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Wizart Animation & Bazelevs

present

The Snow Queen 2

Directed by Alexey Tsitsilin

Written by Alexey Tsitsilin Alexey Zamyslov Vladimir Nikolaev

Produced by Timur Bekmambetov Yuri Moskvin Vladimir Nikolaev Diana Yurinova

Production Wizart Animation

Co-production Bazelevs

Music composed by Mark Willott

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Synopsis

The tale of The Snow Queen was based on the original classic fairy tale written by Hans Christian Andersen and first published in 1845. The story centres on the struggle between good and evil as taken on by a little boy and girl – Gerda and her brother Kai.

The Snow Queen 2 picks up the tale. After their victory over the Snow Queen, the trolls have developed a taste for freedom. Having played a major role in the triumph, the troll Orm has become a hero to all. This is not enough for him, however. Comically exaggerating his exploits and achievements, he creates spins a web of lies, claiming that he personally defeated the Snow Queen, and that he is destined to marry the princess and inherit great power and riches. But where will Orm’s stories lead him?

In this lively and perilous adventure, Orm learns that friends, happiness, and true love cannot be won through deceit.

As well as old favourites, we are introduced to a whole host of brand new, lovable characters in the wintry wonderland.

The English-language voice cast features Sharlto Copley (District 9, Elysium) as Orm, Bella Thorne (Blended) as Gerda, Isabelle Fuhrman (The Hunger Games, Orphan) as Alfida and Sean Bean (Lord of the Rings, Game of Thrones) as General Arrog. Thorne also sings an original song for the film.

Produced at Wizart Animation in Russia, The Snow Queen 2 is directed by Alexey Tsitsilin, written by Tsitsilin, Alexey Zamyslov and Vladimir Nikolaev, and produced by Timur Bekmambetov, Yuri Moskvin, Vladimir Nikolaev and Diana Yurinova.

The Snow Queen 2 was among 17 animated features shortlisted for the Golden Globe consideration in 2014. To date the feature has already been released theatrically in the UK, South Korea, Middle East, Baltic States, Russia and CIS, Croatia, Serbia, Montenegro, Bosnia

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and Herzegovina, Albania, Slovenia, Macedonia and Israel, grossing twice as much as the first movie of the franchise on the territories where it was released.

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About Hans Christian Andersen

Hans Christian Andersen was born in Denmark, on 2 April, 1805. He achieved worldwide fame for his innovative and influential fairy tales. “The Little Mermaid”, “The Ugly Duckling” and “The Princess and the Pea” remain classics of the genre. He died in Copenhagen on 4 August, 1875.

Andersen's work first gained recognition in 1829, with the publication of a short story. He followed this with a play, a book of poetry and a travelogue. The promising young author won a grant from the Danish king, allowing him to travel across Europe and further develop his body of work. In 1835, Andersen began writing fairy tales. Over the following decades, he continued to write for both children and adults, penning several autobiographies, travel narratives and poetry extolling the virtues of the Scandinavian people.

The sources of his children’s stories were mostly Danish folk tales. As a writer, his objective was less to preserve the tales, than to create new literary works based on folklore. At first, critics and consumers overlooked volumes that included the now-classic stories like “The Little Mermaid” and “The Emperor's New Clothes”. In 1845, however, English translations of Andersen's folktales and stories began to gain the attention of foreign audiences. He also forged a friendship with Charles Dickens, whom he visited in England in 1847 and again a decade later.

His stories became English-language classics and had a strong influence on subsequent British children's authors, including AA Milne and Beatrix Potter. Over time, Scandinavian audiences discovered Andersen's stories, as did readers in the US, Asia and across the globe.

In 2006, an amusement park based on his work opened in Shanghai. Many of his stories have been adapted for stage and screen, including the hugely popular animated version of “The Little Mermaid”.

