It was directed by Aaron Blaise and Robert Walker and produced by Chuck Williams, from a screenplay written by Tab Murphy, Lorne Cameron, David Hoselton, and the writing team of Steve Bencich and Ron J. Friedman.

[3] In order to become human again, Kenai travels to a mountain where the Northern lights touch the earth, forging a relationship with a cub named Koda along the way.

Brother Bear was released in the United States on November 1, 2003, to mixed reviews from critics and received a nomination for Best Animated Feature at the 76th Academy Awards, losing to Pixar's Finding Nemo.

Tanana cannot understand Kenai, but advises him to go to the mountain where the lights touch the earth to find Sitka and be turned back into a human, but only when he atones for his actions; she vanishes without an explanation.

Kenai and Koda reach the salmon run, where a large number of bears live as a family, including the leader Tug.

However, upon realizing that Koda needs him because of his own mistake, Kenai asks Sitka to transform him back into a bear with Denahi's support.

Additional vocals by Patrick Pinney, Bob Bergen, Rodger Bumpass, Roger Rose, Debi Derryberry, Randy Crenshaw, Phil Proctor, John Schwab, Bill Farmer, Pamela Adlon, Hope Levy, and Sherry Lynn.

Following the critical and commercial success of The Lion King (1994), then-Disney chairman and CEO Michael Eisner urged for more animal-centric animated features.

He suggested a North American setting, taking particular inspiration from an original landscape painting by Albert Bierstadt that he purchased.

[5] At the time, the original idea, which was inspired by King Lear, centered around an old blind bear who traveled the forest with his three daughters.

Thomas Schumacher, then-president of Walt Disney Feature Animation, approved the revised story and proclaimed, "This is the idea of the century.

"[5] Tab Murphy, who had co-written the screenplays for The Hunchback of Notre Dame (1996), Tarzan (1999), and Atlantis: The Lost Empire (2001), came on board to write an early draft of the script.

[8] After the project was green-lit, Blaise, Walker, and the story artists embarked on a research trip in August 1999 to visit Alaska where they traveled on the Valley of Ten Thousand Smokes and Kodiak Island.

Because Blaise, Walker, and Williams enjoyed Duncan's vocal performance, Tug, the de facto leader of the bears at the salmon run, was written into the film.

[5] Voicing the moose brothers Rutt and Tuke, Dave Thomas and Rick Moranis performed simultaneously throughout the recording process.

[15] Art Director Robh Ruppel stated that the ending of the film originally showed how Kenai and Denahi get together once a year to play when the northern lights are in the sky.

[15] Following the success of the Tarzan soundtrack, Phil Collins was offered the opportunity to compose songs for Brother Bear, as well as let him "co-write the score".

[23] On October 20, 2003, Brother Bear premiered at the New Amsterdam Theatre, where fellow attendees included New York Governor George Pataki and cast members Michael Clarke Duncan and Estelle Harris.

The DVD also included a documentary on the production of the film, an audio commentary track by Rutt and Tuke with an option for visual mode, an artwork gallery narrated by the artists, three deleted scenes, two games called "Find Your Totem" and "Bone Puzzle", and two music videos with Phil Collins.

The website's consensus reads: "Brother Bear is gentle and pleasant if unremarkable Disney fare, with so-so animation and generic plotting.

In his print review for the Chicago Sun-Times, Ebert wrote the film "doesn't have the zowie factor of The Lion King or Finding Nemo, but is sweet rather than exciting.

Children and their parents are likely to relate on completely different levels, the adults connecting with the transfer of souls from man to beast, while the kids are excited by the adventure stuff.

"[36] Kirk Honeycutt of The Hollywood Reporter called the film "a playful movie that celebrates nature and the spirit world with striking imagery and a smooth blend of drama and comedy.

"[38] Kenneth Turan, reviewing for the Los Angeles Times, complimented "the richness and fluidity of its visuals" and the "satisfying ending", but derided that "Brother Bear has an appeal that can't be denied.

In its limited release, Brother Bear played only in two selected theaters in Los Angeles, California and New York City, grossing $291,940 for a per-screen average of $145,970.

The Simpsons veteran Pete Michels was to helm the series and was allowed to watch a copy of the film so that he could construct a pilot.

Jeremy Suarez, Rick Moranis and Dave Thomas were to reprise their respective roles while Will Friedle would have replaced Joaquin Phoenix as Kenai.

While the pilot tested well, it was not picked up as Disney Channel executives felt that adapting the film as a series was "counterproductive" to their goal of trying to reach a tween audience, combined with the fact that the movie performed below expectations.