Gato. The film is a spinoff of Gato's 2004 short film, ''Tadeo Jones'' and its sequel '' Tade ...
'') joined the script-writing team that included "Sugar, 1 kg" (''
Yolki ''Yolki'' (russian: Ёлки, meaning '' New Year Trees''), also known as ''Six Degrees of Celebration'', is a 2010 Russian comedy film directed by Timur Bekmambetov. As of 2021, eight films have been made in the series. It is the most successful ...
'') as well as Maksim Sveshnikov ( ''Dobrynya and The Dragon'', ''The Snow Queen'') who adapted the classic story of a wolf in sheep's clothing theme into a full-fledged comedy film. The writers presented an innovative new approach when drawing inspiration from the source material. This time they presented the
big bad wolf The Big Bad Wolf is a fictional wolf appearing in several cautionary tales that include some of ''Grimms' Fairy Tales.'' Versions of this character have appeared in numerous works, and it has become a generic archetype of a menacing predatory a ...
as a protagonist. The writers noted wolves and sheep are irreconcilable enemies. They presented how warring factions must find common ground with each other evoking another theme of friendship especially described between the characters interactions of Bianca and Lyra. The peaceful sheep society resembles a civilization similar to the
Roman civilization The history of Rome includes the history of the Rome, city of Rome as well as the Ancient Rome, civilisation of ancient Rome. Roman history has been influential on the modern world, especially in the history of the Catholic Church, and Roman la ...
. The society suddenly finds themselves confronting a barbaric wolf clan. The idea is similar to the plot in the Franco-Belgian comic book series ''
Asterix ''Asterix'' or ''The Adventures of Asterix'' (french: Astérix or , "Asterix the Gaul") is a ''bande dessinée'' comic book series about a village of indomitable Gaulish warriors who adventure around the world and fight the Roman Republic, wi ...
''. The script played with philosophical arguments such as
sanctity of life In religion and ethics, the inviolability of life, or sanctity of life, is a principle of implied protection regarding aspects of sentient life that are said to be holy, sacred, or otherwise of such value that they are not to be violated. This ca ...
. The speeches of the wolf leader characters of the wolf pack parallel the rhetoric of politicians in human history that aligns with modern realities. The film portrayed the character Magra as a wise leader of the wolf pack who defends the laws of his ancestors and teaches other wolves to live in harmony with nature: "We do not hunt for sport. We catch only what we need to survive. Every life is sacred. A leader that doesn't respect the laws of our ancestors will bring death to the pack." The inviolability of life, "only taking as much food as they need to eat and never killing for the sake of killing alone" is explored by the character Ragear who is portrayed in the film as the new successor of the wolf pack who wants to hunt the sheep with a
laissez-faire ''Laissez-faire'' ( ; from french: laissez faire , ) is an economic system in which transactions between private groups of people are free from any form of economic interventionism (such as subsidies) deriving from special interest groups. ...
mentality making the
sacrosanct Sacrosanctity was the declaration of physical inviolability of a temple, a sacred object, or a person through the ''lex sacrata'' (sacred law), which had religious connotations. Festus explained that: “Sacred laws are laws which have the sanction ...
laws of the character Magra and the ancestors void. The film will present Grey, the main character among this struggle, who is portrayed as a second in command intended on persuading the wolf clan to follow the principles of democracy. ''Sheep and Wolves'' took five years to make. The film went through around three months of pre-production and was noteworthy for its international collaboration from several nations such as New Zealand, India and United States production companies. On 5 November 2014, the
American Film Market The American Film Market (AFM) is a film industry event held each year in early November. Historically, more than 7,000 people attend the eight-day annual event to network and to sell, finance and acquire films. Participants come from more than ...
hosted the film's exhibition. There the film signed to be released to the cinemas in Australia. The largest international market for audiovisual content,
