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It’s been 16 years since Pixar won the Oscar for best animated short (Ralph Eggleston’s “For the Birds”). Wouldn’t it be fitting if Alan Barillaro’s fine-feathered “Piper” ended the drought? That would give Pixar four Oscars (alongside Geri’s Game” and “Tin Toy”).

However, “Piper” faces stiff competition, particularly from Theodore Ushev’s much darker “Blind Vaysha” from the National Film Board of Canada, which has earned a dozen Oscars.

The other three contenders range from Robert Valley’s bleak “Pear Cider and Cigarettes” (Vimeo’s first Oscar nom), the melancholy Western, “Borrowed Time” (made independently by Pixar’s Andrew Coats and Lou Hamou-Lhadj), and the introspective “Pearl” from Oscar winner Patrick Osborne (Disney’s “Feast”), the first Vr nominee from Google Spotlight Stories.

“Piper”

The rite of passage for the adorable sand piper continues a long Pixar tradition of incubating innovative tech in its shorts program.

This year a record 69 animated short films vied for an Oscar nomination, with ten making the shortlist, and five final nominations.

For six years, Disney or Pixar has been nominated in the category every year, and won twice (“Paperman” and “Feast”). This year Pixar’s “Piper,” from Alan Barillaro (“Wall·E,” “Brave,” “Finding Nemo”), could mark a Pixar win for the first time since Ralph Eggleston’s “For the Birds” 15 years ago. That would give Pixar four Oscars (alongside Geri’s Game” and “Tin Toy”).

Read more: Oscars 2017 Animated Shorts: Will ‘Piper’ End Pixar’s 15-Year Drought?

However, “Piper” faces stiff competition, particularly from Theodore Ushev’s much darker “Blind Vaysha” from the National Film Board of Canada, which has earned a dozen Oscars. The other three contenders range from Robert Valley’s bleak “Pear Cider and Cigarettes” (Vimeo’s first Oscar nom), the melancholy Western, “Borrowed Time” (made independently...

Pixar’s “Finding Dory,” the sequel to their 2003 film “Finding Nemo,” will soon enter theaters and the early buzz has been very positive. IndieWire’s own David Ehrlich described the film as Pixar’s “best sequel in years,” and said that it would give a whole new generation of kids the idea that sequels “aren’t de facto cash-ins, but rather films that are capable of retroactively adding new dimensions to beloved originals.”

But preceding “Finding Dory” will be Pixar’s latest short film “Piper,” directed by Alan Barillaro, about a hungry baby sandpiper struggling with hydrophobia. Watch a clip from “Piper” above featuring the sandpiper in question trying to pick up bubbles with his beak.

Read More: ‘Finding Dory’ Review Roundup: Critics Agree Pixar’s Newest Sequel Is a Delight

Pixar Animation Studios has released some of the most acclaimed animated films over the last twenty years. Some of their titles include “Toy Story,” “Monsters, Inc.,” “The Incredibles,” “Wall-e,” “Up,” and most recently, “Inside Out,” which took home the Oscar for Best Animated Feature last year. Pixar’s shorts have played a key role in the studio’s history, with many of the early shorts showcasing then groundbreaking innovations in computer animation. A new Pixar short has preceded every one of their features since their second film “A Bug’s Life.” Their shorts “Tin Toy,” “Geri’s Game,” and “For the Birds” have all won the Oscar for Best Animated Short Film.

“Finding Dory” will be released nationwide on July 17.

Read More: How Innovative Pixar Short ‘Piper’ Got Sculpted

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Related stories'Finding Dory' Review Roundup: Critics Agree Pixar's Newest Sequel Is a DelightReview: 'Finding Dory' Is A Compelling Argument In Defense Of SequelsHow Innovative Pixar Short 'Piper' Got Sculpted...

