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Pixar's new short is a tasty treat that will tug at your heartstrings

Cape Town – Pixar is back with a tasty new short that will both delight and tug at your heartstrings. 

It is also the first short by the studio to be directed by a woman. 

Director Domee Shi based the whimsical story on her own experiences growing up as an only child.

Bao follows an aging Chinese mom suffering from empty nest syndrome who gets another chance at motherhood when one of her dumplings springs to life as a lively, giggly dumpling boy. 

Mom excitedly welcomes this new bundle of joy into her life, but Dumpling starts growing up fast, and Mom must come to the bittersweet revelation that nothing stays cute and small forever.

Shi who started out as an intern at Pixar went on to work as a story artist on the award-winning feature film Inside Out.   

Speaking about the film to Entertainment Weekly Shi said her mom used to treat her like a precious dumpling and wanted to make sure that she was always safe. 

“I just wanted to create this magical, modern-day fairy tale, kind of like a Chinese Gingerbread Man story. The word ‘bao’ actually means two things in Chinese: Said one way, it means steamed bun. Said another, it means something precious. A treasure,” said Shi.

Bao opens in cinemas on Friday, 15 June in front of Incredibles 2.

READ NEXT: The teaser trailer for Incredibles 2 is here!

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