The new Pixar short is downright adorable

International News, National News

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We were all pretty much totally obliterated by Pixar’s 2015 summer release, Inside Out (and bonus points if you were already ugly-crying at a volcano finding love in, Lava, the short that preceded that one.)

That’s why we’re admittedly relieved that the latest Pixar original short for the much anticipated Finding Dory is heartwarming in a jubilant way. The film, called Piper for its titular character Piper the sandpiper, shows the trials of a young bird navigating life on the Pacific coast.

Alan Barillaro, director of Piper, told The Telegraph that Piper complements Finding Dory as a result of their Northern California backdrop. What makes Piper special, aside from being adorable, is that the animators had to adopt a new technology to give special movement to the bird’s feathers, which Barillaro called a character all their own.

Just like the lovelorn volcano in Lava, we can relate to the timid Piper, venturing out into the world for the first time. Whether moving to a new city or trying on simply trying on a new style, we’ve all been there in some way or another.

In the short, Piper is immediately captivated by the shoreline, but also terrified of the menacing waves. She’s so enthralled that she doesn’t run away in time and is submerged by the water — immediately running to the safety of her nest.

“I’ve always found sandpipers really entertaining,” Barillaro said. “It felt like a character to me and a story that we hadn’t told, a bird that’s terrified of the water.”

Just like our affinity to Uku the volcano, we can all see some part of ourselves in Piper, and our grateful for our respective nests — er, communities — that bring us under their wing in times of peril.