You’ll bearly believe how fascinating — and adorable — the main attractions are in a locally filmed new documentary series about one of North America’s most successful black bear rehab programs.
Cub Camp provides a glimpse into life at Black Bear Rescue Manitoba, operated by Judy and Roger Stearns on their property near Stonewall, for a worldwide viewership.
Produced by Merit Motion Pictures, the six-episode series follows the Stearns and the orphaned or abandoned cubs they care for in keeping with their motto “No bear is turned away.”
Showrunner Shereen Jerrett said it was an emotional process to watch the bears arrive in such a traumatized state.
“These intelligent and sensitive little animals are devastated; they have lost their mothers, their only security. Watching the Stearns slowly coax them out of their desolation, providing them with a sense of security to grow, is both life-affirming and inspiring,” she said.
“It is delightful to watch these bear cubs tumble around, but they also speak to bigger issues of trauma and recovery, of choosing life over loss — these are themes we can all understand.”
Roger and Judy Stearns are trying to change the world by saving one bear cub at a time, Jerrett added.
“In their eyes, this world belongs to the bears, and if we want to share this territory with them, we owe them the right to live and thrive,” she said. “They are trying to correct the damage we do with our presence in their world and help restore the balance.”
Filming began in 2022 and took nearly a year to follow the entire typical length of a rescued cub’s stay, followed by another year of editing.
Merit Jensen Carr, the show’s producer, outlined the impetus for the idea.
“Andy Blicq, a director friend of Merit Motion Pictures, was the first person to develop the series with help from Jeff McKay,” she said.
“We immediately knew it would be a wonderful opportunity to talk about black bears and how they’re misunderstood, as well as to profile the work of this wonderful couple devoted to caring for cubs.”
The six Cub Camp episodes will air on Love Nature on Sundays at 7 p.m. CT and Cottage Life on Saturdays at 1 p.m. CT. The show premiered on Sunday, March 9 on Love Nature, and the first episode will also air on Cottage Life on Saturday, March 15. The series is also available for streaming through Amazon Prime.
“Viewers can look forward to a compelling and heart-warming story about two extraordinary people who have devoted a whole lot of time and hard work to providing a home to abandoned or orphaned cubs when they had nowhere to go,” Jensen Carr said.
“They’ll get to know each cub individually, learn their quirks and struggles to overcome a rough start to their life before returning to the wild with the skills for survival.”
The homegrown Manitoba story is set in Stonewall and created by a Manitoba crew.
“Judy and Roger Stearns are dedicated advocates for black bears who turned their lives upside down after learning that a cub named Makoon was released into the wild with a slim chance of survival,” she said.
“Before Black Bear Rescue Manitoba existed, abandoned cubs had nowhere to turn. Seeing the need, the Stearns stepped in with generosity and hard work, creating a safe haven for these vulnerable animals and giving them a second chance at life.”
Judy Stearns said the project was a big undertaking but it all worked out well.
“They very discreetly filmed the bears. We had special blinds made so the bears wouldn’t even know that they were there. The crew were all great people and easy to work with. They did a beautiful job,” she said.
“They’re not only highlighting what we do or what it takes to raise animals but about bear behaviour itself. The main reason why did it is so people could learn more about bears.”
Currently, Black Bear Rescue Manitoba has five yearlings who are 14 months old. They will be released in July.
At the same time, Judy looks back with nostalgia at the bears that were featured in the film, who have all since been released back into the wild.
“It’s bittersweet when you let them go. You’re so glad they’re going back to be wild bears and that you successfully raised them to that point — but it’s also, of course, very sad,” she said. “If you’re an animal lover, you get attached to animals. Even though they’re not pets and we’re not friendly with them, it’s hard to see them go, even though it’s also good to see them go.”
For her, the purpose of the project is to dispel any myths about black bears.
“They’re not these big scary monsters. They’re intelligent animals. They’ve got their own personalities and I hope people will see that. They’re amazing animals who are often misunderstood,” she said.
“Hopefully people change any negative perception they have of bears after watching the show. That’s the reason why we did it.”
Check out the Cub Camp trailer at vimeo.com.
