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It’s been 15 years since Pixar won the Oscar for Ralph Eggleston’s”For the Birds,” and it has another fine-feathered gem in Alan Barillaro’s “Piper” that’s getting lots of buzz (watch the clip below).

In “Piper,” a baby sandpiper overcomes a fear of water as part of her rite of passage. But, uncharacteristically, the short began as an R&D project in the tools department to create greater sculpting control for the artists. They used the new RenderMan Ris platform for photoreal shading and lighting (first used on the “Finding Dory” feature).

Read More: Annie Awards: ‘Zootopia,’ ‘The Red Turtle’ Take Animated Feature, Indie Honors

“For me, the goal was to make computer animation more expressive,” Barillaro told IndieWire. “There’s more personal stories we can tell and more visual language we can use with the toolset. How do we tell a story with little birds that’s not anthropomorphized?...

Saschka Unseld and Lily Baldwin explore the phases and facets of love in Through You, a dance-infused Vr piece that premiered at the 2017 Sundance Film Festival. Unseld is an animator who directed the Pixar short The Blue Umbrella and is a cofounder of Oculus Story Studio, a Vr media company. Baldwin arrived at filmmaking by way of dance, where she’d worked with everyone from the Metropolitan Opera Ballet to David Byrne. As a creative challenge, the two decided to edit Through You themselves. Below, Unseld and Baldwin discuss the roughly 150-200 hours they spent editing a 14-minute Vr experience. Filmmaker: How and […]...

If Virtual Reality – long the frustrated bridesmaid of how we experience movies, TV and other media – is ever to realise its full potential, it has to evolve and adapt, and most importantly, reach the public on a much wider scale than it has before. The Oculus team, which is looking to bring Vr headsets to the world, has decided to push into another frontier: storytelling using the technology. To that end, they've developed and made a short film called Henry. You can catch the trailer below. Henry is the second short to come from Oculus' Story Studio, and is designed to push the boundaries for Vr films. Directed by Pixar veteran Ramiro Lopez Dau, it’s the story of a hedgehog spurned by everyone around him because of his painful habit of trying to hug everyone. He makes a birthday wish for some friends and... Well, that would be spoiling it.

One of the reasons Pixar is so committed to short films is because they can use them to experiment with things technically. One of the reasons they made "The Blue Umbrella" was to play with the notion of photo-realism mixed with the hyper-cartoonish. The rain and the cityscapes in that short look like they're real, and then the faces we see on the umbrellas are so simple, so cartoon expressive. Now it looks like we're seeing the payoff from that experiment with their next feature, "The Good Dinosaur." The opening moments of the trailer almost appear to be live-action with the rain and the plants and that tiny lizard thing. And then we see Arlo's foot enter the frame, and immediately, we're looking at something that is even more cartoonish than Pixar's typical design work. To some degree, it feels like a big stylistic jump for them, but one that...

Pixar’s second movie of 2015, The Good Dinosaur, has had its fair share of trouble on its way to the big screen, what with a change of director and voice cast, but it will finally be coming our way this year, and a new trailer has come our giving us our best look yet at their dinosaur centric buddy comedy. While it does a great job of setting up the world and story of the movie with no dialogue whatsoever, the marrying of the photorealistic backgrounds (similar to those seen in the Pixar short, The Blue Umbrella) to the more cartoonish character designs doesn’t sit right with me. Sure, it looks beautiful, but they are completely out of sync. Of course, Pixar has always been about story over visuals, and the usual charm is there, so the jury is still out on this one. Released: 25th November (U.S.

When Pixar first started breaking out in the feature film world, they also earned a reputation for creating inventive, visually stunning short films. Movies like One Man Band, Lifted, and Partly Cloudy were wonderful preludes to the feature-length Pixar film that would soon follow, but in recent years the Pixar shorts have been somewhat lacking. The Blue Umbrella was downright odd, and Lava—attached to the excellent Inside Out—is just plain bad. But Pixar’s next short film, which will play in front of The Good Dinosaur this November, is mighty promising. USA Today has the first images from Sanjay’s Super Team, which follows a young Indian boy who is too transfixed by TV cartoons to pay attention to his father, who wants him to partake in a morning Hindu meditation ritual instead. Subsequently, Sanjay imagines three Hindu deities—Durga, Vishnu, and Hanuman—come to life and form their own superhero team.

