With ‘Bao,’ Domee Shi Becomes First Woman At Pixar To Direct A Short Film [UPDATED]

Bao, the Pixar short that will likely screen in front of The Incredibles 2, is set to debut on April 21st as part of the Tribeca Film Festival in New York City.

Written and directed by Chinese-Canadian-American artist Domee Shi, it is notably the first of Pixar’s 20 shorts in 32 years to be helmed by a female director. The eight-minute film is produced by Becky Neiman-Cobb and executive produced by Pete Docter and John Lasseter. The film is scored by Toby Chu (Legends of Oz: Dorothy’s Return, Unforgettable, NBC’s The Brave).

According to the Tribeca festival description, Bao is about an “empty-nesting Chinese mom who gets another chance at motherhood when one of her dumplings springs to life, but she must come to terms with the bittersweet revelation that nothing stays cute and small forever.”

Shi, a 2011 Sheridan grad, started as a story intern at Pixar that same year. She has since worked as a story artist on Inside Out, The Good Dinosaur, and Toy Story 4.

UPDATE (3/30/18) The first still of the film’s main characters has been released, as well as a piece of character development art of the dumpling character. New information about the film has been revealed in this Entertainment Weekly article.