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Andersen’s impact on children’s literature has been significant. His fairy tales are translated into dozens of languages, and his most famous characters, such as the Little Mermaid, the Little Match Girl, and the Ugly Duckling, are known all over the world. The fairy tales have been made into picture books, plays, films, operas, and merchandise, and Andersen’s life has become the subject for theatre and film. Many children’s writers have acknowledged their debt to Andersen as model and inspiration. The significance of Andersen may be illustrated by the fact that the world’s most prestigious prize in children’s literature, the Hans Christian Andersen Medal, is named after him, and that his birthday, 2 April, is celebrated as International Children’s Book Day.

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Understanding the Fairy Tale

A fairy tale like “The Snow Queen 2” is a fictional story that may feature folkloric characters (such as fairies, goblins, elves, trolls, witches, giants, and talking animals) and enchantments, often involving a far-fetched sequence of events.

Fairy tales have their roots in the oral tradition, and across many different cultures and continents, you will find fairy tales with very similar plots, characters and motifs. Fairy tales also tend to take on the characteristics of their location, through the choice of motifs, the style in which they are told, and the depiction of character and local colour.

Stith Thompson, an American scholar of folklore, defined the fairy tale as: “a tale of some length involving a succession of motifs or episodes. It moves in an unreal world without definite locality or definite creatures and is filled with the marvellous. In this never-never land, humble heroes kill adversaries, succeed to kingdoms and marry princesses.” While there are many definitions out there, one element that is universally agreed-upon is that fairy tales do not require fairies. As Thompson points out, talking animals and the presence of magic seem to be more common to the fairy tale than fairies themselves.

The characters and motifs of fairy tales are simple and archetypal: princesses and goose- girls; youngest sons and gallant princes; ogres, giants, dragons, and trolls; wicked stepmothers and false heroes; fairy godmothers and other magical helpers, often talking horses, or foxes, or birds; glass mountains; and prohibitions and breaking of prohibitions; long, arduous journeys’ and the setting of nearly impossible tasks.

In many fairy tales, it is common to explore human weaknesses and celebrate human strengths. Also common is the battle between good and evil, and light and dark, as well as the exploration of people’s shared experiences, deepest desires and fears.

Children subconsciously recall the messages inherent to fairy tales as they grow older, and are forced to cope with real injustices and contradictions in their lives. Some fairy tales are

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based on legends that incorporated a spiritual belief of the culture in which they originated, and were meant to emulate truth.

Andersen’s “The Snow Queen” (“Snedronningen” in Danish) was first published in December 1844 in the collection “New Fairy Tales, First Volume”. The story centres on the struggle between good and evil as experienced by Gerda and Kai. It is a story of trials and reward, based on a popular Norse legend of the Ice Maiden and featuring the invincible power of love, a recurrent theme in Andersen’s works.

The story is one of Andersen's longest and most highly acclaimed stories. It is regularly included in selected tales and collections of his work and is frequently reprinted in illustrated storybook editions for children.

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Character Description

Orm (the troll, the main character)

Orm is a very ordinary troll. He’s not much to look at, even by troll standards. Orm’s strengths are not physical. His true merits lie elsewhere, namely in cunning and savviness.

It was his resourcefulness that helped him avoid being “frozen” by the Snow Queen. Instead, he wound up in her service. While working for the Queen, Orm carried out the most repulsive, sometimes downright vile orders, becoming more and more cynical and distrustful with each task.

But a girl named Gerda saw past the evil troll, and uncovered the real Orm: kind, open- hearted, and most importantly – honest! Together, Orm and Gerda managed to shatter the reign of cold and fear.

After many years away, Orm returned home to Troll City and his grandma. He now works as a coal miner and can barely make ends meet, despite being the one who destroyed the seal of the Snow Queen and unfroze the troll kingdom!

The life of a simple coal miner just doesn’t suit him! So, Orm embarks on new ventures and devises new lies – and the more he lies, the closer the world gets to a new icy disaster! Is Orm leading the world towards a refreeze?!