Photo: Disney / Pixar Pixar's Inside Out enjoyed the largest opening weekend for an original property, animated, live-action or otherwise, this past weekend and before the film was ever released I had a chance to sit down with director and screenwriter Pete Docter and the film's producer Jonas Rivera to largely discuss the ins and outs of turning this movie from a seedling of an idea Docter had back in 2009 to the feature film audiences are eating up in theaters right now. How does a movie go from merely being a story about the emotions inside the head of an 11-year-old girl to being the complex, yet simply understood, logic machine Docter and his team of story writers, animators, artists and technical advisors conceivedc What was the thinking behind the fluffy skin of the animated emotionsc How did hand-drawn animation actually help the CG productionc And I have a question about...

Tribeca Film Festival organisers will stage Defcon’s hacking conference, Oculus Story Studio’s virtual reality experience and a special event with A$AP Rocky.

The additional roster of events includes the ‘Tea Talks’ industry discussions in partnership with leading cultural institutions

The Oculus Story Studio will showcase a short experience called Lost using the Oculus Rift Crescent Bay prototype. Lost takes the viewer on a journey to a moonlit forest inhabited by an unexpected creature.

The piece is directed by Oculus Story Studio’s creative director Saschka Unseld, who also directed Pixar’s short film The Blue Umbrella.

Festival brass also announced that artist, director and entrepreneur Chris Milk has been named the inaugural featured creator at Spring Studios.

The Tribeca Film Festival is set to run in New York from April 15-26. Click here for further programming details.

Sundance Institute announced Thursday that the 2015 Sundance Film Festival will take an unprecedented look at the art and craft of filmmaking with its new ‘Art of Film Weekend’ series of offscreen programming.

This year’s festival runs from Jan. 22 to Feb. 1 in Utah, and the Art of Film Weekend (Jan. 29-31) will highlight the unique roles of writers, directors, producers, actors, cinematographers, editors, production designers, art directors, costume designers, casting directors, sound designers, composers and the countless others who bring stories to life on screen.

Also Read: James Franco, Jennifer Lopez, Kurt Cobain Movies Highlight Sundance Premieres

The series will...

The Sundance Film Festival announced today that it will hold a series of panels titled the "Art of Film Weekend" which will take place Jan. 29-31. This new initiative should create more buzz worthy moments during a period when the Festival is traditionally winding down. The slate will kick off with a conversation between Festival founder Robert Redford and George Lucas that will be streamed online at Sundance.org. In a release, Festival Director John Cooper noted, "Exploring cinema, body and soul, Art of Film Weekend will take aspiring filmmakers and film-loving audiences behind the scenes to see the creative, collaborative spirit of artists at every stage of the independent filmmaking process that is so core to our Festival." A full rundown of the panels are as follows: Power of Story: Visions of Independence — Kicking off Art of Film Weekend, join Robert Redford and George Lucas—two iconic filmmakers who...

Don't fall victim to another Black Friday massacre! Going out the day after Thanksgiving might yield some amazing deals for your pocket book. But you can likely find similar items online for the same price. Is getting your old Aunt Joyce the last crumpled copy of 2 Broke Girls: The Complete Second Season DVD really worth having your kidneys stomped past your teeth and out of your mouth, where they will become a permanent part of the local Wal-Mart floor? You don't need that hassle. We understand you have a lot of folks to shop for, and everyone loves a movie! So, check out our Ultimate Holiday Gift Guide for 2013, where we're sure to end the pain and suffering of figuring out what to get that extended family member or friend. We've thought of everyone! Be sure to browse through our extensive list, and we guarantee you'll find something for...

One Big Scene is a weekly column dedicated to spectacular visual sequences we’re recommending you see in the theater. If you have ones you’d like us to write about, let us know in the comments section. “He’s really here, mommy! He’s really here!” The five-year-old boy sitting behind us in the movie theater firmly believes Mickey Mouse is in the house. You can understand why. The 3D in Walt Disney’s Get a Horse – the short film that precedes screenings of Frozen – creates such deep and rich imagery, it fooled audience members of all ages. The kid behind us? He lost his mind. Audiences are used to animated shorts before their features, from this summer’s The Blue Umbrella...

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Balder & Dash Dan Callahan on Alfre Woodard's contribution to 12 Years A Slave

Pixar Times on The Blue Umbrella failing to make the Academy Animated Short finalists

Huffington Post wants a return policy on Dallas Buyers Club's AIDS history

Awards Circuit notices some campaign trickery chez TWC. Fruitvale Station's lead actor is now supporting? and it's screenplay is Adapted. Whaaaa?

