Bringing A Dumpling To Life In Pixar’s Bao

Thank you to Disney•Pixar for hosting me during the #Incredibles2Event, which included this interview with Bao Director Domee Shi & Producer Becky Neiman.

Pixar has a history of debuting heartwarming and thought-provoking shorts in front of their films. In Bao, a mom gets a second chance at motherhood when one of her dumplings springs to life. Domee Shi is the creative force behind the short. She’s also Pixar’s first female short film director.

Domee conceived of the film as a modern take on a classic fairytale like The Gingerbread Man. “I was just doodling in this image of this mom nuzzling her little baby boy dumpling to death.”

The story takes some inspiration from her own life, growing up as an only child. “Ever since I was little, I feel like my mom and my dad have always treated me like a precious little dumpling, always making sure that I’m always like safe and never wandered away too far.” In Bao, she gets to explore that relationship.

“Bao has two meanings,” producer Becky Neiman chimes in. “One is steam bun and one is treasure or something precious.”

Domee decided to tell the story from the point of view of the mother, bringing her own mother in on the process. “She has a creative consultant credit,” reports Domee. “We brought [her] in twice to do dumpling-making classes.”

Domee even illustrated her mom’s dumpling recipe. If you want to attempt dumplings of your own, you can download the Bao Dumpling Recipe from Domee’s mom.

The little details were important to the team when making Bao. “How she folds the dumpling exactly and kneads the dough… It was important to get those details right, to get them as accurate as possible on the big screen,” says Domee. “We’re telling this universal story, but with this culturally specific paintbrush.”

As is often the case with Pixar films, the short is bringing on more than a few tears. According to Becky, viewers at the Tribeca Film Festival wanted to make sure they knew how emotional the short could be. “We had a woman come up to us and she said, ‘You know, my boyfriend he never cries. He’s like not very emotional, but he sobbed at your short.'”

When they started the process of creating Bao they had no idea it would debut in front of Incredibles 2. “We only just found out within the last year that we would be attached,” says Becky. “On the surface, they look like very different films, but they both feature strong super moms. We feel like there’s this really sweet connection between two.”

More From Incredibles 2

You can watch Bao in front of Incredibles 2, in theaters on June 15. Make sure you check out all of my Incredibles 2 coverage!

In Disney•Pixar’s “Bao,” an aging Chinese mom suffering from empty nest syndrome 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. This short film from Pixar Animation Studios and director Domee Shi explores the ups and downs of the parent-child relationship through the colorful, rich, and tasty lens of the Chinese immigrant community in Canada. “Bao” opens in theaters on June 15, 2018, in front of “Incredibles 2.”