Arrog (the superstar)

Arrog comes from a much-celebrated line of trolls. He can go on endlessly about the great feats of his heroic grandfather. Yet he has not accomplished any such feats himself, and dreams of proving that he is worthy of the Princess and the crown.

Arrog grew up in a wealthy family, which has made him super-confident and narcissistic. When he steps out of the spotlight, however, Arrog stops posing and transforms into a strict, but fair and noble troll. After tackling the challenges that come his way, Arrog realizes that lineage and noble ancestry don’t matter, and he’s no different from a commoner.

Orm’s Grandma

Granny, Gran, or Grandma Rose is good-natured and caring. She truly loves her grandson Orm, and believes his every word. She has grown forgetful with age, but she still remembers

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cutting up the dance floor and grooving to the disco beat with the Prince when she was young.

Back then, a long time ago, the old King threw Grandma out of the palace and forbade his son (then the Prince, now the current King) to marry her. And the cowardly Prince yielded to his father’s wishes.

All this is in the distant past, and now Rose keeps house, knits socks, bakes pies and tenderly cares for her only grandson, Orm.

Gerda

The main heroine from The Snow Queen. She’s a brave, kind, and honest girl with a strong will. Growing up in an orphanage, she had to learn to stand up for herself. Gerda is always quick to embark on any adventure. She sees only the good in even the most terrible people.

Her perceptive, warm heart senses that Orm is in trouble. And together with her friends, Gerda decides to visit her old buddy.

The King

The King’s father was a harsh and domineering monarch. The King, on the other hand, is impressionable and a bit cowardly. He is enamored with heroes and heroism – something that’s beyond his own capabilities. Back when he was still a prince, he was in love with Grandma Rose. But his father was dead set against the relationship, and now the King has grown old and lonely. He loves his niece, Princess Maribel, more than anything in the world, and dreams of passing on the crown to his heirs soon, so that he can finally do what he wants, not what is expected of him.

Maribel

The King’s niece. She’s spoiled and treats everyone as though they were her toys. Maribel is very demanding and capricious, and manipulates her uncle, the King. But everything changes when the North Wind whisks her away…

Lokum

Orm’s friend. Serves as a policeman. Ordinarily lazy and indifferent, yet ready to come to an old friend’s rescue in a pinch. He sets off on a tough adventure alongside Orm.

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Luta

Luta is a pet weasel. She is Orm’s true friend and conscience. She will risk her life for Orm at a moment’s notice, but is also quick to point out all his lies and wrongdoings. Luta always wins in arguments with Orm. She is the most agile character.

Kai

Gerda’s brother – a dreamer, artist and poet. He is in love with Alfida, the pirate, but has no idea how to express his feelings. He is willing to help alongside Gerda and Alfida, but is unable to make decisions by himself.

Alfida

A true pirate, Alfida is strong, authoritative, and determined – but she has a kind heart, and an acute sense of justice. Alfida knows that Kai cares for her, and the attention he gives her is flattering; but she has decided that she cannot reciprocate: pirates cannot fall in love, after all!

The Mine Boss

Foreman of the mine where Orm works. He is a true self-made troll. Phrases like “I can’t” or “It’s impossible” irritate him: if he can do it, then others have no excuse! The Mine Boss tries to woo his secretary, but he is not very experienced in such matters and anyway, every attempt he makes is thwarted by Orm, one way or another.

The Secretary

The archetypal secretary, a fashionista who loves to gossip. She is blind to those who are unimportant to her.

Rahat

A strong, yet harmless and simple-hearted miner. He loves his job and is not interested in doing anything else – or being anyone else. He doesn’t have many friends, but he values the ones he does have, and will do anything for them.

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Eric

A banker who values money above all else in life. He has no qualms about swindling even those closest to him, while strangers who don’t have money are of no interest to him at all. He is cunning.

