BEAR Fruit Snacks’ brand mascot stars in a beautifully imaginative story for both children and their parents. The fruit-obsessed BEAR can’t resist the 100% fruit BEAR Fruit Snacks. His peaceful and refined life in a cosy cave is shattered every time he catches a whiff of the deliciously irresistible snack, drawing him into a frenzied race to reach the fruity snack before it is eaten.
The brand’s new entertaining appeal is by The Or. Wildly Irresistible, its first work, staking BEAR Fruit Snack’s claim in kids’ healthy snacking as the only 100% fruit snack worth the hype. The Or became the creative agency of record for BEAR Fruit Snacks in September 2024.
The film was produced by Passion Pictures and directed by Emmy-winning director Anna Mantzaris, who has traditionally worked in stop-motion for brands such as Apple and John Lewis. Wildly Irresistible is Mantzaris’ first CGI animation.
Hendrik Van Steendam, global brand director at BEAR Fruit Snacks’ parent, Lotus Natural Foods, commented, “BEAR Fruit Snacks are adored by adults and children alike, not only as a result of its great fruity flavour but also due to the brand’s playful character that ignites imagination. The Or has beautifully captured the brand’s essence through Wildly Irresistible, taking the brand to the next level with a campaign that appeals to health-conscious adults by highlighting fruity goodness that kids love to eat.”
Jacob Hellström, creative director at The Or, added, “BEAR Fruit Snacks are a staple for kids and grown-ups alike. We’ve built a platform that embraces their irresistible fruity nature, breathing life into the BEAR mascot in a way that will endure for years. This is The Or’s first major animated feature, and it’s been a joy to create the Wildly Irresistible world—a place that taps into young imagination and entertains BEAR fans, young and old. I can’t wait to see what kind of mischief our BEAR gets up to.”
Anna Mantzaris commented, “Developing the BEAR’s personality was a fascinating challenge. It was important for me to give him real depth – to find that sweet spot of humour, and to allow him to experience a full range of emotions, from irritation and sadness to surprise and uncertainty. I wanted him to feel like a character with many possibilities. It was a joy to bring the BEAR to life through CGI animation. It’s a different process than stop motion, but the goal is the same – to find the performance within the character. Breathing life into a new character is always a rewarding experience. And seeing the BEAR emerge with such personality through this new medium was incredibly exciting.”
Credits
Creative Agency: The Or
Executive Creative Directors: Dan Morris & Charlene Chandrasekaran
Creative Director: Jacob Hellström
Creatives: Tom Snell & Dylan Hartigan
Strategy Partner: Sarah Oberman
Strategy Director: Zoe D’Avignon
Production Partner: Metz ti Bryan
Producer: Ruth Armitt
Managing Partner: Paulo Salomao
Group Brand Director: Mitch Lovich
Project Manager: Moses Odubiyi
Brand Manager: Izzy Finkler
Client: Lotus Bakeries
CMO Lotus Bakeries & CEO Lotus Natural Foods: Isabelle Maes
Global Brand Director Natural Foods: Hendrik Van Steendam
Global Marketing Manager BEAR: Maria Roca
Junior Global Brand Manager BEAR: Camila Carrascal
Production Company: Passion Pictures
Anna Mantzaris: Director
Executive Producer: Anna Cunnington
Juliette Stern: Head of Production
Megan Plane: Line Producer
Soulla Josephides: Production Coordinator
Production Assistants: Reem Mokhtar, Karlos Green, Violeta Fellay
CG Supervisor: Khaled Pamir
Animation Supervisor: Aldo Gagliardi
Production Design: Jakub Gryglicki, Irene Navarro
Character Design: Crystal Kung, Rose Gallerand, Petra Lili Szilagyi
Background Design: Sofia Galang
Editing: Clementine March, Trushna Patel, Ashley White
Post Production: StoneDogs
Executive Producer: Richard Hawkins, Joe West
Colourist: Mark Meadows
Smoke: Davie Kiddie, Brian Carbin
Audio Post Production: Creative Outpost
Senior Audio Producer: Caroline McNally-Smith
Senior Sound Designer: Alex Wilson-Thame
Music Supervision: The Hogan