MIPCOM MIPCOM (Marché International des Programmes de Communication, English: International Market of Communications Programmes) is an annual trade show held in the French town of Cannes, traditionally in the month of October and running for 4 days. It ...
, held in
Cannes Cannes ( , , ; oc, Canas) is a city located on the French Riviera. It is a communes of France, commune located in the Alpes-Maritimes departments of France, department, and host city of the annual Cannes Film Festival, Midem, and Cannes Lions I ...
from 5 to 8 October 2015 hosted the presentation of the film. Russian newspapers ''
TASS The Russian News Agency TASS (russian: Информацио́нное аге́нтство Росси́и ТАСС, translit=Informatsionnoye agentstvo Rossii, or Information agency of Russia), abbreviated TASS (russian: ТАСС, label=none) ...
'' and ''
Izvestia ''Izvestia'' ( rus, Известия, p=ɪzˈvʲesʲtʲɪjə, "The News") is a daily broadsheet newspaper in Russia. Founded in 1917, it was a newspaper of record in the Soviet Union until the Soviet Union's dissolution in 1991, and describes ...
'' included ''Sheep and Wolves'' in the top ten most anticipated films of 2016.
Cartoon Brew Cartoon Brew is an animation news website created by Amid Amidi and animation historian Jerry Beck that was launched in 2004. Cartoon Dump It also created ''Cartoon Dump'', a weekly podcast showing poorly made TV cartoons featuring ''Mystery Sc ...
labelled the film in its catalog of "Animated Feature Films to Look for in 2016." An acclaimed cast was announced from both Russian and international versions. The film starred Alexander Petrov ( ''Attraction'') as Grey,
Elizaveta Boyarskaya Elizaveta Mikhailovna Boyarskaya (russian: Елизаве́та Миха́йловна Боя́рская, born 20 December 1985) is a Russian theater and film actress. Biography Early life and education Elizaveta was born on 20 December 1985 ...
() as Bianca,
Sergey Bezrukov Sergey Vitalyevich Bezrukov (russian: link=no, Серге́й Вита́льевич Безру́ков, born 18 October 1973) is a Soviet and Russian film and stage actor, singer, People's Artist of Russia, the laureate of the State Prize of th ...
(''
The Ballad of Uhlans ''The Ballad of Uhlans'' (''Уланская баллада'') is a 2012 Russian historical adventure film directed by Oleg Fesenko, and stars Sergei Bezrukov, Anna Chipovskaya, Anton Sokolov and Vladimir Gostyukhin. ''The Ballad of Uhlans'' was ...
'') as Magra, Andrey Rozhkov () as Seagull, Yuri Galtsev ( ''Rzhevsky Versus Napoleo''n) as Zico, and singer Katia Iowa as Lyra. Todd Resnick of ''The Voice Company'', in
Burbank, California Burbank is a city in the southeastern end of the San Fernando Valley in Los Angeles County, California, United States. Located northwest of downtown Los Angeles, Burbank has a population of 107,337. The city was named after David Burbank, w ...
. was announced as voice director who picked the international cast that included
Tom Felton Thomas Andrew Felton (born 22 September 1987) is an English actor best known for playing Draco Malfoy in the film adaptations of the ''Harry Potter'' fantasy novels by J. K. Rowling. Born in Surrey, Felton began appearing in commercials and ...
(Draco Malfoy- ''
Harry Potter ''Harry Potter'' is a series of seven fantasy literature, fantasy novels written by British author J. K. Rowling. The novels chronicle the lives of a young Magician (fantasy), wizard, Harry Potter (character), Harry Potter, and his friends ...
'') as Grey the wolf,
Ruby Rose Ruby Rose Langenheim (born 20 March 1986) is an Australian model, actress, disc jockey and television presenter. Rose was a presenter on MTV Australia (2007–2011), followed by several high-profile modelling gigs, including Maybelline New York ...
as Bianca, and
China Anne McClain China Anne McClain (born August 25, 1998) is an American actress and singer. McClain's career began when she was seven years old, portraying Alexis in the film ''The Gospel'' (2005), and then China James in '' Daddy's Little Girls'' (2007). Sh ...
as Lyra. For the
Bulgarian Bulgarian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the country of Bulgaria * Bulgarians, a South Slavic ethnic group * Bulgarian language, a Slavic language * Bulgarian alphabet * A citizen of Bulgaria, see Demographics of Bulgaria * Bul ...
voice cast, singers and actors performed including Raffi Boghosian, Michael Filev, Joanna Dragneva ( bg) and Nencho Balabanov.


