The Artistic and Religious Significance of The Star of Bethlehem

This animated short tells the story of the birth of Jesus and the events that surrounded his birth. It is a nativity story animated with music performed by the Glyndeboume Festival Chorus. If your looking for a well made Christmas cartoon that is about the birth of Jesus then watch this one, as it is available to stream for free.

Production and Animation History

The Star of Bethlehem (1956) was directed by Vivian Milroy. Lotte Reiniger rarely chose original stories for her silhouette films, and this one is no exception. The Start of Bethlehem was probably her's, made when she was about 21 or 22 in Germany. She and her husband Carl Koch (who is credited on Star of Bethlehem) built all their own equipment. On productions like these, she was using a double plane animation stand long before Disney.

While watching this film, some may wonder if perhaps it was produced to try and cash in on the success of THE TEN COMMANDMENTS from Cecil B. DeMille. The film was later distributed by Primrose Productions, who colorized some of her older films, and Cathedral Films.

Visual Style and Artistic Techniques

The actual look of the film was quite unique as everything in the background was in color as was any actual non-living object. The actual humans were always shown in shadow only and this mixed against the colorful backdrop actually made for a good looking picture. While people are shown in her accustomed and beautiful black figures, the angels who show up are white.

The technique works against a colorful background in a way that is quite telling. The color choices suggest stained glass, evoking medieval cathedrals and well suiting the religious theme of the film. This is particularly evident during the sequences of the adoration of the shepherds and the later of the Magi.

Key Film Information

  • Director: Vivian Milroy
  • Animation Artist: Lotte Reiniger
  • Music: Glyndeboume Festival Chorus
  • Production Companies: Cathedral Films, Primrose Productions
  • Additional Crew: Jan Sadlo, Elaine Friedrich, and Carl Koch