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Cast Biographies

Sean Bean – General Arrog Shaun Bean is an English actor. After graduating from the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art, he made his professional debut in a theatre production of Romeo and Juliet in 1983. Retaining his distinctive Yorkshire accent, he first found mainstream success for his portrayal of Richard Sharpe in the ITV series Sharpe. Bean has since garnered further recognition for his performance as Ned Stark in the HBO epic fantasy series Game of Thrones, as well as roles in the BBC anthology series Accused and the ITV historical drama series Henry VIII. His most prominent film role was Boromir in The Lord of the Rings trilogy (2001–03). Other roles include Alec Trevelyan in the James Bond film GoldenEye (1995) and Odysseus in Troy (2004), as well as roles in Patriot Games (1992), Ronin (1998), National Treasure (2004), North Country (2005), The Island (2005), Silent Hill (2006), Black Death (2010), Jupiter Ascending (2015) and The Martian (2015). As a voice actor, Bean has been featured in the video game The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion and the drama The Canterbury Tales, among several others. He has received several awards during his career and won an International Emmy for Best Actor. He has also been nominated for a BAFTA and Saturn Award.

Sharlto Copley – Orm Sharlto Copley is a South African actor, producer and director who has produced and co- directed short films that have appeared at the Cannes Film Festival, as well as commercials and music videos. He is perhaps best known for playing the roles of Wikus van der Merwe in the Oscar-nominated science fiction film District 9, Howling Mad Murdock in the 2010 adaptation of The A-Team, Agent C.M. Kruger in the science fiction film Elysium, James Corrigan in the science fiction horror film Europa Report and King Stefan in the dark fantasy adventure film Maleficent. He also played the title character in the science fiction film Chappie and starred in two seasons as Christian Walker of the TV series Powers.

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Jeff Bennett – Troll King Jeff Bennett is an American voice actor and singer. He is best known for voicing Johnny Bravo in the television series of the same name, Petrie in the Land Before Time films and television series, Mr. Smee and Bones in Jake and the Neverland Pirates, The Man With the Yellow Hat in Curious George, Kowalski in The Penguins of Madagascar and various other characters in films, television shows and video games. In 2012, he was awarded the Annie Award for Outstanding Individual Achievement for Voice Acting in a Television Production for his role as Kowalski. He was also nominated for a Daytime Emmy Award but lost to June Foray. In 2016, Bennett won the Daytime Emmy Award for his performance as Mayor Lusky on the animated series Transformers: Rescue Bots.

Bella Thorne – Gerda Bella Thorne is an American actress and singer. She played Ruthy Spivey in the TV series My Own Worst Enemy, Tancy Henrickson in the fourth season of Big Love, and CeCe Jones on the Disney Channel series Shake It Up. She also appeared as Hilary/"Larry" in Blended and as Celia in Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day. In 2015, she played Madison in The Duff, and Amanda in Perfect High.

Bill Chott – Lukum Bill Chott (born July 23, 1969) is an American actor and comedian. He is best known for his role as Principal Hershel Laritate on the Disney Channel Original Series Wizards of Waverly Place. His film roles include performances in Galaxy Quest, Dude Where's My Car, Brainwarp, Dante's Inferno, Wild Girls Gone, Dancing at the Blue Iguana and The Ringer. His television appearances include Third Rock from the Sun, Freaks and Geeks, Popular, ER, Crossballs, Weekends at the DL, CSI, Wizards of Waverly Place, It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia, She Spies, and Monk.

Pat Fraley – Rakhat Pat Fraley is an American voice actor and voice-over teacher who is best known as the voice of Krang, Casey Jones, Baxter Stockman and numerous other characters from the 1987

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Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles animated television series. He is also a member of Voice and Speech Trainers of America.

