Pixar is an American computer animation film company established in 1979 as the Graphics Group. Starting with 1995's Toy Story, Pixar produced 14 full-length animated films, contributing to 27 Academy Awards, seven Golden Globe Awards and 11 Grammy Awards, among other awards. Pixar was purchased by The Walt Disney Company in 2006.
Pixar's first short was The Adventures of André and Wally B, made in 1984. Beginning with the film A Bug's Life, all of the following Pixar films included a short with their theatrical releases. These shorts are created to show off Pixar's innovative technology and animation skills. The majority of the shorts are dialogue-free and are to-the-point since they need to get to the conflict quickly due to time restraints.
The following is a list of Pixar's top ten original shorts.
10) Red's Dream (1987)
Premiered at the annual SIGGRAPH conference in Anaheim in 1987 (but not shown before a full-length Pixar film like most other animated shorts), Red's Dream was the second computer-animated short from Pixar. In a closed bike shop, an unwanted red unicycle dreams of being ridden by a juggling circus clown. Like all other Pixar shorts, this one was made to show off everything that Pixar could do, especially using their "new" Pixar Image Computer. This was the first, and the last, short to use this computer, since there was not enough memory for complex animation, which can be seen in this short as the dream sequence and the bicycle shop scenes look extremely different. Interestingly, there wasn't much room at the company for the team to work, and much of the work was completed in a hallway. But all in all, this is a great concept with a great message on dreams and imagination.
9) Knick Knack (1989)
With it's debut at the 1989 SIGGRAPH conference in Boston, this short was later edited and featured before Finding Nemo in 2003. A snowman sees other travel souvenirs having a party and wants to join in on the fun, but is confined to his snow globe. He tries everything he can think of to bust out of the globe, but luck is just not on his side. Director John Lasseter, who also directed Red's Dream, collected snow globes and other fun souvenirs, which gave him the idea for this short. Inspiration also came from such shows as Tom and Jerry and Looney Tunes (even containing a similar shrinking circle fade-out at the end). The music for the short is a collection of a Capella vocal jazz performed by Bobby McFerrin, who worked for free because he enjoyed it so much. The newer version that appeared before Finding Nemo was adjusted to be more kid-friendly, down-sizing the Miami girl and mermaid's breasts from the original.
8) Presto (2008)
Initially released at the Annecy Animation Film Festival, this short was shown before the film WALL-E. A hungry rabbit is frustrated when his magician doesn't feed him, and decides to sabotage his trick of pulling a rabbit out of the hat in order to get back at him. Again borrowing ideas from cartoons such as Tom and Jerry and Looney Tunes, as well as the Marx Brothers. The animators for the short pieced together the scene by visiting several Opera houses and theaters, but had issues animating every member of the audience. In order to save time, and money, the audience is shown from behind and several other components were borrowed from the previous Pixar film, Ratatouille, including the members of the audience, the carrot and the magician's body.
7) Lifted (2006)
This short was presented before Pixar's Ratatouille in an original theatrical premier. An alien is taking a test on alien abduction, but has many problems getting the human out of his house. Again, the farmer in this short looks suspiciously similar to Linguini from Ratatouille. Director Gary Rydstrom, who was previously the winner of seven Academy Awards for sound editor and mixer, debuted his directing skills along with new producer Katherine Sarafian, who later produced the Pixar film Brave
6) Partly Cloudy (2009)
Debuting along with Pixar's Up, this short was written and directed by Peter Sohn. Sohn came up with the idea for the short from watching Dumbo when he was young, and the influences are clearly evident. This is an adorable answer to the question of where babies come from - the clouds and storks, of course. A gray cloud is forced to create animals that are more dangerous and scary than those of his fellow clouds. Sad that he can't create the adorable and cuddly animals that the other clouds make, the gray cloud strengthens his relationship with his delivery stork.
5) Day & Night (2010)
Premiered with Pixar's Toy Story 3, this short is based on a lecture given by Dr. Wayne Dyer, who spoke about the fear of the unknown and the importance of exploring new things. Day and Night are portrayed as two anthropomorphic characters who show each other all of the great things about themselves. Soon, each becomes jealous of the other, but eventually come to appreciate the positives about both daytime and nighttime. This short is unique because it combine 2-D and 3-D animation, with the silhouettes in 2-D and the scenes inside their bodies in 3-D animation. Michael Giacchino, creator of the score for The Incredibles, Ratatouille and Up, also composed the music for this short.
4) For the Birds (2000)
First presented at the Annecy International Animated Film Festival in France, this short was also theatrically released with Pixar's Monsters, Inc.. A group of birds standing on a telephone wire make fun of a large, awkward and honking bird trying to fit in, but by the end, the joke is on them. If you watch close enough during the Pixar film Cars, the birds from the short can be seen on a power line as Lightning McQueen and Mack travel down the freeway.
3) Geri's Game (1997)
After a break from shorts following Knick Knack, Pixar came back with this short in 1997. This was Pixar's first short worked on by a large crew and budget after the company's transition from a computer hardware company to an animation studio. Premiered at Laemmle's Monica Theater in California, it was attached to Pixar's A Bug's Life. Geri is an old man who plays a game of chess against himself in a park, tricking himself several times. This is the first Pixar production that features a human main character, in an effort to show their abilities in human and clothing animation. Geri also appears in Toy Story 2 as the toy repairman who fixes Woody, and his toolbox even holds chess pieces in the film to reference the short. Geri's look was inspired by Jonathan Harris, who voiced the character. Although his game is full of illegal moves and impossible captures, Geri is a lovable character and an avid chess player.
2) La Luna (2011)
Initially released at the Annecy International Animated Film Festival, this short was latched onto the beginning of Pixar's Brave. A grandfather and father teach a young boy of their family's responsibility of tending to the moon. Inspired by the stories of Antoine de Saint-Exupéry and Italo Calvino, this is a touching story that suggests to us how the moon's phases progress.
1) The Blue Umbrella (2013)
Debuted at the Berlin International Film Festival, this short was paired with Pixar's Monsters University. A unique love story, a blue umbrella falls in love with a red one, but are pulled apart by distance, wind and rain. Director Saschka Unseld came up with the idea when he found an abandoned umbrella one day, and then walked around with his co-workers, taking photographs of many inanimate objects on the street for additional inspiration. With this short, Pixar was able to show off new techniques in photo-realistic lighting and reflection, shading and compositing to allow us to see these every day objects through new eyes. The score, created by Jon Brion and voiced by Sarah Jaffe, is one of Pixar's most brilliant to date.
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