Animation

Animators used 3D
stereoscopy Stereoscopy (also called stereoscopics, or stereo imaging) is a technique for creating or enhancing the illusion of depth in an image by means of stereopsis for binocular vision. The word ''stereoscopy'' derives . Any stereoscopic image is ...
art for the sheep and wolves characters of the film. The animation department's most complex assignment was having to deal with controlling the wool for the characters.CTB p. 5–6. Volkov explained that "working with wool took a lot of time and became a serious test of the professionalism of our animators." The characters with "straight" hair had only two layers of fur, while figures with woolly hair was made up of many layers. Thus, the scenes that regard the wolf pack were produced first.CTB p. 6. The amount of wool a character had in each shot was determined by their distance from the camera in order to achieve an "organic" look. Volkov described the tournament scene, with consisted of 1,300 sheep figures, as the most difficult to animate. The smoothness of Cliff's feather was another part of the animation labeled by the Volkov as hard to work with. All of the animators watched animal behavior and nature as reference to make the film look realistic. Programmers from Ireland were hired to convey naturalistic plant and tree growth by analyzing time lapse videos of plant germination. Translations also presented a challenge because the comedic lines had the potential to be misinterpreted.


Soundtrack

Composer Alexandre Lessertisseur, who has previously worked on such films as ''Glacé'' and ''Manon, 20 Years'' orchestrated the original score. The film's audio production took place in New Zealand and Scotland. The theme song ''"''Raised High" were performed by Katia Iowa for the Russian release and by
China Anne McClain China Anne McClain (born August 25, 1998) is an American actress and singer. McClain's career began when she was seven years old, portraying Alexis in the film ''The Gospel'' (2005), and then China James in '' Daddy's Little Girls'' (2007). Sh ...
for the international release. In July 2016, the score was nominated for the ''Jerry Goldsmith Awards'' in the category "best score for a full-length film."