Man at Arms crafting Mjölnir, Thor's Hammer

THR on the success of black cinema this year. I'm alarmed at some of these clickbait (racebait?) headlines lately on this topic but i love sentences like "The Butler's success in crossing over is attributed to Oprah Winfrey and Forest Whitaker, mainstream stars who relentlessly promoted the film"... relentlessly sounds so threatening given the context/headline. Lol!

Av Club kicks off a series of "firsties" with Guillermo del Toro. I'm not crazy about his films (I know this is an...

Monsters University managed a strangely subtle debut for a Pixar film, earning neither the high praise of most of their works, nor the backlash of Cars 2. Instead, the film was met with medium reviews, a lot of happy kids, and a very curious feeling of nostalgia for characters that aren’t actually all that old.

By the way, check out our Monster University podcast review for an expanded take on the film itself.

Our favorite monsters are back, but this time Mike Wazowski and Sully are headed to school, and we enter the picture before they’ve even met. Going back to a time when our best buds and co-workers don’t know each other, and are very different monsters, means the doors are wide open to introduce new characters, new parts of the universe, and we have a lot of options for figuring out just how they ended...

With Monsters University being released on Blu-ray and DVD this week, we were recently invited to Pixar Studios in Emeryville, California to participate in a press day marking the occasion. In addition to video interviews with Monsters University director Dan Scanlon and producer Kori Rae as well as The Blue Umbrella director Saschka Unseld and producer Marc Greenberg, we were able to get an inside peek at how Pixar operates. This included a tour of the facility, short roundtable interviews with a slew of different Pixar folks that worked on Monsters University, and more. During our Pixar visit we learned a few fascinating things about how the studio works, and after the jump you’ll find a complete rundown. If you missed our video interviews, click here for Scanlon and Rae and click here for Unseld and Greenberg. Monsters University is now available on Blu-ray and DVD. Major Changes Can...

One Pixar artist’s project was chosen to be made into an animated short film and featured along with Monsters University. “The Blue Umbrella” by director Saschka Unseld gives us the scoop on how he pitched the idea and why the site of a broken umbrella in the street inspired his Pixar creation.

The Blue Umbrella played ahead of the theatrical run of Monsters University and can now be seen on the bonus features on the Monsters University Blu-ray and DVD release. Pixar traditionally features a short film developed in-house at the Northern California animation studio that plays ahead of the main feature. Pixar Animation Studios also promotes from within and encourages its artists to pitch them projects.

The Blue Umbrella the latest animated Pixar short film featured on the Monsters University extras

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Now available on Blu-ray and DVD is Pixar’s latest feature film Monsters University. As the studio’s first prequel, the pic’s initial announcement was met with a mix of excitement and skepticism, but this summer audiences were treated to a film that was not only hilarious and gorgeous to look at, but also gutsy in its themes and message to young viewers. While attending the press day for the film’s Blu-ray release at Pixar, I was able to sit down with director Dan Scanlon and producer Kori Rae to talk all things Monsters University. Scanlon and Rae discussed how involved they were in the extras and special features that are included on the Blu-ray, how they initially came to land their jobs as director and producer of Monsters University, the initial pitch meeting that explored possible Monsters Inc. sequels, making a significant last-minute change to the film...

2013 has been, by all accounts, a forgettable year of mainstream animated films at best, and a woeful one at worst. With only two fully animated films left to be released on a wide platform—the upcoming 20th Century Fox film Walking with Dinosaurs is partially animated—it’s not likely that anyone will look back on this 12-month period as being a landmark year for animation. (Those two fully animated films are Free Birds, opening this Friday; and Frozen, opening at the end of the month. My hopes are much higher for the latter. Also, Hayao Miyazaki’s final film, The Wind Rises, will have a 1-week release very soon for Oscar consideration, hence the “wide platform” qualifier.) Up until now, the best animated film of the year has been, almost predictably, from Pixar Animation Studios: Monsters University, a prequel to the widely beloved Monsters, Inc.; it’s being...

