Disney has become widely regarded as a purveyor of the best in animation, and particular praise and attention has been focused on their feature movies. However, they have also shown that they have a special skill in creating short movies that have a magic all of their own. Even though they typically last for fewer than ten minutes, animated shorts often manage to pack a lot of story in, and, of course, they often feature the charming animation and lovable characters that are the studio’s trademark.
Several shorts of new vintage are currently available on Disney+. What are the best that the streaming service has to offer?
Ciao Alberto
Luca is one of the best animated movies of the last few years, and it is full of the sort of charm that only Disney can produce.
While the movie focused on the deep friendship between Luca and Alberto, this follow-up short movie will focus instead only on Alberto, as he finds new sorts of happiness while Luca is away at school. Even though it is much shorter than its feature predecessor, it still possesses the same magic, as well as a few surprises of its own.
The Simpsons in Plusaversary
It’s hard to think of two sets of animated characters more iconic than The Simpsons and the various Disney characters (including Mickey, Donald, and Goofy). While they once belonged to rival studios, now that Fox has been brought under the Disney umbrella, it was inevitable that the characters would be brought together, and they now appear in The Simpsons in Plusaversary.
The short manages to capture the best of both worlds, with the Disney characters appearing in a way that is reminiscent of their own style meshed nicely with that of The Simpsons.
Olaf Presents
The Disney canon is full of fantastic sidekicks, but there are few as effervescent and lovable as Olaf, the snowman from Frozen.
In this case, the new series will focus on the snowman narrating the stories of many of the canonical Disney films, though with his own take on events. Josh Gad brings his own unique brand of charisma to the role of Olaf, who adopts essentially all of the roles necessary, including acting out the parts of Ariel, the Genie, and Simba.
Frozen Fever
Olaf Presents isn’t the only spinoff from the Frozen movies, and Frozen Fever is a short from 2015 that focuses on a birthday party for Anna that’s being thrown by her sister and their friends. It manages to both capture the spirit of the original--particularly the unbreakable bond between the two sisters--while also bringing something new to the table.
The new song is especially infectious, and so it is a good thing that the short will finally be available for streaming on Disney+.
Feast
The power of Disney’s shorts is that they so often manage to capture an entire feature’s length of story and character development in a very short window, and all of the studio’s strengths in that regard are on offer in Feast, which has recently had its streaming premiere on Disney+.
With its story about the unbreakable bond between a Boston terrier and his owner, made evident through food, this is a story that demonstrates why Disney remains one of the best creators of animated magic.
Paperman
Some animated shorts do more than just tell a story; they seek to become nothing less than art. This is true of Paperman, one of the most highly-regarded of the shorts that Disney has produced in the previous decade.
This particular short features an extraordinary blending of traditional and computer imagery, all shot in an evocative and artful black-and-white. As the title suggests, it focuses on a newspaperman, and it was so well-received by critics that it earned an Academy Award.
Get A Horse!
In the early days of Disney, the studio was famous for producing not only high-quality shorts in the traditional style, but making also quite a few of them. While shorts aren’t as much of an emphasis for the studio as in previous decades, they still create some that are evocative of those earlier periods, including Get a Horse!
What is especially appealing about this short is that it not only tells a self-contained story, but is also a testament to just how much animation has changed since the early days of the studio, containing many homages to classic shorts.
Dinosaur Barbarian
One of the studio’s more whimsical shorts of recent vintage is Dinosaur Barbarian. Presented as essentially the beginning of a television series featuring a monster-fighting barbarian, it is especially evocative of an earlier period of Saturday morning cartoons.
Even more notable is just how much the short manages to pack into its very short length, revealing a great deal about this character, his life, and his habits, which are a peculiar yet strangely compelling mix of domestic and superhero.
Crosswalk
Crosswalk was another of the recently-released shorts from Disney. Featuring an animation style that is unique, it focused on a man whose attempts to cross the street are repeatedly stymied by a walk sign that either refuses to give him permission or forces him to perform an increasingly bizarre set of actions.
The style is reminiscent of stop-motion and, with its classic story of man vs. machine, it manages to be a surprisingly sophisticated, and at times very funny, take on this conflict.
Songs To Sing In the Dark
2021 was a very strong year for Disney animated shorts, many of which are notable for being directed by women.
Songs to Sing in the Dark, like all of the best short films, manages to combine slick animation with a powerful message. In this case, the competition between two subterranean creatures escalates until they both realize that the music they create together is far more beautiful than anything they can do on their own. With its haunting sounds and its stunning visuals, this is a short that is sure to become a classic.