Cultural references

''Sheep and Wolves'' features references to several films and media: *The wolf and sheep groups are a reference to the
Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a letter ...
and
Gaul Gaul ( la, Gallia) was a region of Western Europe first described by the Romans. It was inhabited by Celtic and Aquitani tribes, encompassing present-day France, Belgium, Luxembourg, most of Switzerland, parts of Northern Italy (only during ...
groups in the comic book series ''
Asterix ''Asterix'' or ''The Adventures of Asterix'' (french: Astérix or , "Asterix the Gaul") is a ''bande dessinée'' comic book series about a village of indomitable Gaulish warriors who adventure around the world and fight the Roman Republic, wi ...
'' *Grey's species transformation references Queen Elinor turning into a bear after eating a cake in the film '' Brave'' (2012) *''Weburg'' described a scene from the film as a reference to '' 300'' (2007), the wolves of the film being similar to
Persians The Persians are an Iranian ethnic group who comprise over half of the population of Iran. They share a common cultural system and are native speakers of the Persian language as well as of the languages that are closely related to Persian. ...
*Klif the seagull is a reference to seagull Scuttle in ''
The Little Mermaid "The Little Mermaid" ( da, Den lille havfrue) is a literary fairy tale written by the Danish author Hans Christian Andersen. The story follows the journey of a young mermaid who is willing to give up her life in the sea as a mermaid to gain a h ...
'' *Seagulls aerial attack on the wolves is a reference to the
Gwaihir In J. R. R. Tolkien's Middle-earth, the Eagles or Great Eagles, "The Council of Elrond", "Of the Ruin of Doriath" were immense birds that were sapient and could speak. The Great Eagles resembled actual eagles, but were much larger. Thorondor is s ...
eagle aerial battles in the ''
Lord of the Rings ''The Lord of the Rings'' is an epic high-fantasy novel by English author and scholar J. R. R. Tolkien. Set in Middle-earth, intended to be Earth at some time in the distant past, the story began as a sequel to Tolkien's 1937 children's boo ...
'' *References to ''
Hedgehog in the Fog ''Hedgehog in the Fog'' ( rus, Ёжик в тумане, r=Yózhik v tumáne, p=ˈjɵʐɨk f tʊˈmanʲɪ) is a 1975 Soviet animated film directed by Yuri Norstein and produced by the Soyuzmultfilm studio in Moscow. The Russian script was written ...
'' by
Yuri Norstein Yuri Borisovich Norstein, People's Artist of Russia, PAR (russian: link=no, Ю́рий Бори́сович Норште́йн; born 15 September 1941) is a Soviet and Russian animator best known for his animated shorts ''Hedgehog in the Fog'' an ...
as well as ''
The Elephants ''The Elephants'' ( es, Los Elefantes) is a 1948 painting by the Spanish surrealist artist Salvador Dalí. Background The elephant is a recurring theme in the works of Dalí, first appearing in his 1944 work '' Dream Caused by the Flight of a Be ...
'' by
Salvador Dalí Salvador Domingo Felipe Jacinto Dalí i Domènech, Marquess of Dalí of Púbol (; ; ; 11 May 190423 January 1989) was a Spanish Surrealism, surrealist artist renowned for his technical skill, precise draftsmanship, and the striking and bizarr ...
*When the hero voices through a helmet is a reference to
Darth Vader Darth Vader is a fictional character in the ''Star Wars'' franchise. The character is the central antagonist of the original trilogy and, as Anakin Skywalker, is one of the main protagonists in the prequel trilogy. ''Star Wars'' creator George ...
*References to ''
The Lion King ''The Lion King'' is a 1994 American animated musical drama film produced by Walt Disney Feature Animation and released by Walt Disney Pictures. The 32nd Disney animated feature film and the fifth produced during the Disney Renaissance, it ...
''


