Since the company’s beginnings in the 80s, Pixar has become known as a ground-breaking animation studio that debuted its first feature-length theatrical film in 1995 with Toy Story which was followed by a number of award-winning films like Finding Nemo, The Incredibles, and the most recent release of Soul on Disney+.
However, Pixar has also released a number of amazing short films in theaters from visionary creators that have become both critically-acclaimed and favorited by fans, with each new theatrical film from the studio carrying further excitement for the release of the latest Pixar short film, which we’ll be looking at today based on IMDb rankings.
10 Bao – 7.5
2018 saw the release of the highly-anticipated Incredibles 2, which played after writer/director Domee Shi’s short film Bao, which won the Oscar for the Best Animated Short Film to join a number of other past Pixar winners.
The short follows a Korean-Canadian mother who finds a new recipient of her love after her young son moves away in a dumpling that comes to life, though the mother is forced to confront her overprotectiveness when she decides to eat her new love to keep it with her instead of letting it grow away from her in the emotionally-gripping film.
9 Lifted – 7.8
Gary Rydstrom wrote and directed 2006’s Lifted, which released in theaters alongside Ratatouille in 2007 and followed a young alien abductor-in-training as he attempted to abduct a sleeping human while being watched over by an older alien. Unfortunately, the young alien is forced to navigate a huge board of unlabeled switches in order to pass his test.
His inexperience resulted in a number of hilarious accidents with the sleeping human as he is captured in a tractor beam and flung around his bedroom before nearly being dropped to his death. Thankfully the instructor was able to save the day, though a final attempt by his student to pilot the ship afterward led to further comical mishaps that failed to wake the potential abductee.
8 Geri’s Game – 7.9
Pixar’s first project to star a human main character and one of Pixar’s first shorts in almost a decade after the studio began to focus on Toy Story was 1997’s Geri’s Game from writer/director Jan Pinkava, which showed in theaters before 1998’s A Bug’s Life.
Geri’s Game saw the titular Geri challenge himself to a hard-hitting game of chess in the park as he outplayed himself before resulting in a faked heart attack to win the match. The short was an instant hit with fans and began the long tradition of shorts playing alongside feature-length films, while Geri later appeared in Toy Story 2 as the Cleaner brought in to refurbish Woody.
7 Lou – 7.9
2017’s Lou by writer/director Dave Mullins released into theaters alongside Cars 3 after premiering at the South by Southwest festival and received a nomination for the Best Animated Short Film at the Academy Awards.
Lou was the name of a monster comprised of items from a Lost-and-Found box, who collected lost toys and clothes from a school playground with the hope of returning them to their owners. Lou engaged in a cute battle for the lost goods after a bully began to steal from the children, though they found common ground and new friends by returning the lost items.
6 Day & Night – 8
Teddy Newton’s directorial debut was 2010’s Day & Night, which was shown in theaters before Toy Story 3 and later released on iTunes, as it was one of the most unique Pixar shorts that had ever been produced in the studio’s history.
Day & Night combined 2D and 3D animation techniques as two 2D characters that represented the titular aspects of the daily cycle with 3D images and landscapes viewable through their outlines as they learned of each other’s existence and erupted into a battle over their differences before they soon became impressed with each other.
5 La Luna – 8
Enrico Casarosa’s 2011 animated short La Luna aired before 2012’s Brave and followed young Bambino as he headed out for an evening of work with his father and grandfather as they impart their knowledge to the next generation.
The beautiful Hayao Miyazaki anime-inspired short saw Bambino’s struggle with his Papa and Nonno’s differing skills and techniques for their unique job of sweeping fallen stars from the night sky. However, Bambino is able to find his own methods to impress those who came before him in the beautiful La Luna.
4 For The Birds – 8
Like most of Pixar’s short films, For The Birds from writer/director Ralph Eggleston debuted in theaters alongside another Pixar feature-length release as it played before 2001’s Monsters, Inc. before later winning the Academy Award for Best Short Animated Film.
The short explored a flock of small birds as they settled on a power line and began to make fun of a bigger bird that was trying to join them, which hilariously resulted in their dramatic comeuppance. The birds from the short would also make brief cameos in other films like Cars and Inside Out.
3 Partly Cloudy – 8.2
2009 saw the release of Pixar’s Up, which aired after Peter Sohn’s Partly Cloudy, which explored the classic myth about baby-delivering storks by reimagining the source of the various human and animal babies as loveable clouds who work together with the storks.
Partly Cloudy follows a particular partnership as Gus the cloud makes uniquely hazardous baby animals that cause his stork Peck bodily harm. However, the two find a new resolve to work together after Peck is equipped with football gear by another friendly cloud.
2 Presto – 8.3
Veteran Pixar animator made his directorial debut with 2008’s Presto which was released in theaters alongside WALL-E and explored the relationship between the classic magician Presto and his performing rabbit, Alec Azam.
After the busy magician failed to feed Alec due to the beginning of their performance, the trick rabbit turned the tables on Presto with his magical top hat and a series of hilarious mishaps and gags that homaged classic Looney Tunes-style cartoons, making Presto an instant favorite.
1 Piper – 8.4
Pixar’s highly-anticipated sequel Finding Dory hit theaters in 2016 alongside writer/director Alan Barillaro’s Piper, which followed a baby sandpiper bird as she attempted to learn how to forage for food while avoiding the terrifying tide as it washed up and down the beach.
While the bird was initially traumatized by her brush with the ocean, she soon found new confidence and a new friend who taught her how to appreciate the beauty of the environment and the other animals that co-existed alongside her flock.
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