Documentary backdrop image for The Zoo (2019)

201912 minGdoc-short

Animals Biodiversity

The Zoo

201912 minGdoc-short

In Vancouver's Stanley Park, a polar bear cub and a Chinese boy experience parallel lives that reflect their growth and aging over the years.

Animals Biodiversity

Genres

Channel: NFB

The Zoo

2019• 12 minG

Synopsis

In Vancouver's Stanley Park, a polar bear cub and a Chinese boy experience parallel lives that reflect their growth and aging over the years.

Synopsis

Inspired by a real bear that once lived in Vancouver's Stanley Park, The Zoo follows the parallel lives of a polar bear cub and a Chinese boy who visits him until they're both in their twilight years.

Comments

What are people saying?

Play More Like This

Three Bear Cubs - Growing Up in a Dangerous World (2021)

Three Bear Cubs - Growing Up in a Dangerous World

Three young bears-polar, brown, and sloth-navigate the challenges of survival in diverse landscapes of Alaska and British Columbia under their mothers' guidance.

Three Bear Cubs - Growing Up in a Dangerous World

Life is One (2024)

Life is One

In the rainforest of Indonesia, Bernie the cub bear and two other captive sun bear cubs transition to life in the wild under the guidance of their foster parent.

Grin and Bear It (2025)

Grin and Bear It

Chinook, a yearling bear with a severe injury, faces bullying from other bears while Tanja attempts to rescue a cornered cub and a fawn with broken legs.

Grin and Bear It

The Impressive Life of Bears (2024)

The Impressive Life of Bears

Bears exhibit unique features, diverse diets, complex social lives, and significant interactions with humans, highlighting their vital role in the ecosystem.

The Impressive Life of Bears

Two Polar Bear Siblings Struggle to Survive (2023)

Two Polar Bear Siblings Struggle to Survive

The ice around the North Pole has shrunk by seven percent over the past 30 years, threatening the survival of polar bear populations.

Two Polar Bear Siblings Struggle to Survive

Collateral Cubs (2025)

Collateral Cubs

In Haida Gwaii, Angelika and Peter release two aggressive bear siblings by boat, while Kim collaborates with conservation officers in Smithers to rescue orphaned cubs.

Collateral Cubs

Chasing Cubs (2024)

Chasing Cubs

Angelika and Peter work to trap and rescue three orphaned bear cubs, while volunteer Brooke prepares to say goodbye to the moose calves she raised.

Polar Bear Cub Struggles To Survive It's Shrinking Habitat | Extreme Animal Babies (2024)

Polar Bear Cub Struggles To Survive It's Shrinking Habitat | Extreme Animal Babies

Polar bear cubs in the Arctic face challenges for survival as their habitat continues to shrink due to climate change and environmental pressures.

Polar Bear Cub Struggles To Survive It's Shrinking Habitat | Extreme Animal Babies

Living with Polar Bears (2016)

Living with Polar Bears

In the Arctic, encounters between humans and polar bears, including those experienced by Sonny Voyce and John Bykerk, highlight the challenges of coexisting in a changing environment.

Living with Polar Bears

A Beary Long Winter (2025)

A Beary Long Winter

During an exceptionally harsh winter at a wildlife shelter, a bear cub suffers a severe injury while moose calves face bullying and predation, leading to one calf's disappearance.

A Beary Long Winter

Louis Theroux Explores America's Strangest City Full Of Dangerous Dogs (2026)

Louis Theroux Explores America's Strangest City Full Of Dangerous Dogs

In Los Angeles, Louis Theroux meets dog owners and enthusiasts whose lives are intertwined with the city's unique and often dangerous canine culture.

Louis Theroux Explores America's Strangest City Full Of Dangerous Dogs

Discover Giant Fish & Mysterious Underwater Caves (2024)

Discover Giant Fish & Mysterious Underwater Caves

Tens of thousands of Australian giant cuttlefish aggregate to spawn in the waters of South Australia between May and August.

Discover Giant Fish & Mysterious Underwater Caves

Explore The Zoo

Browse more like this

Three Bear Cubs - Growing Up in a Dangerous World (2021)

Three Bear Cubs - Growing Up in a Dangerous World

Three young bears-polar, brown, and sloth-navigate the challenges of survival in diverse landscapes of Alaska and British Columbia under their mothers' guidance.