Release


Theatrical

Wizart Animation revealed the opening of the film will be in April 2016 in the
Baltics The Baltic states, et, Balti riigid or the Baltic countries is a geopolitical term, which currently is used to group three countries: Estonia, Latvia, and Lithuania. All three countries are members of NATO, the European Union, the Eurozone, ...
and
Bulgaria Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Macedon ...
followed up with summer releases in
Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populous ...
,
Croatia , image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg , anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland") , image_map = , map_caption = , capit ...
,
Slovenia Slovenia ( ; sl, Slovenija ), officially the Republic of Slovenia (Slovene: , abbr.: ''RS''), is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the southeast, an ...
,
Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina ( sh, / , ), abbreviated BiH () or B&H, sometimes called Bosnia–Herzegovina and often known informally as Bosnia, is a country at the crossroads of south and southeast Europe, located in the Balkans. Bosnia and H ...
,
Serbia Serbia (, ; Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), officially the Republic of Serbia (Serbian language, Serbian: , , ), is a landlocked country in Southeast Europe, Southeastern and Central Europe, situated at the crossroads of the Pannonian Bas ...
,
Montenegro ) , image_map = Europe-Montenegro.svg , map_caption = , image_map2 = , capital = Podgorica , coordinates = , largest_city = capital , official_languages = M ...
, Macedonia,
Kosovo Kosovo ( sq, Kosova or ; sr-Cyrl, Косово ), officially the Republic of Kosovo ( sq, Republika e Kosovës, links=no; sr, Република Косово, Republika Kosovo, links=no), is a partially recognised state in Southeast Euro ...
and
Albania Albania ( ; sq, Shqipëri or ), or , also or . officially the Republic of Albania ( sq, Republika e Shqipërisë), is a country in Southeastern Europe. It is located on the Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea and shares ...
. ''Sheep and Wolves'' had a pre-release on 22 April 2016 in Romania. A pre-screening of ''Sheep and Wolves'' took place in the
Voronezh Voronezh ( rus, links=no, Воро́неж, p=vɐˈronʲɪʂ}) is a city and the administrative centre of Voronezh Oblast in southwestern Russia straddling the Voronezh River, located from where it flows into the Don River. The city sits on the ...
-based theater Star & Mlad on 23 April 2016. The government of Voronezh assisted in having children from eight boarding schools to attend the premiere. ''Sheep and Wolves'' was one of the most anticipated films in Russian cinema in 2016 according to
TASS The Russian News Agency TASS (russian: Информацио́нное аге́нтство Росси́и ТАСС, translit=Informatsionnoye agentstvo Rossii, or Information agency of Russia), abbreviated TASS (russian: ТАСС, label=none) ...
. ''Sheep and Wolves'' made its official Russian theatrical premiere on 28 April 2016. In the summer and autumn of 2016, the film released in more than forty countries, including Poland, Croatia and Slovenia. The film ran at the 2016
Russian Film Week Russian Film Week is an annual film festival in London founded in 2016 by Filip Perkon (Perkon Productions Ltd.) with a group of volunteers on a non-profit basis. It is currently the biggest Russian film and culture event outside of Russia. Fro ...
in
London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
. Festival director Filip Perkon said that animated films like ''Sheep and Wolves'' would be the easiest Russian films to reach audiences from across the globe. The cartoon was launched in cinemas in Italy on 17 November 2016. In Poland, the film was shown on 140 screens. ''Sheep and Wolves'' released in cinemas in Portugal (Lanterna de Pedra Filmes) on 5 January 2017. A special premiere was held at the westernmost point in Europe on Cape Rock. Following Portugal in early 2017, the story of Grey the wolf was seen by residents of three
Latin America Latin America or * french: Amérique Latine, link=no * ht, Amerik Latin, link=no * pt, América Latina, link=no, name=a, sometimes referred to as LatAm is a large cultural region in the Americas where Romance languages — languages derived f ...
n countries (
Colombia Colombia (, ; ), officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country in South America with insular regions in North America—near Nicaragua's Caribbean coast—as well as in the Pacific Ocean. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Car ...
,
Bolivia , image_flag = Bandera de Bolivia (Estado).svg , flag_alt = Horizontal tricolor (red, yellow, and green from top to bottom) with the coat of arms of Bolivia in the center , flag_alt2 = 7 × 7 square p ...
and
Ecuador Ecuador ( ; ; Quechua: ''Ikwayur''; Shuar: ''Ecuador'' or ''Ekuatur''), officially the Republic of Ecuador ( es, República del Ecuador, which literally translates as "Republic of the Equator"; Quechua: ''Ikwadur Ripuwlika''; Shuar: ''Eku ...
