A sentient steamed dumpling? This Disney Pixar short stars a little ball of food and you might struggle to see how it could be bringing quite so many tears but here us out.
The eight-minute story, which you can watch here, follows an ageing Chinese-Canadian mum suffering from empty-nest syndrome. She gets another chance at motherhood when one of the dumplings she lovingly fills and steams springs to life in her mouth.
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The cute, giggly dumpling boy is a new bundle of joy for the mother as she takes him shopping and to tai chi in the park but Dumpling starts growing up fast even getting engaged meaning his mother must come to the bittersweet revelation that nothing stays cute and small forever. PSA: there's a bit of a twist but it all turns out okay in the end.
The short film from Disney Pixar Animation Studios and director Domee Shi explores the ups and downs of the parent-child relationship through the coloruful, rich, and tasty lens of the Chinese immigrant community in Canada.
The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences revealed its 2019 Oscars shortlist earlier this week, with Bao, up for Animated Short Film.
Directed by Domee Shi, the first female director of a Pixar short who cut her teeth working as a storywriter on Inside Out, was originally tacked onto the front of Incredibles 2 in cinemas, but in light of its shortlisting has been made available for free on YouTube in the UK for one week.
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Needless to say Twitter users are loving the film:
Grab the tissues and watch Bao here on YouTube.
Topics: Entertainment, News, Cute, TV & Film