Though Pixar has certainly earned a reputation for raising the bar in animation with regards to its feature film efforts, the studio also has a knack for producing excellent short films. With each new feature film release comes a new Pixar short, and this summer’s Monsters University was accompanied in theaters by director Saschka Unseld’s unique and photo-realistic short The Blue Umbrella—certainly one of the more artistically ambitious shorts to come out of Pixar in the studio’s history. Monsters University will be available on Blu-ray and DVD this Tuesday, October 29th, and the disc comes loaded with bonus features relating not only to Mu but also The Blue Umbrella. While attending the press day for the Monsters University Blu-ray at Pixar Studios in San Francisco, I had the chance to sit down with Unseld and producer Marc Greenberg, who also serves as Pixar’s Vice President of Finance & Strategy.

Those who saw Monsters University were treated to the Pixar short film The Blue Umbrella in theaters. The animated short will also be included on the animated sequel's Blu-ray 3D, Blu-ray and DVD release on October 29. Today, we have a clip featuring the opening scene of director Saschka Unseld's film, which shows several inanimate objects that are actually alive, including The Blue Umbrella, along with three more posters.

It is just another evening commute until the rain starts to fall, and the city comes alive to the sound of dripping rain pipes, whistling awnings and gurgling gutters. And in the midst, two umbrellas-one blue, one not-fall eternally in love.

The Blue Umbrella was released June 21st, 2013. The film is directed by Saschka Unseld.

In anticipation of Disney/Pixar's Monsters University being released on Blu-ray October 29th, we have three new posters and a clip from the animated short, The Blue Umbrella, to share with you today.  Seen in the bonus features of the Monsters University Blu-ray, The Blue Umbrella centers on a budding relationship between the title character and another unique umbrella.  The photo-realistic short was directed by Saschka Unseld.  You can read up on our review of the short here, plus check out a couple of interviews with Unseld. Hit the jump to check out the previously unreleased posters and to watch the clip from The Blue Umbrella. Watch the clip from The Blue Umbrella below, followed by the posters: Blue Umbrella Opening Clip - Monsters University Short on Disney Video...

Above: 1979 Hungarian poster for 2001: A Space Odyssey (Stanley Kubrick, UK/USA, 1968); Designer: unknown.

When I started the Movie Poster of the Day Tumblr almost two years ago to augment my weekly poster essays here, I thought I might well run out of great posters to post daily after a year or so. But the deeper I dig the more gems I seem to unearth and the more popular the site seems to become (nearly a quarter of a million followers to date).

I’ve been posting these Best Of round-ups every six months (see parts one, two and three) but I’ve found so much good stuff lately that I feel the urge to do these four times a year instead of twice. As usual I’m using the very unscientific method of number of likes and reblogs to judge a poster’s popularity, but it does tend to...

This Fall, Disney&#8226Pixar celebrates homecoming with the release of Monsters University on Digital HD and Digital HD 3D on October 8, 2013, followed by the 4-Disc Ultimate Collector's Edition Blu-ray 3D Combo Pack, 3-Disc Collector's Edition Blu-ray Combo Pack, 3-Disc Blu-ray Combo Pack, DVD and On-Demand on October 29, 2013.

After scaring up big laughs in theaters, the in-home release of Monsters University opens its doors to the movie in stunning high definition Blu-ray, and provides hours of all-new bonus material, in-depth behind the scenes features, deleted scenes, the animated theatrical short The Blue Umbrella and much more. Directed by Dan Scanlon (Cars, Mater and the Ghostlight, Tracy), produced by Kori Rae (Up, The Incredibles, Monsters Inc.), and written by Dan Scanlon and Robert L. Baird & Daniel Gerson (Monsters Inc.), Monsters University marks Pixar's 14th consecutive film to debut at number one at the box office.

Ever since college-bound Mike Wazowski (voice of...

The Monsters University Blu-Ray is hitting October 29th, in both 3D and standard versions, with digital versions coming out a couple of weeks earlier (October 8th), and the releases are packed with some pretty nice bonuses.

Take a look at the full release below for all the info, including the rundown on the bonus features. We aren’t often disappointed with Pixar home releases, and it doesn’t look like this will be the release that changes that. If you caught our Monsters University podcast review, you know we didn’t love this one as much as most Pixar titles, but it is still a lot of fun for the younger crowd.

Rush to get Digital HD and Digital HD 3D Versions Available for Purchase October 8, 2013 Celebrate Mu’s Homecoming on Blu-ray, DVD and On-Demand on October 29, 2013.

This Fall, Disney•Pixar celebrates homecoming with the release of “Monsters University” on...

