'Bao' Director Domee Shi's Next Pixar Movie Will Be Feature-Length
Domee Shi was the first woman to direct a Pixar short, "Bao." Now she’s going to make her feature film debut for the studio.
"We’re just developing the story for it right now," she told Deadline. "It’s super early on, but I’m really excited to play in this new 90-minute film format."
Her short "Bao," in which a homemade dumpling comes to life, ran in front of "Incredibles 2" this summer. "I'm very humbled and grateful that Pixar got behind such an offbeat little short, and I still can’t believe that we’re attached to one of the biggest animated films ever," she said. "That was kind of just the extra treat."
She said she among the films she took inspiration for her short were Ang Lee's "Eat Drink Man Woman" and Studio Ghibli films including "My Neighbors the Yamadas."
She told Deadline, "Hayao Miyazaki’s 'Spirited Away' is my favorite film ever, and I feel that studio has the best animated food next to Pixar’s 'Ratatouille' —the way they really show the careful preparation of food, and how delicious and glossy it looks. We really wanted to replicate that feeling with 'Bao,' and also just how they’re able to observe everyday life, that Asian filmmaking sensibility."
Shi began at Pixar as an intern and went on to become a story artist on "Inside Out" and then storyboard artist on "The Good Dinosaur," "Incredibles 2," and" Toy Story 4."
So far this year, "Bao" has been nominated for awards by the International Online Cinema Awards and the Tribeca Film Festival.
Given Pixar's track record with Academy-Award-nominated shorts, it's likely to get a nod at Oscar time as well.