Three Bear Cubs - Growing Up in a Dangerous World

No digital watch option in your country

Two Polar Bear Siblings Struggle to Survive (2023)

Two Polar Bear Siblings Struggle to Survive

The ice around the North Pole has shrunk by seven percent over the past 30 years, threatening the survival of polar bear populations.

Two Polar Bear Siblings Struggle to Survive

No digital watch option in your country

Chasing Cubs (2024)

Chasing Cubs

Angelika and Peter work to trap and rescue three orphaned bear cubs, while volunteer Brooke prepares to say goodbye to the moose calves she raised.

No digital watch option in your country

Polar Bear Cub Struggles To Survive It's Shrinking Habitat | Extreme Animal Babies (2024)

Polar Bear Cub Struggles To Survive It's Shrinking Habitat | Extreme Animal Babies

Polar bear cubs in the Arctic face challenges for survival as their habitat continues to shrink due to climate change and environmental pressures.

Polar Bear Cub Struggles To Survive It's Shrinking Habitat | Extreme Animal Babies

No digital watch option in your country

Louis Theroux Explores America's Strangest City Full Of Dangerous Dogs (2026)

Louis Theroux Explores America's Strangest City Full Of Dangerous Dogs

In Los Angeles, Louis Theroux meets dog owners and enthusiasts whose lives are intertwined with the city's unique and often dangerous canine culture.

Louis Theroux Explores America's Strangest City Full Of Dangerous Dogs

No digital watch option in your country

Polar Bear (2022)

Polar Bear

2022•1h24m•★7.2TMDB

A mother’s past shapes her as she faces polar bears' survival struggles.

Born in China (2016)

Born in China

2016•1h16m•★7.3TMDB

A mother snow leopard named Dawa struggles to protect her two cubs in the Tianshan Mountains, facing threats from rival leopards and harsh winter conditions.

Zoofobia (2022)

Zoofobia

2022•1h35m•★8.7TMDB

One polar bear's death leads to a legal battle in Argentina to declare an orangutan a Non-Human Person, sparking a debate on animal rights.

Wild Babies (2022)

Wild Babies

2022•4h40m•★5.5TMDB

Lion cubs, elephants, penguins, and pangolins navigate the challenges of survival and growth in their natural habitats across the globe.

Polar Bears: A Summer Odyssey (2012)

Polar Bears: A Summer Odyssey

2012•50m•★6.5TMDB

A young polar bear faces the loss of 50% of its sea ice habitat in the Canadian Arctic during the summer thaw, threatening its survival.

Polar Bears: A Summer Odyssey

Kamchatka Bears. Life Begins (2018)

Kamchatka Bears. Life Begins

2018•52m•★7.1TMDB

Brown bear cubs are observed over a seven-month period in the wilderness of Kamchatka, Russia, as they grow and learn in their natural habitat.

Kamchatka Bears. Life Begins

A Quest for Meaning (2015)

A Quest for Meaning

2015•1h27m•★7.8TMDB

Two friends travel through cities in America, Europe, and Asia, engaging in conversations about life and happiness over 87 minutes.

A Quest for Meaning

Alien Crab (2012)

Alien Crab

Horseshoe crabs have existed for over 450 million years, surviving major extinction events, including the one that wiped out the dinosaurs.

Salla - Selling the Silence (2011)

Salla - Selling the Silence

2011•1h10m•★6.5TMDB

In Salla, Lapland, Jyrki Kuukkanen and his family navigate the challenges of running a small business amid changing societal values and environmental concerns.

Salla - Selling the Silence

Pandas: The Journey Home (2014)

Pandas: The Journey Home

2014•36m•★8.1TMDB

Veterinarians and conservationists at the Wolong Panda Center in China care for giant pandas daily, preparing them for relocation to habitats worldwide.

Pandas: The Journey Home

The Invisible Zoo (2024)

The Invisible Zoo

2024•2h58m•★7.0TMDB

Zurich Zoo serves as a backdrop for an exploration of daily life and interactions between animals and visitors, highlighting their complex relationship.

The Invisible Zoo

Snow Bears (2017)

Snow Bears

2017•58m•★7.6TMDB

Polar bear cubs travel 400 miles with their mother across Svalbard to reach the vital pack ice surrounding the North Pole.

Is this your film?

If you made this film or hold the rights to it, we'd like to talk. We can license it and pay you a share of what it earns.

License it with us →