Over the 40 years they've existed, Pixar have established themselves as a clear leader in the animation industry, even long before they were acquired by the Walt Disney Company in 2006. One of the early adopters of the computer generated form of animation, Pixar's style set the tone for the new millennium in the world of animation, and everyone else was forced to catch up.
Although they are perhaps best known for their many, many successful feature films and franchises - including the Toy Story films; the Monsters, Inc. universe; the Finding Nemo/Finding Dory series; the Cars franchise; and more - Pixar are also undeniably known for their distinct short films.
Now customarily paired with every Pixar release, these films have acquired a fanbase and high quality reputation of their own - and rightly so. Here, we take a look at the best ten of them all.
Tin Toy
As one of Pixar's first short films, Tin Toy, produced in 1988 but not released to a larger public audience until Toy Story was produced years later, follows a tin one man band toy, aptly named Tinny, as he navigates life as a toy for a particularly enthusiastic little baby. Tinny spends much of the five minute film trying to avoid the baby's wrath, only to come around in the end and realize just how important he is to the baby and vice versa.
The film's overall influence on the Pixar brand cannot be overstated, as this clearly laid the groundwork for the idea for the Toy Story franchise. While perhaps more limited in its scope than some of the other short films on this list, Tin Toy still remains one of the best of them all.
Luxo Jr.
Produced in 1986, the two minute short film Luxo Jr. may be one of the most influential shorts that Pixar ever produced - at least from a purely corporate branding perspective. The story of the short is relatively basic: a large desk lamp, Luxo Sr., watches a smaller desk lamp, Luxo Jr., as it runs around the desk and plays with rubber balls of varying sizes, hopping on a smaller one until the poor ball deflates.
There isn't much more to it than that, but that's all it took for Pixar to find itself in the presence of a great visual they couldn't let go of. Luxo Jr. should be familiar to all Pixar fans everywhere, as "he" is the lamp that jumps up and down on the letter I in the Pixar logo before every Pixar production.
Boundin'
Paired with the release of the 2003 blockbuster The Incredibles, the Pixar short film Boundin' is arguably one of the most bizarrely illustrated stories any of the Pixar shorts have ever told. It tells the story of a dancing sheep who, after being sheared, can no longer dance. Just when it seems like he's given up completely, the mythical jackalope - a rabbit with the horns of an antelope - arrives and teaches him how to "bound" instead of dance, restoring his talent and self worth.
It's a quirky way to get across the message of persistence and perseverance, especially through the pairing of such disparate - and partially fabled - animals. But it's a true fable in the sense of a moral being told in the end, representing one of Pixar's most old fashioned stories as a result.
Knick Knack
Another Pixar short film that shows a message of not giving up in the face of seemingly insurmountable struggles is the 1989 short Knick Knack. Released theatrically along with the 2003 film Finding Nemo, Knick Knack follows Knick, a snowman who lives in a snowglobe on a shelf. He is, of course, stuck within his snowglobe home, but that doesn't keep him from admiring the world outside of his globe - including a beautiful blonde girl knick knack.
Knick spends the entire short trying his best to free himself from the snowglobe and meet the girl of his snowy dreams, only for everything that could possibly go wrong to do so in a hilarious fashion. It's not Pixar's most meaningful short by any measure, but it just may be one of the funniest and most unique of them all.
Partysaurus Rex
Pixar has produced seemingly countless short films that exist as spinoffs from their feature length films, but none of them is as innovative, visually stunning, and downright hilarious as the 2012 short Partysaurus Rex. Following Wallace Shawn's perpetually anxious Rex the dinosaur from the Toy Story franchise, this short film shows what happens when Rex unexpectedly finds himself stuck in the world of bathtime toys, and the chaos that erupts when he becomes their unconventional leader for a day.
As a result of the sudden promotion to a lofty position, Rex is heralded as hero since he can turn the bath water on and off whenever he pleases, unlike most of the smaller toys in the tub. This allows them to party whenever they feel like it... and, as with most Toy Story adventures, everything inevitably goes awry when the tub overflows.
Piper
In recent years, Pixar's animation style has been elevated to truly stunning new heights. The 2016 short film Piper could pass entirely for an almost photo realistic nature documentary, the animation is so breathtakingly beautiful. Released along with the 2016 film Finding Dory, Piper follows the life of Piper, a baby sandpiper bird, as she explores the world of the beach she and her family live on.
Despite her initial fear of the rushing waves, Piper soon befriends baby crabs that live closer to the water and finds herself falling in love with the environment in which she lives. In addition to the beautifully vivid sea life and crystalline water animation, the short also features some downright adorable shots of the fluffy little baby bird, making it truly enjoyable from start to finish.
Lava
As we've already discussed, Pixar animates water scenery like no other. Yet another example of their mastery of oceanic life can be found in the touching 2014 musical short film, Lava. Released in 2015 theatrically with the Pixar feature Inside Out, Lava chronicles the life of a volcano "living all alone in the middle of the sea" who craves a romantic connection with someone just like him after watching other species fall in love all around him.
Over thousands of years, the lonely volcano sings the song of his dreams, addressed to the one he hopes to love and grow old with. He "wish[es] that the earth, sea, and the sky up above will send [him] someone to lava." It's a truly adorable, moving, and sometimes cheesy short, resulting in a happily ever after when an underwater volcano gradually rises up to the surface over the following millennia and the two fall in love.
Bao
Many of Pixar's feature films chronicle the love between families, especially the bond between a parent and child, so it was about time, really, that one of their shorts did, too. Enter the 2018 short film Bao. Released alongside The Incredibles 2, the adorable and poignant short film Bao depicts a woman raising a bao dumpling that comes to life as though it were her own child.
It follows the mother and dumpling son from childhood to adulthood, as the son becomes more independent and grows away from the family. And, as is eventually revealed, it was all a dream, mirroring the real life distance that had grown between the woman and her adult son, with whom she tearfully reunites at the end of the short film.
Geri's Game
The slice of life Pixar short films are often some of the best ones, as we've seen so far. The 1997 short film Geri's Game may just be the clearest example of that fact. Geri's Game, released in theatres in 1998 with A Bug's Life, chronicles a day in the life of Geri, a sweet, funny, lonely old man, who spends his days playing chess in the park. He's a true chess genius and enthusiast, as the short follows him in his passionate attempts to win the game by any means necessary against his fierce opponent.
But what makes the film so wonderful, and so touching, is, of course, the reveal that there was never any opponent at all. Geri has been working himself into a frenzy by playing both sides of the board, checkmating against himself and losing to himself and beating himself all at the same time.
For the Birds
While the slice of life stories may be some of the best things Pixar has produced, sometimes, you just need something a little zanier, too. The 2000 short film For the Birds perfectly fits the bill, while also offering some witty social commentary. Premiering theatrically before the feature film Monsters, Inc. in 2001, For the Birds follows a group of small, mean-spirited birds who find their daily routine of sitting along a telephone wire interrupted by a large bird who looks nothing like them.
What follows is a clear metaphor of what can happen when people bully each other. Although the large bird just wants to be friends with the small birds, the small birds are nothing but mean to him - eventually receiving their just desserts when, realizing how cruel they are, the large bird departs from the weighted down telephone line and sends the mean birds flying featherless up into the air.