Isabelle Fuhrman – Alfida Isabelle Fuhrman's acting career began at the age of seven, when a casting director from Cartoon Network cast her for one of the shows, Cartoon Fridays. She made her big screen debut a few years later in the 2007 drama Hounddog. The same year, Fuhrman was chosen to star in the movie Orphan alongside Vera Farmiga and Peter Sarsgaard. In 2011, Fuhrman played Angie Vanderveer in the dark comedy Salvation Boulevard, with an ensemble cast that included Pierce Brosnan and Marisa Tomei, and which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival. Also in 2012, Fuhrman voiced genetically enhanced assassin Victoria in Hitman Absolution. In 2012, Fuhrman played Clove, a career tribute who tries to kill the main character, Katniss, in the film The Hunger Games.

Candi Milo – Orm's Grandmother Candi Milo is an American actress and voice actress. She has voiced various characters on many animated series including Tiny Toon Adventures, Swat Kats: The Radical Squadron, Dexter's Laboratory, Cow and Chicken, The Adventures of Jimmy Neutron: Boy Genius, Codename: Kids Next Door, My Life as a Teenage Robot, Foster's Home for Imaginary Friends, Maya & Miguel, W.I.T.C.H., The Life and Times of Juniper Lee and The Replacements.

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Crew

MARK WILLOTT – COMPOSER Mark Willott is an Emmy award winning composer from the Midlands in the UK. His first commercial work was the soundtrack to the critically acclaimed PlayStation title “Cold Winter”. In 2007 Willott began composing for Turner Sports, which produces coverage of the NBA, NASCAR, the PGA and major league baseball on the TNT network. In 2008, he won an Emmy for outstanding achievement in composition for his very first commission from Turner Sports: The Playoffs on TNT. He received his second Emmy nomination in 2009. Willott uses the most advanced instruments and tools available to create passionate, dynamic music in every genre. To date, he has been commissioned for more than 300 commercial compositions.

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Production Companies

Wizart Animation Wizart Animation is one of the fastest growing computer animation studios in Russia. Its main objective is to develop, produce and distribute high-quality, animated, family-focused feature films and animated series that are a combination of innovative technologies and excellent, touching stories for children and adults who believe in miracles.

The company’s current portfolio features a range of animation projects in different stages of production. The main project in 2012 was the magical 3D story “The Snow Queen” (co-produced with Bazelevs and Inlay Film). Wizart animation has also produced the animated feature film “Sheep’n’Wolves” as well as an animated TV-series currently in development. www.wizartanimation.com

Bazelevs Group Bazelevs group of companies was founded in 1994 by director and producer Timur Bekmambetov. Bazelevs produces commercials and films, some of which have made it to the top of the Russian distribution list, including “The Irony of Fate: Continuation”, “Black Lightning”, “Lucky Trouble”, “Yolki” and “Yolki 2012”. Bazelevs Production is focused on action, family and comedy movies, which have been successfully distributed in both domestic and international movie markets. Bazelevs collaborates with Russia’s major television and radio channels and such film studios as Universal, 20th Century Fox, Focus Features and many others.

In January 2010 the founder of Bazelevs, Timur Bekmambetov, was named “Best Producer of the Year in Film Animation” for “9” by the American Producers Guild. In 2012, at the annual American movie industry exhibition in Las Vegas CinemaCon he was announced “International Filmmaker of the Year”.

Bekmambetov directed and co-produced (along with Tim Burton) the Hollywood blockbuster “Abraham Lincoln: Vampire Hunter”, which was released by 20th Century Fox. In 2013 Bazelevs completed the production of “Gentlemen of Fortune”, a remake of one of the biggest Soviet era blockbusters. www.bazelevs.ru

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Credits

Sean Bean General Arrog Sharlto Copley Orm Jeff Bennett Troll King Bella Thorne Gerda JB Blanc Officer Bill Chott Lukum Sara Cravens Princess Maribel Pat Fraley Rakhat Isabelle Fuhrman Alfida Candi Milo Orm's Grandmother Tyler Merna Additional Voices Nick Tate Additional Voices

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