[TRAILER] ‘Ice Age: Scrat Tales’ Goes Nutty and Bittersweet

A new Ice Age miniseries is coming to Disney+ this April, starring none other than the franchise’s breakthrough star Scrat the saber-toothed squirrel. Here’s the newly-released trailer for Ice Age: Scrat Tales, which is also to be Blue Sky’s swan song.

Throughout the six animated shorts, Scrat Tales sees the titular rodent becoming a father after discovering he has an infant son (who I’m pretty certain came from Scrat’s love interest Scratte in Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs). Scrat will raise and bond with his cherished Baby Scrat, but both will be bound to chaotically fight over the precious acorn.

While it’s a delight to see Scrat and his nutty antics once again, it’s also bittersweet considering that Ice Age: Scrat Tales was the final project completed by Blue Sky Studios. The Connecticut-based animation unit of 20th Century Studios was abruptly shut down by Disney last year, ending 34 years of operation. While their long-in-the-making feature Nimona was a tragic casualty of the closure, Scrat Tales was thankfully able to make it past the finish line.

The six shorts of Scrat Tales were directed by Blue Sky storyboard artist Donnie Long, who had previously boarded on The Peanuts Movie, Ice Age: Collision Course, and Ferdinand, in addition to being the head of story for Aardman/Sony Animation’s Arthur Christmas. Long was also assisted by a co-director assigned for each short, consisting of Blue Sky animators Michael Berardini, Matt Munn, Drew Winey, Eric Prah, Jeff Gabor, and Lisa Allen Keane.

Blue Sky co-founder Chris Wedge once again provides his iconic vocalisations for Scrat, while Baby Scrat’s noises were done by voice actress Kari Wahlgren (Rick & Morty). The series was produced by Blue Sky production manager Anthony Nisi, and executive produced by then-Blue Sky co-presidents Robert L. Baird and Andrew Millstein.

As for the music, Batu Sener has scored the shorts in his second Ice Age project following the Disney+ film The Ice Age Adventures of Buck Wild (which Blue Sky had zero involvement with). Additionally, John Powell (a collaborator of Sener) marks his return to the franchise by composing the end titles of the series.

Through a press release, Disney has listed the six shorts with their official synopsises:

1. “Nuts About You”
   Directed by Michael Berardini and Donnie Long, story by Michael Berardini
   — Scrat meets his son Baby Scrat and experiences the pure joy of being a new parent — until Baby Scrat sees The Acorn for the first time.
   
2. “LoFi Scrat Beats to Sleep/Chill To”
   Directed by Donnie Long and Matt Munn, story by Donnie Long
   — Scrat pounds out a percussive lullaby to get a crying Baby Scrat to fall asleep.
   
3. “X’s and Uh-O’s”
   Directed by Donnie Long and Drew Winey, story by James Young Jackson and Drew Winey
   — Scrat demonstrates for Baby Scrat how to plant The Acorn, but Scrat is really the one being taught a lesson.
   
4. “Nutty Reflections”
   Directed by Donnie Long and Eric Prah, story by Galen Tan Chu.
   — Scrat and Baby Scrat run after The Acorn into a dark cave, which resembles a creepy funhouse hall of mirrors.
   
5. “Teeter Toddler”
   Directed by Jeff Gabor and Donnie Long, story by Galen Tan Chu
   — Thanks to a dodo bird, Scrat and Baby Scrat end up on opposite sides of a log held up by a single branch.
   
6. “Nut The End”
   Directed by Lisa Allen Keane and Donnie Long, story by Michael Thurmeier
   — The Acorn goes flying off a cliff. With it seemingly gone forever, can Scrat and Baby Scrat live in harmony?
   

All six shorts of Ice Age: Scrat Tales will be released on April 13, 2022, exclusively on Disney+.

Let us know in the comments how you feel about Ice Age: Scrat Tales as Blue Sky’s last hurrah!