The Snowman

TV Movie
1982
G
26m

IMDb RATING

8.2/10

17K

YOUR RATING

POPULARITY

Play trailer0:35

Holiday Animation Holiday Family Adventure Animation Family Fantasy Holiday Music

On Christmas Eve, a young boy builds a snowman that comes to life and takes him to the North Pole to meet Father Christmas.On Christmas Eve, a young boy builds a snowman that comes to life and takes him to the North Pole to meet Father Christmas.On Christmas Eve, a young boy builds a snowman that comes to life and takes him to the North Pole to meet Father Christmas.

Directors
- Jimmy T. Murakami
- Dianne Jackson
Writer
- Raymond Briggs
Stars

See production info at IMDbPro

IMDb RATING

8.2/10

17K

YOUR RATING

POPULARITY

4,367

1,174

Directors
- Jimmy T. Murakami
- Dianne Jackson
Writer
- Raymond Briggs
Stars

See production info at IMDbPro

Nominated for 1 Oscar
- 2 wins & 2 nominations total

Older James
(uncredited)
…

Mel Smith

Father Christmas - 20th Anniversary version
(uncredited)

Directors
- Jimmy T. Murakami
- Dianne Jackson
Writer
- Raymond Briggs
All cast & crew
Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

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Storyline

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Did you know

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Trivia
Aled Jones, the singer of single "Walking in the Air" that was released in 1985, three years after the film, is much more widely known than Peter Auty who sang the same song in the film. Many people mistakenly believe that Aled Jones also sang the song in the film. Jones sang the chart release because the song had been re-recorded for an advertisement for an English toy store's Christmas campaign (which also featured new animation).

Goofs
When James comes downstairs, there is a pendulum swinging in the grandfather clock. When he is going outside the pendulum is gone.

Quotes
James: [singing] We're walking in the air/We're floating in the moonlit sky/The people far below are sleeping as we fly/I'm holding very tight/I'm riding in the midnight blue/I'm finding I can fly so high above with you/All across the world/The villages go by like dreams/The rivers and the hills/The forests and the streams/Children gaze open-mouthed taken by surprise/Nobody down below believes their eyes/We're surfing in the air/We're swimming in the frozen sky/We're drifting over icy mountains floating by/Suddenly swooping low on an ocean deep/Rousing up a mighty monster from his sleep/We're walking in the air/We're dancing in the midnight sky/And everyone who sees us greets us as we fly.

Alternate versions
The 1982 British VHS release added an introduction by David Bowie . This was included as an additional extra on the UK Special Edition DVD though the film itself featured the Father Christmas introduction, voiced by Mel Smith .

Connections
Featured in The Wind and the Bomb (1986)

Soundtracks
Walking in the Air
(uncredited)
Written by Howard Blake
Performed by Peter Auty and Sinfonia of London

User reviews110

Review

Featured review

8/10

Powerful beauty

An amazing animation that conjures emotions to the point of tears - a beautiful film with beautiful music.

The first viewing reminded me of childhood - and the freedom of being a child. The second viewing reminded me of the same childhood freedom,

but with the reality of being trapped in an adult world.