While Pixar has been a force to be reckoned with in the Animated Feature category at the Oscars winning seven of its 10 bids, it has not been as strong in the Animated Short category, with only three victories: "Tin Toy" (1988), "Geri's Game" (1997) and "For the Birds" (2001). But Pixar's fortunes look like they might change this year with "Sanjay's Super Team," which is the overwhelming frontrunner to win. Below, let's take a look at the varied collection of films in contention for this year's prize. -Break- Subscribe to Gold Derby Breaking News Alerts & Experts’ Latest Oscar Predictions "Sanjay's Super Team" Young Sanjay loves watching TV and playing with his action figures but not engaging in daily Hindu prayers with his father. While this disappoints his father, Sanjay begins to imagine a new perspective of the religion that allows him to appreciate his faith. ...

Today audiences know Pixar Animation for delivering stunning feature length computer animated movies. But before they were able to complete the incredible feat that was Toy Story, they created computer animated shorts in the late 1980s. One of their earliest shorts was Tin Toy, a predecessor to Toy Story in more ways than one, and […]

The post Cool Stuff: Custom Lego Version of Pixar’s ‘Tin Toy’ Short appeared first on /Film.

Actress Michelle Rodriguez, actor Jason Mitchell and Oscar-winning director John Lasseter, along with Roy Conli, Don Hall and Chris Williams, the producing and directing team behind the Animated Feature Film Oscar winner “Big Hero 6,” will be presenters at the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences’ 42nd Student Academy Awards on Thursday, September 17, at 7:30 p.m. at the Samuel Goldwyn Theater in Beverly Hills.

The awards ceremony caps a week of industry activities for the 15 winning student filmmakers from the U.S. and abroad.

Rodriguez is a versatile actress whose breakout performance in “Girlfight” (2000) garnered her numerous awards, including an Independent Spirit Award for Best Debut Performance as well as a National Board of Review Award for Breakthrough Performance-Female. She went on to star in the multi-billion dollar “Fast and Furious” franchise. In addition, Rodriguez has starred in such film and television projects as “Avatar” for director James Cameron,...

Pioneering woman director Lois Weber socially conscious drama 'Shoes' among Library of Congress' Packard Theater movies (photo: Mary MacLaren in 'Shoes') In February 2015, National Film Registry titles will be showcased at the Library of Congress' Packard Campus Theater – aka the Packard Campus for Audio Visual Conservation – in Culpeper, Virginia. These range from pioneering woman director Lois Weber's socially conscious 1916 drama Shoes to Robert Zemeckis' 1985 blockbuster Back to the Future. Another Packard Theater highlight next month is Sam Peckinpah's ultra-violent Western The Wild Bunch (1969), starring William Holden and Ernest Borgnine. Also, Howard Hawks' "anti-High Noon" Western Rio Bravo (1959), toplining John Wayne and Dean Martin. And George Cukor's costly remake of A Star Is Born (1954), featuring Academy Award nominees Judy Garland and James Mason in the old Janet Gaynor and Fredric March roles. There's more: Jeff Bridges delivers a colorful performance in...

Walt Disney chief creative officer (Cco) John Lasseter talked about the influences of Japan, its art and Hayao Miyazaki’s animation in particular on his work, Pixar and even in winning his wife’s hand at a talk on “Cool Japan” held by the Tokyo International Film Festival on Friday.

Asked to hold the talk by his friend Toshio Suzuki of Studio Ghibli, Lasseter said, “I started looking through the old photographs of my trips to Japan. I’m very emotional about this talk about what a huge influence the country of Japan its people and my friend Hayao Miyazaki had on me.”

He described how his earliest exposure to Japan was with cartoons that he didn’t even know were from the country at first, and how his frustration later on in life as a Disney animator in a Hollywood where animation was just seen as “for kids” was solved when he first met with Miyazaki...

They're talented, individual, but could, possibly, do with a bit of editorial guidance. Could these directors use a boss, we wonder?

Odd List

In truth, we're a bit frightened about this one. Several times in pub/coffee shop/cider drinking in the park conversations, we've chatted about film directors who perhaps have got too powerful, that they seem to be able to get their own way without having someone to call bullshit on them - be it a good boss, or a very good friend that they trust and listen to.

This can be a very good thing. After all, we want film directors to be free to tell their stories. We don't want studio suits calling the shots. And some directors use their independence wondefully well, without losing what bought it to them in the first place (so, Steven Spielberg, Martin Scorsese, Christopher Nolan, Robert Zemeckis and such like).