), and in spring and summer it was shown in Hungary, Germany and Denmark.
Koch Media Plaion (formerly Koch Media) is a German-Austrian media company headquartered in Höfen, Tyrol, Austria, with an operating subsidiary based in Planegg, Germany. The company was founded in 1994 by Franz Koch and Klemens Kundratitz. The company ...
issued the film for home media in the nations of Germany, Austria, Switzerland,
Liechtenstein Liechtenstein (), officially the Principality of Liechtenstein (german: link=no, Fürstentum Liechtenstein), is a German-speaking microstate located in the Alps between Austria and Switzerland. Liechtenstein is a semi-constitutional monarchy ...
,
Luxembourg Luxembourg ( ; lb, Lëtzebuerg ; french: link=no, Luxembourg; german: link=no, Luxemburg), officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, ; french: link=no, Grand-Duché de Luxembourg ; german: link=no, Großherzogtum Luxemburg is a small lan ...
and
South Tyrol it, Provincia Autonoma di Bolzano – Alto Adige lld, Provinzia Autonoma de Balsan/Bulsan – Südtirol , settlement_type = Autonomous province , image_skyline = , image_alt ...
. ADS Service released the film in Hungary. In 2017, in Greece, Wizart Animation films were seen for the first time as Spentzos Films agreed to distribute the film. KLB distributed in France. French TV channel
Gulli Gulli (; stylised as gulli) is a French free-to-air television channel focused on kids programming for those aged 3 to 14. It was created as a result of a partnership between Lagardère Active and state-owned broadcaster France Télévisions. ...
featured the film. Eagle Entertainment closed deals for the film to be released in Australia and New Zealand in 2017. ''Sheep & Wolves'' had a theatrical run in Norway via the company Storytelling Media and was the first Russian independent animated film to have a Norwegian theatrical release. Flame Node Entertainment and Alibaba Pictures Group released the film in theaters of China and BoXoo Entertainment released it in
South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and sharing a Korean Demilitarized Zone, land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed ...
. According to producer Yuri Moskvin of Wizart Animation, the Chinese market is key for the rental of ''Sheep and Wolves'', with the show expected to reach the widest audience. The film had a limited release in US during March 2018. The film continued its run in new countries of UK,
Channel Islands The Channel Islands ( nrf, Îles d'la Manche; french: îles Anglo-Normandes or ''îles de la Manche'') are an archipelago in the English Channel, off the French coast of Normandy. They include two Crown Dependencies: the Bailiwick of Jersey, ...
,
Isle of Man ) , anthem = "O Land of Our Birth" , image = Isle of Man by Sentinel-2.jpg , image_map = Europe-Isle_of_Man.svg , mapsize = , map_alt = Location of the Isle of Man in Europe , map_caption = Location of the Isle of Man (green) in Europe ...
,
Falkland Islands The Falkland Islands (; es, Islas Malvinas, link=no ) is an archipelago in the South Atlantic Ocean on the Patagonian Shelf. The principal islands are about east of South America's southern Patagonian coast and about from Cape Dubouzet ...
, English-speaking
Gibraltar ) , anthem = " God Save the King" , song = " Gibraltar Anthem" , image_map = Gibraltar location in Europe.svg , map_alt = Location of Gibraltar in Europe , map_caption = United Kingdom shown in pale green , mapsize = , image_map2 = Gib ...
, and
Malta Malta ( , , ), officially the Republic of Malta ( mt, Repubblika ta' Malta ), is an island country in the Mediterranean Sea. It consists of an archipelago, between Italy and Libya, and is often considered a part of Southern Europe. It lies ...
with DVD release set for 9 April 2018. ''PRO FILMS'' released the film in
Bulgaria Bulgaria (; bg, България, Bǎlgariya), officially the Republic of Bulgaria,, ) is a country in Southeast Europe. It is situated on the eastern flank of the Balkans, and is bordered by Romania to the north, Serbia and North Macedon ...
. Company leader Emil Simeonov recalled the marketing campaign that took place in the nation for the film as "massive, we had four of the top 20 most popular singers and actors involved and we covered every channel I know, even a few communication channels I'd heard of for the first time." The film also played at the
Cannes Film Festival The Cannes Festival (; french: link=no, Festival de Cannes), until 2003 called the International Film Festival (') and known in English as the Cannes Film Festival, is an annual film festival held in Cannes, France, which previews new films o ...
,
Annecy International Animated Film Festival The Annecy International Animation Film Festival (french: Festival international du film d'animation d'Annecy, officially abbreviated in English as the Annecy Festival, or simply Annecy) was created in 1960 and takes place at the beginning of J ...
, and the Oaxaca FilmFest. Gravel Road Distribution Group agreed to distribute the ''Sheep and Wolves'' series to Africa in 2020 during the Key Buyers Event.


