The aim of Pixar’s SparkShorts program is to provide more opportunities for diverse stories to be told from a larger group of filmmakers. It launched recently to wide acclaim, with the promise of several more shorts that will debut on Disney+ after the service makes its debut. Disney Animation is now taking a cue from Pixar and is developing its own series of “experimental” shorts.
Announced yesterday, Walt Disney Animation Studios will be the home for Short Circuit, the name of the new shorts program from the animation powerhouse. Oh My Disney provided a few details on the mission of Short Circuit:
The shorts are part of Short Circuit, the program where anyone at the Walt Disney Animation Studios can pitch an idea and potentially be selected to create an original short film with the support of the Studio and their fellow artists.
That sounds incredibly similar to how Pixar’s SparkShorts program functions. The idea is based on the premise that there are many, many talented people who work at Pixar and Disney and in ordinary circumstances, most of them will would never get the opportunity to create and develop their own idea for a film – like SparkShorts, Short Circuit seems to be acknowledging that and empowering everyone who works for the company to step forward with their idea and be provided with resources to tell their story and make their film a reality.
Three shorts in the Short Circuit program have been announced, as they will make their big-screen debut at the Annecy International Animation Film Festival in June.
The Annecy website has more details about the talent at Disney Animation working on these shorts. The shorts that will play at Annecy are:
- Jing Hua (Flower in the Mirror)
- Just a Thought
- Exchange Student
Considering what we have seen from SparkShorts, I think that Short Circuit sounds like a wonderful idea. There will be more creatives who are allowed to share their talented voice with the rest of the world. I am a firm believer in giving more individuals an avenue to tell a story – these companies employ a diverse group of people and giving them more opportunities to allow their unique voice to slip through will be better for both the studios and for us.
After playing at festivals, the shorts will land at their permanent home, Disney+, alongside SparkShorts. At this time, they are eyeing a release date sometime in Spring 2020. According to Annecy, “The program has so far given 20 Disney Animation artists the opportunity to create their own short, most averaging 2:00 minutes in length.” We will have an incredible amount of animation to watch and enjoy in the near future and that is amazing.