Still,...

One of the highlights of the Disney animation panel at this year's D23 Expo was the ten minutes of footage screened from the first-ever Pixar television special, "Toy Story of Terror!," a "Toy Story" spinoff airing this Halloween on the Disney-owned ABC. At the end of the highly evocative clip, the collected audience let out an audible groan. We wanted it all!

One thing teased by that footage (but never actually seen) was the inclusion of Combat Carl, the G.I. Joe-style war toy who was blown to smithereens by the evil toy torturer Sid in the original "Toy Story." Well, Combat Carl is back in "Toy Story Of Terror!," and guess who voices him? That's right: Apollo Creed himself, Carl Weathers. Please file this under: amazing.

Today, we finally gotten our first look at Carl (via Empire), and he appears to be ready for battle. We can't wait to...

Sbs's countdown to Tropfest highlights the best of short film ahead of the summer festival. Which are your favourites?

For Australian film fans, Tropfest is a summer essential that has long been celebrated with a picnic in Sydney's Domain – or other outdoor venues broadcasting around the country – while keeping a wary eye on summer storm clouds. So those with both sunbaked and sodden memories of battling the crowds and the elements to champion short films will surely join me in welcoming the launch of Tropfest TV. Launched on Sunday night, the next 12 weeks, SBS2 has the next 12 weeks sorted with weekly thematically linked selections of Tropfest shorts from home and away, including New Zealand, USA and the Middle East.

I can trace my love of short films back to Disney's 1952 classic Lambert the Sheepish Lion. I must have watched that eight-minute fable a thousand times as a child. These days,...

This is another edition of Short Starts, where we present a weekly short film(s) from the start of a filmmaker or actor’s career. You may not think there’s anything worth knowing about the director of Red 2, which opens this Friday. But Dean Parisot, who is best known for helming Galaxy Quest, is an Academy Award-winning filmmaker. He got his start by directing two excellent, slightly surreal shorts in the 1980s, the second of which, The Appointments of Dennis Jennings, won the Oscar in 1989 for Best Live Action Short. (That was a great year for short winners, by the way, as it saw Pixar’s John Lasseter receive his first with Tin Toy and documentarian Bill Guttentag win his first with You Don’t Have to Die.) Parisot shares his honor with comedian Steven Wright, who co-wrote the witty little movie with Mike Armstrong. The acceptance speech was a highlight of the year’s...

An incredible and rewarding work of art that’s improved with age.

About a year ago, Disney produced 3D conversions of both Beauty and the Beast and The Lion King for Blu-ray. The latter was re-released in theaters for two weeks as part of the home video promotion. Unexpectedly, it did gangbusters at the box-office, even taking the number one spot for two consecutive weekends ahead of new releases. Not bad for a seventeen year old film. Sensing there was more money to be made, Disney came up with a new game plan. Even though the 3D version of Beauty was on store shelves, they would re-release it in theaters as well that January. Makes sense, since the average household doesn’t have a blu-ray player in their home theater, let alone 3D capability. Future re-releases would include, The Little Mermaid and Monsters, Inc., as a tie-in to its sequel...

Short films attached to animated features are nothing new. Studios did it years ago to pad the run time of usually shorter animated efforts. Then Pixar brought back the lost art, giving us such memorable (and Oscar-winning) shorts as Tin Toy, Geri.s Game and For the Birds. Now it appears Disney will get back in the game by attaching the animated short Paperman to November.s eagerly anticipated video-game story Wreck-It Ralph. The studio has shared the first few images from the short to give us an idea what the visuals will look like. We have them for you below. Paperman will use a groundbreaking new technique that merges computer-generated and hand-drawn animation techniques. The short will be helmed by first-time director John Kahrs, whose black-and-white story follows the story of a lonely young man in mid-century New York City who uses a stack of papers to get the...