Dan Scanlon's 3D prequel to Pixar's popular 2001 CGI-animated movie Monsters, Inc takes its odd-couple heroes, minute Mike (Billy Crystal) and mammoth Sulley (John Goodman), back to their college days at Monster University to explain how they met up as freshmen and took a distinctly rocky road to their present fame as professional "scarers" of little children. In plot terms it's familiar campus comedy material about thwarted ambition, rejection and final success due to losers becoming winners through burying personal pride and working as a team. There are clever and witty moments and, both visually (an aristocratic bat-winged creature with her hair swept up) and vocally (a visiting professor from Queen Elizabeth's College, London), Helen Mirren makes a big impression as the imperious Dean Hardscrabble. But there's a rather tired, willed atmosphere hanging over it.

More memorable is the customary Pixar hors d'oeuvre, The Blue Umbrella, a six-minute curtain-raiser directed by Saschka Unseld.

The Pixar Animation Studios photo-real short The Blue Umbrella, playing with Monsters University, is a beautiful story of two umbrellas, one blue and one red, who fall in love. During just another evening commute, the rain starts to fall and the city comes alive, to the sound of dripping rain pipes and whistling awnings, while a weather-beaten and wind-blown umbrella tries to reconnect with a passing umbrella that caught its eye. At the Monsters University press day at Pixar in Emeryville, Calif., The Blue Umbrella director Saschka Unseld talked about where the idea for the short came from, seeing faces in inanimate objects everywhere, how much the story changed throughout the process, how challenging it was to animate the short, how the photo-real technology compares to traditional animation, the process for the music, and who and what his influences are. Check out what he had to say after the jump.

You have to keep telling yourself, “This is completely animated. There is no live-action photography.” That’s how amazingly real Saschka Unseld’s animation looks in the beautiful new short The Blue Umbrella, which will play before Pixar’s Monsters University when that delightful prequel hits theaters on Friday, June 21. Pixar, over the years, has entertained audiences with bite-sized nuggets of inspired genius, from Presto and La Luna to For the Birds. The studio's latest is a whimsical brush with fate conducted between two umbrellas on a rainy, urban street. You will fall in love. In an exclusive conversation recorded at Pixar Animation Studios in Emeryville, California, Unseld and I talk about: listen to ‘The Blue...

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This week’s opening of Pixar’s latest film, Monsters University, a sequel starring fan favorites Mike Wazowski and James P. “Sulley” Sullivan, also signals the debut of another perennial Pixar favorite – the accompanying short film. Since the animation house’s second theatrical release, Toy Story 2, every Pixar feature film has kicked off with an all-new short. Some of them have been instant classics (like For the Birds, Day & Night, and my personal favorite, Presto) and some of them have fallen somewhat flat (I forgot about Geri’s Game, Boundin’, and Lifted almost immediately after watching them). Three of them even won the Academy Award for Best Animated Short Film (and of the twelve already released, ten of them were nominated for the award). The short attached to Monsters University, Saschka Unseld’s The Blue Umbrella, is a different kind of short film for Pixar. Its use of photorealistic CGI is a departure from the more...

Saschka Unseld, the writer and director of Pixar Animation Studio’s latest short, The Blue Umbrella, was walking down a rainy San Francisco street when he found a broken umbrella on the side of the road. “I stopped because it looked like such a sad thing, and rain was pouring on it,” he recalled. “I was feeling sad for an umbrella; I think that stuck with me.” This random moment inspired a short that follows an emotive umbrella, which makes its theatrical debut on June 21, preceding Pixar’s Monsters University. “Rain is a magical place," the director said.

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Disney•Pixar’s Monsters University rocks theaters this summer featuring music from award-winning composer Randy Newman and Axwell & Sebastian Ingrosso of Swedish House Mafia. Filmmakers also tapped the Atlanta-based hard rock band Mastodon to serenade one the film’s new monsters.

Directed by Dan Scanlon and produced by Kori Rae, Monsters University hits theaters June 21, 2013, with the short film “The Blue Umbrella,” which features music by composer Jon Brion and vocals by Sarah Jaffe.

“We wanted to capture the college feel in ‘Monsters University,’” said Scanlon, “and music is a big part of that. The score and the inclusion of other great musicians like Axwell & Sebastian Ingrosso [of Swedish House Mafia] and Mastodon help us convey a fun, freewheeling college atmosphere.”