Box office

The animated film was one of the most anticipated premieres of Russian cinema in 2016. The film's budget was $3.4 million (~230 rubles). In Russia, with the film opening to 1,892 theaters in its first week, ''Sheep and Wolves'' debuted at number two, grossing 46,720,975 rubles and attracting more than 234,000 viewers. The film grossed a total of
The ruble sign, , is the currency sign used for the Russian ruble, the official currency of Russia. Its form is a Cyrillic letter Р with an additional horizontal stroke. The design was approved on 11 December 2013 after a public poll that took ...
143,789,109 throughout its entire 19-week Russian run. The film took the leading positions as one of the most successful Russian projects at the international box office in 2016. In Croatia, the film managed to take second place in premiere week after ''Bridget Jones 3''. The film attained top three status in Bulgaria. In Lithuania, the film made 1,449.39 euros on its first week and began at number 16 in the nation's box office. By the next week, the film topped the Lithuania box office and grossed 19,476,08 more euros. The film also ranked in the top ten of the box offices of other countries such as Poland, Romania, Slovenia, and Turkey. The film grossed a worldwide amount of $4.1 million (~301 million rubles) breaking even its production budget amount of 230 million rubles.


Critical reception

Although it was met with warm reviews in Russia, critical reception for ''Sheep and Wolves'' elsewhere was generally negative. Russian-speaking critics note the cartoon has a straightforward, but clearly structured plot; a thorough study of the characters; and the comparative identity of the project. Boris Ivanov of ''
Film.ru Film.ru, sometimes known in Russian as Фильм.ру, is a Russian web portal dedicated to cinema. The website publishes news, analytical articles, Russian film showtimes, box office performances, film reviews and maintains a film and tv show d ...
'' thought the picture was decent for Russian cinema, noting its graphics and animation, although there were some shortcomings in directing, expressed in a lack of dimensionality in the narrative. "A slightly understated, but mostly decent Russian comedy cartoon about a sloppy wolf who turned into a ram. The charming main character demonstrates mental immaturity, gets into a mess, experiences adventures, realizes his mistakes, shows heroism, demonstrates that he has corrected himself… And the reward is a well-deserved happy end. Nothing particularly new or unusual, but against the background of what some other Russian studios are doing, it's nice to see the work of professionals." Susanna Alperina for Russian newspaper ''
Rossiyskaya Gazeta ' (russian: Российская газета, lit. Russian Gazette) is a Russian newspaper published by the Government of Russia. The daily newspaper serves as the official government gazette of the Government of the Russian Federation, publishi ...
'' says the film is a "a well-constructed drama." In some segments the reviewer mistakes it for a foreign film which is a compliment, "And the most amazing and pleasant thing is that sometimes during viewing there is a feeling that the screen is not a domestic product at all, but a purchased one, only our stars are voicing it. And this is great!" Alexey Mazhaev notes that the cartoon is at the level of Western animation patterns, although the amount of adult humor and drama in the tape is less than in similar films by DreamWorks and Walt Disney Pictures. Mazhaev notes that the animals in the animated film are at a rather high civilized level, and the lack of elaboration by the scriptwriters of the crazy transformations from a wolf into a ram and vice versa "gives the plot a kind of absurd charm. ''Wolves and Sheep'' convincingly show the superiority of good over evil, without slipping into moralizing." Dmitry Bortnikov gave the film eight out of ten stars stating the film is revolutionary: "In fact, it turned out that the cartoon is the best thing that has happened to our animation, short meter does not count, for the last twenty years." The critic commended the film's various media references such as ''
Star Wars ''Star Wars'' is an American epic film, epic space opera multimedia franchise created by George Lucas, which began with the Star Wars (film), eponymous 1977 film and quickly became a worldwide popular culture, pop-culture Cultural impact of S ...