For more than fifteen years, Pixar has represented the gold standard in computer generated films. Since the studio’s early days of making groundbreaking short films to producing Oscar-winning feature-length movies, Pixar has become a brand associated with quality animation and adorable characters. There have been some bumps along the road, from a love-hate-owner relationship with Disney to some questionable sequels, but few studios can boast such a consistent level of quality and innovation. This week, Pixar will be releasing its 13th full-length feature, Brave, with an entire new cast of characters different from any other Pixar film. This gives us a chance to look into Pixar’s past and remember some of the favorite characters from their films. Luxo Jr. First appearance: Luxo Jr. (1986) Not everyone has seen this loveable short film from the mid-80s. Along with The Adventures of Andre and Wally B. in 1984, Red’s Dream in 1987, and Tin Toy in 1988, Luxo Jr. was...

Pixar, of course, cut its teeth on shorts, winning its first Oscar for "Tin Toy" (1989), which paved the way for "Toy Story." Since then, Pixar has continued to regularly leverage its shorts program as a training ground for directors and incubator for technology. But this year, coinciding with its 25th anniversary, Pixar has been even more active than usual, releasing four shorts, including two legacy projects related to "Cars" and "Toy Story" -- "Air Mater" and "Small Fry" -- made at the new Pixar Canada facility in Vancouver. However, the real Pixar Oscar contender is "La Luna," a wistful coming of age fable from...

Why Watch? In 1988, Pixar’s Tin Toy won the Oscar for Best Animated Short. The studio’s history after that is well known, but one of the shorts that it beat out for gold was just about as symbolic as you could ask for. Technological Threat, from Brian Jennings and Bill Kroyer, was a blend of rudimentary computer animation and hand-drawn traditional that told the story of computers taking over all the artist jobs. It predicted the future the very year that it started coming to pass. The movie itself is an homage to Tex Avery-style cartoons, with dogs in suits trying desperately to draw while burdened by exhaustion, sneezing fits, and a need to stay hydrated. The robots, of course, don’t face the same problems, and as the room fills up with them, one dog fights back. Of course, unlike the story, there was no beating the tide of computer animation, making...

Toy Story 3D Blu-Ray Combo Pack Walt Disney Home Entertainment 1995 & 2009/Rated G/Running Time 81 Mins List Price: $49.99 – Available November 1, 2011 Back during the Fall of 1995, I had absolutely no interest in seeing Toy Story. Disney had enjoyed tremendous success and a resurgence of quality film-making that began with the 1989 release of The Little Mermaid. Classic Disney quality films were back and the subsequent releases of Beauty and the Beast, Aladdin and The Lion King, secured their new foothold in the industry and at the box-office. Yet the studio was also in danger of becoming a cold corporate entity. For every Beauty and the Beast, their live action division was turning out crappy soulless films like The Three Musketeers or the Pauley Shore vehicle In The Army Now.As the first full length computer animated feature Toy Story had a cold, soulless look to it upon first glance. As impressive as CGI was,...

While Disney was promoting the Blu-ray and DVD release of Cars 2 on November 1, the day Disney/Pixar animation czar John Lasseter happened to get his star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, it was still a happy day and a well-deserved honor. Disney's Rich Ross and Sean Bailey, Pixar's Ed Catmull, Bob Peterson and Pete Docter, voice talent Owen Wilson, Bonnie Franklin, Patton Oswalt, John Ratzenberger and Don Rickles, as well as composer Randy Newman, all showed support for the guy Emily Mortimer called a "genius." That he is--no one has delivered a more consistent body of stellar work on film since Walt Disney himself, from the first Oscar-winning CG short, Tin Toy which Pixar owner Steve Jobs approved, saying "make it great," and ...

Apple co-founder Steve Jobs has died at the age of 56, it’s been confirmed.

The world is down one geek today, as it’s been announced that Steve Jobs has died, at the age of 56. It’s no secret that he’d been suffering from pancreatic cancer, which he had been fighting since 2004, and it’s to his immense credit that he managed to hold it off for so long.

A statement from Apple read that “Apple has lost a visionary and creative genius, and the world has lost an amazing human being. Those of us who have been fortunate enough to know and work with Steve have lost a dear friend and an inspiring mentor”.

What’s sometimes overlooked is just how much movie fans have reason to be grateful to Jobs.

It was he, after all, who took a punt on a small company called Pixar, funding it...