Oscar®- Grammy®- and Emmy®-winning composer/songwriter Newman is back, marking his seventh Disney•Pixar film. The 20-time Oscar nominee’s wins include “If I Didn’t Have You” for “Monsters,...

During our recent set visit to Pixar Animation Studios, we were treated to a special screening of The Blue Umbrella, the short film that will be playing in front of Monsters University when it opens on June 21st. I was able to sit down with the film’s director Saschka Unseld for a one-on-one interview. We talked about his learning experience in making the short film, bringing inanimate faces in the cityscape to life, giving each character personality, the use of colors in the film and his favorite creation. Hit the jump for the full interview. Question: From the experience of directing this short, what were some things you learned from a technical aspect that you think you can apply to your work going forward? And what were some creative things you learned from this experience? Saschka Unseld: For me, it was a very interesting experience directing for a big company like this because,...

While on our recent set visit to Pixar Animation Studios, we were treated to a special screening of director Saschka Unseld's animated short film, The Blue Umbrella.  This short will run in front of Pixar's Monsters University on June 21st.  Like previous Pixar shorts, The Blue Umbrella is absent of dialogue and long on the use of visual and musical cues to elicit an emotional response.  This particular meet cute centers on two boldy-colored umbrellas in the middle of a rainstorm in the city.  If you're interested in the behind-the-scenes work on The Blue Umbrella, be sure to read up on our interviews with Unseld. Hit the jump for my review and to find out why The Blue Umbrella is unlike any Pixar short you've seen before. The unique quality that sets The Blue Umbrella apart from previous Pixar shorts is apparent right from the outset.  As the short begins to roll,...

During our recent set visit to Pixar Animation Studios, we were treated to a special screening of The Blue Umbrella, the short film that will be playing in front of Monsters University when it opens on June 21st. The film's director Saschka Unseld took a few moments to joins us for a roundtable interview. There, he talked about the short film's photo-realistic animation, his experience working on previous animated films, writing a happy ending versus having an "arthouse film" ending, his cinematic influences, the importance of music in the piece and more. Hit the jump for the full interview. Question: So, we were told that was absolutely no live action. Saschka Unseld: So, I was told, too. [Laughs] There’s no live action. That’s amazing. Unseld: Sadly, I had nothing - I mean I had something to do with it that I asked people to do it, but the...

A new poster for the upcoming animated short ‘The Blue Umbrella,’ which premiered at the Berlin International Film Festival, has been released by Disney•Pixar. The short, which will be released with ‘Monsters University’ in theaters on June 21, was directed by Saschka Unseld and produced by Marc Greenberg. ‘The Blue Umbrella,’ which will play before the ‘Monsters, Inc.’ prequel, is set during an evening commute, which appears ordinary, until the rain starts to fall. The city comes alive to the sound of dripping rain pipes, whistling awnings and gurgling gutters. In the midst, two umbrellas-one blue, one not-fall eternally in love. Check out the new poster for ‘The Blue Umbrella’ [ Read More ]

The post New Poster For Disney-Pixar Animated Short The Blue Umbrella Released appeared first on Shockya.com.

Here’s the adorable poster for Disney·Pixar’s Animated Short The Blue Umbrella, which premiered at the Berlin International Film Festival.

It is just another evening commute until the rain starts to fall, and the city comes alive to the sound of dripping rain pipes, whistling awnings and gurgling gutters. And in the midst, two umbrellas – one blue, one not – fall eternally in love.

From Pixar Animation Studios, director Saschka Unseld and producer Marc Greenberg, The Blue Umbrella opens in theaters on June 21, 2013, in front of Monsters University.

Check out the first poster for Pixar Animation Studios The Blue Umbrella, directed by Saschka Unseld. The animated short airs before Monsters University. In the story, it's just another evening commute until the rain starts to fall, and the city comes alive to the sound of dripping rain pipes, whistling awnings and gurgling gutters. And in the midst, two umbrellas—one blue, one not—fall eternally in love. Be sure to catch the very sweet clip from the short we added last month from Blue Umbrella. As far as Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures' Monsters University, the film helmed by Dan Slanlin, sees the return of stars Billy Crystal, John Goodman joined by Steve Buscemi, Dave Foley, Julia Sweeney, Joel Murray and Peter Sohn.

