Why Pixar makes Short Films - Video Essay 

That baby is the stuff of nightmares.

the BAO short film made me cry so hard. That shit related to me so hard because as an Asian American, that depiction of an Asian mom watching her son grow up and leave was the hardest thing to watch but I loved it.

I was so disappointed when Coco didn’t have a Pixar short. For me, the short is just as important as the film and I get excited to see the new short as I watch trailers for the film. They are always so creative and imaginative and fun, so being deprived of that for Coco was so upsetting. Great video, Bryan!

I remember when Bao came on I was excited. Mostly because I had expected a short, as I do with every Pixar movie. I remember we saw the midnight premiere of Incredibles 2 and everyone and their mother was cheering when the Pixar logo came on, but then they just booed immediately when they saw the chinese woman. I recall some kid behind me said "No one even cares about this just get to the movie" and I wanted to cry. Because of the amazing talent that Pixar puts into these shorts. Bao made me remember all of the fun memories I had with my mother, and how sad I was when I found out I was leaving her. Pixar doesn't just make shorts, they make art.

Also these shorts don't have any dialogues, so they can practice "showing" events instead of "telling".

I think the shorts are a big part of why I love Pixar.

Ugh, the passion and love for these beautiful shorts coupled with the already heart swelling finding memo music, just too much emotion!! amazing job!

When I was very young my parents got me Pixar Short Films Vol. 1 DVD for Christmas. I became obsessed with them and wanted to become an animator or filmmaker working at Pixar. Now I’m much older applying for film school. Thank you for everything Pixar

This is why I love Pixar

Pixar is still testing technology through the short films. CGI is not fully fleshed out, not even close. There's a ton of new tech every year which needs testing, Pixar is a leader in developing such technology in the CGI world, to this day. A feature length film is not a safe place to test new tech. Shorts are, however. The moving music and romantic concept of "it helps them stay creative! They're so nice!" is very touching, but Pixar is a big company and whether it's to give a chance to new talent, or to test new tech, or to test new production approaches, Pixar does things for financial reasons first and foremost. They just make it a priority to stay creative while doing so, and that's why they're great.

Great video however "paperman" isn't a Pixar short!

Can we talk about Bao? a.k.a the Pixar short before Incredibles 2

Yes! Watching those shorts is just magical. Thanks for making this video, Bryan. #touched

I always saw it as like a tradition for Pixar just like how end credits scenes are to Marvel movies.

I love almost all of the shorts.

so many pixar shorts have made me cry. there's just so much emotion and so much nostalgia in their films.

This channel is truly moving and opens my mind to thinking differently. I always appreciate new videos Bryan and best of luck.

To me those Pixar shorts in theater are like appetizer before the main dish. It slows you. Brings you into the moment. Gets your full focus. And stretches your "emotional muscle" and prepares you for the movie.

I teard when you added nemos eggs theme song when the guy asked wether if the lamp is a mother or a father. I love Pixar’s music scores.

that was beautiful. pixar and Costco are my favorite companies now.

Incredibles 2 was the first Pixar movie I got to watch in a cinema and I cried like a little girl at the end of the short. For me, it was more emotional than the movie I went to watch. Not that it was bad of course...

Man even just a video ABOUT these short films is making me as emotional as watching these films because of the music, editing, and wonderful voiceover.

One of my favorite shorts is the one right before finding dory, sorry I can’t think of the name right now, because it almost doesn’t even look like animation, it looks real, like really real

There is still the aspect of pushing technology in Short Films at Pixar. In Partly Cloudy they tested out their new Volume Rendering System. In Piper, they tested their new Path Traced Rendering Solution (Renderman - RIS). Every sandcorn in Piper is actual geometry (previously Sand was usually done with Textures on a more simple Mesh).

Actually the shorts do make money when you buy one of those Pixar short collection dvds.

We love them. Love love them.....just a joy to watch them over and over and over again.

There’s a pretty dope Pixar documentary that goes into a ton of detail about all this.

Duuude, amazing video. Love these "story behind" kind of videos, and there were so many things i never knew. Absolutely love the stuff about the first movie with the lamps, and tin toy, cause growing up Toy Story has always been my favorite film. Great work man!

Man...that Finding Nemo score really helped out.

that music is so emotional, even on a loop

Despite not being by Pixar, Olaf's Frozen Adventure was easily the worst "short" out of the ones that were released along with the Pixar movies!

So well made! Great points made here but I really noticed the perfectly-fitting music choice! Good job!

I love them with all my heart.

Knick Knack is my favorite Pixar short.

Just came across this video, ngl i did tear up a little bit. It’s been a while since i started disliking disney in general but i havent stopped being loyal to pixar, and while they too may have flawed movies, this video reminded me of why i enjoy pixar. It’s a wonderful written video, liked and subscribed, keep up the great job ♥️

I genuinely get so emotional thinking about how it must have felt to been there, pioneering these things and having a hand in creating things that really, really click with people. It's amazing. It's a fucking lamp, a LAMP but we're so good at imprinting and identifying and clicking with people and objects, we see what's happening and just. It becomes alive. Is it a mother? Is it a father? Oh that's so cute- OH NO. Like. I dunno ,video essays like these are so lovely because they really make you Think and Feel all at once.

Did anyone else come here hoping to understand that short before "Incredibles 2"? And great video! I really like your use of music, too!