Ok, so our Obsessed With Pixar month has so far been dominated with the studio’s exceptional feature film output, but their roots lie firmly within short film production. Starting in 1984 the company has made 20 shorts on a range of subjects, the most recent being Hawaiian Vacation with the stars of Toy Story (I’ve unfortunately not seen it yet, as it has yet to be released alongside Cars 2 in the UK – perhaps some of our Us readers could enlighten us!?!).

As A Bug’s Life (1998) was released, Pixar decided to accompany this with their short film Geri’s Game, to great success. Since then, each of the studio’s theatrical releases has featured a short film before the main production, harking back to the golden era of Hollywood when A grade feature films would be accompanied by a B feature, a news reel and a cartoon. Generally adopting a very moralistic stance,...

Twenty three years ago, fledgling studio Pixar took a giant leap for animation by creating some tiny baby steps.

Now the top name in cutting edge animation, Pixar wasn't always so prominent and beloved. The studio was originally George Lucas' in-house special effects group, went independent and focused on hardware sales, and then, following their purchase by a certain Steve Jobs, finally began fully concentrating on bringing computer animation to life, determined to change the way the art is created and viewed.

The studio released its first independent short film in 1986, "Luxo Jr.," which followed the Lucasfilm-era release of "Andre and Wally B.," on which John Lasseter, the legendary Pixar animator/director/producer, made his CGI debut. "Luxo Jr." earned the studio an unexpected Academy Award nomination for Best Short Film, heralding, quietly, the coming animation revolution.

Then came "Red's Dream," the story of a lonely unicycle, in 1987. Following that was "Tin Toy,...

Behold the blurry teaser poster (courtesy of Pixar Planet) for Pixar's Brave an original story with their first female lead "Princess Merida"

 

I normally wouldn't post a blurry advertisement, but having just seen Cars 2, I'm going to rub this teaser all over me for soothing balm. I need this one to be great. Cars 2 stinks (more later) and the Toy Story short that proceeds it "Hawaiian Vacation" is also soul-crushing. Oh Pixar, you said farewell to these characters so beautifully last year. You had a whole world weeping under 3D glasses and then you bring the whole gang back instantly for such a disposable mediocrity? What are we going to do with you? We depend on you! Love - a concerned fan since that bootleg viewing of Tin Toy in the 1980s.

The Ichiro Suzuki of Hollywood, Pixar so far has batted 11-for-11 in feature film hits, generating $6.6 billion in worldwide grosses and 40 Oscar nominations. Woody and Buzz Lightyear to Wall•E and Lightning McQueen have yielded even more in ancillary revenue for parent company Disney from toys, clothes, DVDs, and theme-park attractions. Pixar has 1,200 employees so there’s a lot of credit to go around, but no single person has been more vital to the Pixar success story than chief creative officer John Lasseter. The 54-year-old, Hawaiian shirt-wearing filmmaker has directed five of Pixar’s features, including this month’s Cars 2.

[1] We've featured a handful of director [2] montages [3] here on /Film recently, and while this "25 Years of Pixar" compilation isn't quite that, it's actually pretty similar. In terms of look, tone, and quality, I'd say Pixar is as consistent as many directors. For the video, NkMcDonalds pulled scenes from works spanning over decades -- from '80s shorts to this year's Cars 2. If you like Pixar as much as I do, it'll definitely make you smile and it might even make you tear up a little tiny bit. Watch it after the jump. [via Go Into the Story [4]] Watching all the Pixar films spliced together like this, it's very easy to see how the studio has evolved over the years from a technical standpoint. Clips from films like A Bug's Life, which looked sophisticated at the time, now look clunky next to the sleeker visuals of newer movies like Wall-e and Up. But it also becomes...

Will audiences be going to the cinema this summer to see short films, such as Toy Story: Hawaiian Vacation, rather than the main features, wonders James?

I find myself entwined in the very same feeling each time I visit the cinema in early spring. I'm sitting in there, waiting patiently for a film that I'm not that fussed about to flick onto the screen. To be honest, I'm probably only in there to keep out of the rain.

