Discover How Pixar’s Oscar-Nominated ‘Bao’ Was Created in New Featurette

Oscar-nominated director Domee Shi details her journey taking an aging Chinese mother suffering from empty-nest syndrome from early sketches to the screen.

Disney•Pixar has released a new featurette for Bao, the Oscar-nominated CG-animated short film directed by Domee Shi and produced by Becky Neiman.

Released last year in theaters ahead of Pixar’s Incredibles 2, Bao follows an aging Chinese mother suffering from empty-nest syndrome who gets another chance at motherhood when one of her dumplings springs to life.

Shi, who has worked as a story artist on such films as Inside Out, The Good Dinosaur, Incredibles 2 and the forthcoming Toy Story 4, drew inspiration for Bao from her upbringing as an only child in a Chinese-Canadian family in Toronto’s bustling Chinatown. She explains in the video that bao has two meanings in Chinese: said one way, it means “dumpling,” but said another way, it means “treasure” or “something precious.”

Watch the video below:

Source: Disney•Pixar