These are great the one with the Stars and the grandchild always makes me emotional

The shorts are Pixar's way to discover the next generation of storytellers and are always a delight to watch

Not sure why but felt like tearing up looking at this

You can buy collections of them on DVD I have volume one but I think there is 3 volumes now

Boundin' bythe late Bud Luckey was the first short to have dialogue.

i loved it until on 6:56 (i had subtitles on)... well you can see it for yourself. xD

I just realized the Finding Nemo theme is playing in the background.

You just made me appreciate Pixar more. Thanks

Nemo music hit me with the feels man. Great vid!

Actually the then manager now president of Pixar Ed Camull wrote in his book Creativity, INC. that he always wanted to make animated films and in fact had been working on animation related tech in the New York Institute of Technology beforehand. But LucasFilms felt otherwise and wanted to focus on films instead of animation, hence the Pixar image Computer. I’m not gonna take away the credit that John deserves though. He was a major player in the success of Pixar.

Honestly Bryan a lot of people ask "why watch these kids films"? And it's your answer I give to those people who ask to apreciate, to admire, and in my case to get motivated. A lot of animation corporations really just try to makeshift an animated film just to keep a kid quiet in the theater but not corporations like pixar for example they took something that was suppose to be use in the medical field and turned it into something incredible (no pun intended) in order to make something great you need imagination this is why I watch these films. Btw great video keep it up.😉

hey you should check out sparkshorts basically pixar started this to look at the talent of the entire studio to tell stories they never got to put to work 2 have already come out

@ 6:57, I adore them!!!!!

I just realized that the bunny at 5:20 and 6:32 is the same as the bunny in the movie The Secret Life of Pets. In the movie the bunny says he was abandoned by a magician

I had a dvd for all of them and i loved it

The thing about Pixar getting to play with their shorts is a super good point. With a feature-length film, it HAS to be a hit. It's just not financially viable to put out animated films that flop, because they're so much more expensive than your average live action film. That means that a company will have the strong urge to play it safe with their films. With a short, it's not nearly as expensive as a full film, even if you have to develop new tools for it. You can afford to have a smaller staff working on it. That means that if Pixar isn't monetarily invested in it 'succeeding,' they can use it to find talent in their staff, grow existing talent, develop new technologies, and potentially stumble upon ideas for feature-length films.

You deserve more views. Great video!

Really well written video!

So it’s like one big internship for everyone at the company. That’s... that’s awesome

wow what an amazing video bryan! what's the music you used???

Pixar is the reason for who I am today & who I'll become tomorrow ;;

Q: WHY DOES PIXAR MAKE SHORT FILMS? A: [Shows 'Lava'] ... Q: More please.

It always feels a bit like they're carrying on the legacy of Golden Age Hollywood; small cartoons or newsreels before the main Talking Picture.

Love the video. Just wondering, what's the background music here?

You recognise every major supporters good thing don't forget them even if you got 7 million subs

The jim blinn part was just too good.

Bao has the best story For the bird is the funniest But I love all of them anyway... PS : You could get their short films collections (3 volumes now)

thanks man

The baby just showed me new depths of uncanny valley :-D

Question, where did you get the footage of the interviews

... we never got these shorts in theaters in my country. At least never to my understanding. If you were lucky you would find it on a limited edition DVD or a collection DVD, but barely anyone here knows that Pixar still makes short films.

Good video, but Paperman was made by Disney Animation Studios, not Pixar.

I think they still test new technologies with their shorts. Just think about gore realistic Piper looked

Uh, to correct you, that Paperman short was made by Walt Disney Animation Studios, not Pixar. The short played before Wreck-It Ralph started in theatres.

pixar is one thing that makes me want to make a blender animated DC comics franchise called Blender DC Universe

the song at 3:30 who knows what its from i got tears and I dont know why

6:56 turn on captions

What song was playing throughout this video

0:34 I am pretty sure they are meant to look like Pam and Jim from The Office lol. Couldn’t help but notice...

You just had to put Finding Nemo in the background didn't you, screw you now I'm crying! :(

You know this might be the first video I've seen in a long time that has zero dislikes.

Ayyy that Music for Airports 1/1 😎😎😎

this video felt way longer than 7 minutes, but in a good way

An amazing video!😍❤

Pretty cool, of course John Lassater wasn't merely an employee who happened to work at P I X A R, he was brought in specifically as the Artist/Animator to her the tech guys (Ed) build what an Artist needed to tell their stories. and ya,...Paperman is not P I X A R.

All of the short films are so cool and unique! **couch cough Olaf short cough cough**

0:33 whats the name of this?

Oy mate, that Nemo music makes me cry every time.

what music is used

Awesome video

Obviously it's to show the next talented artist currently.

While the 2010s were not the highest years in pixar's filmography, they were arguably the golden age of the short films. I'd say short films from This decade were less slapstick, more story, and perhaps more créative.

why do all your videos make me cry like you didnt even do anything sad

Pixar only makes short films because some to most concepts are too short to be made into full-length feature films.

he’s speaking so emotionally when it’s not that emotional of a subject and that’s kinda funny to me

And it didn't make a pixar short for Toy Story 4! And to combat you, it IS about the money. It's why there has been so many sequels. Disney wants money, Disney owns Pixar, Pixar desires money. If it don't make massive money, it don't get made.

Goddamnit I'm crying

You say: “It’s not about the money” I say: “Cars 2 & 3”

why am i crying?

Oh yeah, tin toy, I remember seeing it. I also remember that something about it was off, but what was it? The animation here looks pretty alri- *sees baby* OH GOD OH FUCK

Now, CGI Animated movies (except Pixar) do not seem like it anymore...

I gotta know - What's the song that's used for the last half/thirdish of the video? It's so nice and peaceful. Good choice

why this music? I am gonna fucking cry