Then the trailers start and an animated lamp springs across the screen, making a little wheeze with every jump. And from that point, until I reach the depths of summer, I become a child. An impatient child, waiting to immerse myself in the colourful, majestic world of Pixar. Every year.

This year, however, I'm not so sure. I don't doubt that Cars 2 will have its charms. But I never fell...

Out Pixar producer Darla K. Anderson produced Toy Story 3, the winner of this year’s Oscar for Best Animated Feature, as well as A Bug’s Life, Monster’s Inc. and Cars. With her movies grossing more than two billion dollars worldwide, she is one of the most successful women in the industry. She counts hands-on mentoring from Steve Jobs and John Lasseter early in her career as part of that success.

A Pixar public relations representative says that Anderson has always been out at work. Recently, she joined some other Pixar employees for an It Gets Better video.

"Pixar is made up of just a crazy combination of people," says Anderson in the video. "Most of those unique individuals weren’t the most popular in high school and junior high. Thank goodness, we hung around, and found each other, and created this familial tribe of people." She adds, "I...

So the rumours and hearsay were true. We haven’t seen the last of Woody and gang which we were lead to believe with the great swansong known as Toy Story 3. The gang will be back for a short film to run before Cars 2 this summer.

Disney sent us over this press release for people to read then check out the clip below:

“In celebration of their recent Oscar® win for Best Animated Feature, Woody, Buzz and the rest of the “Toy Story 3” gang head to the big screen again this summer in “Hawaiian Vacation,” a 3D animated short directed by seven-time Academy Award®-winner Gary Rydstrom. “Hawaiian Vacation” will appear exclusively with the upcoming “Cars 2” theatrical release, which races into U.K. cinemas on July 22, 2011, and will be presented in Disney Digital 3D™ and IMAX® 3D in select cinemas. John Lasseter returns to the driver’s seat...

Appearing exclusively with the theatrical release of the forthcoming Disney-Pixar feature Cars 2, the animated short Hawaiian Vacation features Buzz, Woody and all your favourites characters from Toy Story 3 in an all-new adventure! The folks at Disney have just sent us the films official synopsis (which sounds like a great addition to the Toy Story franchise), two images and the first teaser clip for the movie. Check them all out below:

In celebration of their recent Oscar® win for Best Animated Feature, Woody, Buzz and the rest of the “Toy Story 3” gang head to the big screen again this summer in “Hawaiian Vacation,” a 3D animated short directed by seven-time Academy Award®-winner Gary Rydstrom. “Hawaiian Vacation” will appear exclusively with the upcoming “Cars 2” theatrical release, which races into U.K. cinemas on July 22, 2011, and will be presented in Disney Digital 3D™ and IMAX® 3D in select cinemas. John Lasseter...

Disney Pixar have just released this brand new clip from the new Toy Story short which is set to sit in front of Cars 2 when it’s released 22nd July.

This timing couldn’t be more perfect after Lee Unkrich and his team walked away with the Best Animation Oscar for Toy Story 3 at this years academy awards.

Love this new clip, especially the Lego men who I think have their debut in the Toy Story franchise. So great to see the Toy Story cast back. I wonder if this means that we could expect more Toy Story following this short. Lets hope so!

Check out the clip below and have a read of what we can expect in the synopsis below.

Disney•Pixar’S “Hawaiian Vacation” Takes “Toy Story” Characters On Brand-new Adventure

Appearing Exclusively with “Cars 2” Theatrical Release, New Short Film Features Buzz, Woody and Favorites from “Toy Story 3”

Burbank,...

By Sean O’Connell

Hollywoodnews.com: Animation has a friend in John Lasseter, who Friday night was honored for his contributions to the cartoon genre with a lifetime achievement award from Shorts International, the entertainment organization dedicated to the truncated medium of short films.

“It feels fantastic because I love short films,” said Lasseter, according to the AP. “I love the art form and what it did for me as a filmmaker. I learned so much from making short films. They’re these little gems, these fantastic little ideas that are not meant to be a feature film. They’re perfect unto themselves. A great short film leaves you smiling and thinking about it.”

Lasseter speaks from experience. He burst on the scene with his Oscar-winning short film “Tin Toy,” which was one of the first steps in a career that went on to found and run Pixar Animation Studios.