'' and ''
The Lion King ''The Lion King'' is a 1994 American animated musical drama film produced by Walt Disney Feature Animation and released by Walt Disney Pictures. The 32nd Disney animated feature film and the fifth produced during the Disney Renaissance, it ...
'', as well as the apt voice cast. The review ended by stating,"So we are living in an exciting time, and it is possible that projects will be created right before our eyes that will change the industry and create something as strong and original as Soviet animation." Many critics found the depth of the blue color in the film canvas to be exceptional. ''Caution Spoilers'' found the animation to be a plus point: "The animation is nothing exceptional, though it is an exceptionally pretty film (possibly too garish for some). The grass is very green, the sky is very blue, the flowers and butterflies every colour of the rainbow. Even the darker hues used when we visit the wolf pack in its stony camp have a richness, the blue-greys of the rocks muted but still with depth." Olesya Troshina claims that the animation of ''Wolves and Sheep'' is not bad, but not without flaws and roughness, and the drawing of animals in the tape, although it does not reach the level of ''Zootopia'', is attentive to details. The review stated landscapes, however, are colorful and look good especially because of its blue canvas: "To this you can add colorful landscapes consisting of lilac, blue, and other beautiful shades that look very decent...And throughout the cartoon, you can feel the originality, reverent attitude, and painstaking work of its creators." Another review from ''Кino Mail'' ( ru) also commended the film's animated blue sky, "What interiors and landscapes, water streams and trees, clouds of fog, and magic smoke filling the wagon of the Gypsy rabbit Mami! What a sky, and finally, wool on the main characters." Kirill Ilyukhin also believes the plot of the film is not original, but amusing and interesting to the main target audience - children. Scoring the film a seven out of ten, the review compared the movie to ''
Kung Fu Panda ''Kung Fu Panda'' is an American media franchise that originally started in 2008 with the release of the animated feature film of the same name, produced by DreamWorks Animation. Following the adventures of the titular Po Ping (primarily voic ...
'' (2008). The reviewer stated, "They really got a cartoon, which has its own zest." The critic said the children would enjoy its humor and story and the adults its references to other films. Olivier Bachelard, writing for the French source ''Abus de Cine'', praised the film's visuals, highlighting its "fluid" animation and "impressive" use of colors, and wrote that young viewers would enjoy the story. However, he also disliked its "useless" scenes, "somewhat disappointing" characters, and the character designs, describing them as "dressed in grotesque hairstyles."


Awards


Sequel

''Sheep and Wolves'' in its global coverage has managed to be released in more than forty countries. In an April 2016 interview, Yuri Moskvin revealed that the company began a script for a sequel of the film planned for release in 2018. It will be produced by the same team as the first film and is expected to come out in the spring of 2018. The sequel '' Sheep and Wolves: Pig Deal'' was released in Russia in January 2019. Vertical Entertainment picked up the sequel for distribution in North America on 29 January 2021.


References


External links

* * * * * *
Sheep and Wolves
' at ''Film.ru'', a Russian publication about cinema from Russia {{DEFAULTSORT:Sheep and Wolves 2016 films 2016 3D films 2016 animated films 2016 computer-animated films 2016 comedy films 3D animated films Computer-animated films Russian animated feature films Animated adventure films Animated comedy films 2010s children's animated films 2010s children's fantasy films 2010s adventure comedy films 2010s fantasy comedy films Russian 3D films Russian children's fantasy films Russian animated fantasy films Russian fantasy adventure films Russian fantasy comedy films Russian adventure comedy films 2016 directorial debut films Animated films about foxes Animated films about wolves Films about sheep Films about shapeshifting Films about animals Films about magic and magicians Animated buddy films Animated films about mammals Animated films about animals 2010s English-language films