Check out the first poster for Pixar Animation Studios The Blue Umbrella, directed by Saschka Unseld. The animated short airs before Monsters University. In the story, it's just another evening commute until the rain starts to fall, and the city comes alive to the sound of dripping rain pipes, whistling awnings and gurgling gutters. And in the midst, two umbrellas—one blue, one not—fall eternally in love. Be sure to catch the very sweet clip from the short we added last month from Blue Umbrella. As far as Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures' Monsters University, the film helmed by Dan Slanlin, sees the return of stars Billy Crystal, John Goodman joined by Steve Buscemi, Dave Foley, Julia Sweeney, Joel Murray and Peter Sohn.

Opening in front of Monsters University this summer, The Blue Umbrella marks the latest short film from Pixar following the Oscar-nominated Paperman (which you can and should watch in full here).

The first clip debuted online earlier in the year, and now Vulture have given us a rather wonderful poster for the short, ahead of its premiere at the Berlinale this week.

“From Pixar Animation Studios, director Saschka Unseld and producer Marc Greenberg, “The Blue Umbrella” opens in theaters on June 21, 2013, in front of “Monsters University.”

It is just another evening commute until the rain starts to fall, and the city comes alive to the sound of dripping rain pipes, whistling awnings and gurgling gutters. And in the midst, two umbrellas—one blue, one not—fall eternally in love.”

Saschka Unseld makes his third short film here with The Blue Umbrella. And it marks his first time at the helm for Pixar,...

As beloved as Disney Pixar's animated feature films are, their short films are just as adored by fans of the animation powerhouse. The studio has debuted the first poster for their latest short The Blue Umbrella, following the clip that premiered last month. The story follows two umbrellas, one blue and one red, who fall in love with each other on a crowded city street. Take a look at this one-sheet before director Saschka Unseld's new film debuts in theaters this June, attached to prints of Monsters University.

The Blue Umbrella comes to theaters June 21st, 2013. The film is directed by Saschka Unseld.

Pixar Animation Studios presents their new short The Blue Umbrella, directed by Saschka Unseld. What a beautiful poster. Premiering at the Berlin Film Festival currently underway in Germany as we speak is this short film from Pixar, which will be playing in front of Monsters University later this summer. It will also be premiering at the SXSW Film Festival in March in Austin (both logos are on the poster). Vulture premiered this beauty, which features a varied selection of black umbrellas lined up and our two lovers, the blue & red ones. Perfect, everything about this is sublime and it's just for an animated short. But I love it, even the font. Here's the poster for Saschka Unseld's short The Blue Umbrella, debuted on Vulture (via RopeofSilicon): We previously featured an early clip and two photos for The Blue Umbrella short, which you can see here. The Blue Umbrella...

Has the beautiful, Oscar-nominated Paperman left you yearning for another romantic animated short? Then keep an eye out for Saschka Unseld's Pixar entry The Blue Umbrella, which premieres at the Berlin Film Festival this week and will be attached to June's Monsters University. In it, "two umbrellas — one blue, one not — fall eternally in love." Aww! Here's the exclusive poster.

While we first mentioned back in the summer of 2012 that producer and composer Jon Brion would be scoring what was then "the untitled umbrella short" for Pixar (to play ahead of this summer's "Monsters University"), it was never confirmed by the studio… until now. The short, now entitled "The Blue Umbrella" and set to have its worldwide premiere at the Berlin International Film Festival next month, is indeed scored by Brion. What's more, we got to talk to first-time director Saschka Unseld about the short and about working with the estimable talent that is Jon Brion. Firstly, the short itself is stunning – just shy of seven minutes, it tells the story of a major metropolitan city ("like New York or Chicago" is how Unseld pitched it, refusing to specify one location) that comes to life in the rain. Grates start to smile, there's a spritely quality in the blinking of lights,...

Watch a new clip from Pixar's "The Blue Umbrella" short which airs before "Monsters University" on June 21st. Directed by Saschka Unseld, "Blue Umbrella" is produced by Marc Greenberg. In the story, it's just another evening commute until the rain starts to fall, and the city comes alive to the sound of dripping rain pipes, whistling awnings and gurgling gutters. And in the midst, two umbrellas—one blue, one not—fall eternally in love. "Monsters University" distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures and directed by Dan Slanlin, sees the return of stars Billy Crystal, John Goodman joined by Steve Buscemi, Dave Foley, Julia Sweeney, Joel Murray and Peter Sohn. We follow Mike Wazowski and James P. Sullivan who are an inseparable pair, but that wasn’t always the case...