The Candlemaker

1 Jan 1957
Sound
13m

An animated tale with a Lutheran message that's equal parts Christmas spirit and good old-fashioned guilt

There's nothing like instilling children with a profound sense of guilt and penitence to rouse the Christmas spirit. This animated parable from the United Lutheran Churches of America positions giving, community and sacrifice at the heart of Christmas. The sections showing worship are handled with sensitivity and are quietly moving - although it's hard to blame young Tom for any mistake when his parents leave him alone with saucepans of hot molten wax.

The cartoon was commissioned from the British animation company Halas & Batchelor, which came to prominence on both sides of the Atlantic after their feature length version of George Orwell's Animal Farm (1954). The unit director Louis Dahl was a brother of author Roald and worked at a few animation studios in this period. The film was released in colour and black and white versions.

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From the collection

Halas & Batchelor

Celebrating the vital and varied work of the pioneering British animation studio

Halas & Batchelor Cartoon Films were a defining force in British animation for more than five decades. Founded in 1940 by the Hungarian-born John Halas and Watford-born Joy Batchelor, the company progressed from producing cinema advertisements to creating vital public information films during and after the Second World War, before producing Britain's first animated feature film, Animal Farm, in 1954.

Whether working in advertising, children's television or independent short films, Halas and Batchelor championed animation as both a commercial enterprise and an art form. Though more than the story of John and Joy, their vision, advocacy and innovation helped shape the careers of generations of artists and practitioners, while bringing a broad range animated storytelling to audiences on screens both large and small.