The Short Films and Feature Animation viewing committee has winnowed the 33 eligible animated shorts down to 10 which will now be screened by all interested members of the branch to determine the final Oscar nominees. They will use the same scoring system -- 10 (excellent), 8 (good), 7 (fair) or 6 (poor) -- and only those films scoring at least an average of 7.5 are eligible to be nominated, with that roster to be limited to between three and five. Final voting will be open to all Academy members who attend screenings, with the exception of those members of the Branch who have watched all the semi-finalists already; they may vote by mail. Among the 10 shorts in contention is Teddy Newton's "Day & Night" from three-time champ Pixar ("Tin Toy," 1988; "Geri's Game," 1997; and "For the Birds," 2001). The return of Wile E. Coyote and Road Runner after a seven-year absence in "Coyote Falls" merited a nomination for director.

This weekend when you see Toy Story 3 --it's safe to assume you'll be there? -- you'll first see a new Pixar short called Day & Night (2010). Don't be surprised if it wins an Oscar on February 27th, 2011. I don't want to spoil one second of the short because it's so inventive, fun and technically /conceptually strong. It's often all of those things simultaneously. You're in for a treat.

Despite Pixar's reputation as an Oscar hog, they're more Streep than Hepburn; They're nominated frequently but they win less than people have imagined.

Unless you're talking about animated features in which case, yes, yes, they win that a lot. They've won it 5 out of its 9 years. But they also lose ridiculous contests like Monsters, Inc vs. Shrek... despite the math being Monsters, Inc > Shrek by 1000 to 1. Argh. That one will haunt me forever.

Pixar Shorts Oscar History

Winners: Tin Toy (1988), Gerri's Game...

John Lasseter is very excited about the new “Toy Story 3” toys. As he should be, given that he’s chief creative officer of Pixar and Disney. But it’s more than that. Lasseter is a lifelong toy enthusiast who has exhibited his interest in playthings since the beginnings of Pixar, with short films like “Luxo Jr.” and “Tin Toy.”

The animator-turned-exec was in New York City to unveil the new line of “Toy Story 3” toys and be inducted into the Toy Industry Hall of Fame, an honor he shares with no less than Walt Disney. “Toys have been such a big part of my life,” he told MTV News during the event. “And of course it's my love for toys that was the original idea for ‘Toy Story,’ so it's fun. It’s like we’ve come full circle.”

It’s no surprise then to learn that he...

The Producers Guild of America will honor Disney/Pixar animation whiz John Lasseter with its 2010 David O. Selznick Achievement Award in Motion Pictures at the 21st annual PGA Awards ceremony on Jan. 24 at the Hollywood Palladium.

Lasseter, who holds the title of chief creative officer at Walt Disney and Pixar Animation Studios, is the first producer of animated films to be awarded the Selznick, which is given in recognition of a body of work.

He was the co-recipient of the PGA's first-ever Vanguard Award in 2002.

"John Lasseter is a uniquely talented producer with the rare combination of technical ingenuity and creative vision. He's a wonderful storyteller, consistently displaying extraordinary skill, humanity and grace," said David Friendly and Laurence Mark, co-chairs of the PGA Awards.

Lasseter has picked up two Oscars -- one for the short film "Tin Toy" and the other a special achievement award for 1995's "Toy Story" -- and directed "Toy Story,...

tuesday thursday top ten: for the listmaker in me and the listlover in you

What follows is a reworking of a post originally published in 2007. It's two years later and you know what that means: Pixar has given us two more classics. Up brings their feature film count to ten. You know what Ten means: Top Ten Time!

Pixar by Preference

Cars (John Lasseter, 2006) 117 min.

Pixar's only dud. Chief among its problems: the anthropomorphics were forced. Let me get this straight: Cars as bugs on windshields of cars as cars who act like humans and they even sleep in hotels for cars -- What? What? It's not quite Shark Tale in the realm of painful "they're just like us!" pandering but it's not 'good' either. I would give it a second chance except it's also Pixar's longest feature... too long by about 23 minutes. Thankfully, they seem to have reversed their bloated running time trending.