Get ready to weep in public.
Pixar has a bit of a history when it comes to making grown adults cry. Who can forget watching in horror as Buzz, Woody and the gang were carried, hand in hand, towards (what we thought was) their fiery doom in Toy Story 3? But the animators have taken things a step further with their latest short, Kitbull, which tackles the never-not-upsetting issue of animal abuse.
The nine-minute film is a production of Pixar’s SparkShorts programme and tells the story of an unlikely connection between two creatures, a fiercely independent stray kitten and an abused pit bull who together, manage to experience friendship for the first time under dire circumstances. SNIFF.
Director Rosana Sullivan said the film was inspired by her love of cat videos, which she would watch de-stress. She said:
“To be fully honest, it started from a cat video.
“At first, I just wanted to draw something that made me feel good and was fun, but it evolved into something more personal to me.
“Growing up, I was always very sensitive and very shy, and had actually a lot of trouble making connections, making friendships. So I related to this kitten because it never really stepped outside of its comfort zone to be vulnerable and make a connection.”
Through a series of heartstring-tugging scenes, the film makes a powerful statement about the treatment of animals, forcing viewers to revisit conversations about the reputation of pit bulls as an aggressive and dangerous breed.
Kitbull is the latest Pixar short film release under its new SparkShorts program. The initiative seeks to ‘discover new storytellers, explore new storytelling techniques, and experiment with new production workflows.’
Click here to see more Pixar SparkShorts.