Whether it’s the adorable minions, the endearing Olaf, or those secretive lives of pets, feature-length animated films brought us plenty of laughs, tears and non-stop entertainment. But did you know that beyond these animated films, there are also bite-size animated shorts that are much shorter and easy to digest? Here is a list of wonderful animated spin-off short films to entertain you when you need some time to de-stress on a busy day.
How to Train Your Dragon: Homecoming (2019)
Length: 22 minutes
This animation shorts follow the events in The Hidden World. It’s the Snoggletog festival on New Berk, but Hiccup isn’t feeling like celebrating. He misses Toothless dearly and to make matters worse, his daughter and son mistakenly believe that all dragons are dangerous and need to be destroyed. Together with Astrid, Hiccup comes up with a plan to change their mind. Astrid suggests reviving the old traditions of Snoggletog, which includes a play in which Stoick the Vast’s (Hiccup’s late father and chief of the Hairy Hooligan tribe) memory will be honoured. Through the play, Hiccup and Astrid hope to change the children’s perception of dragons. Meanwhile, on the Hidden World Island, Toothless tells his three Night and Light children about his best friend Hiccup, inspiring them to go on a secret trip to New Berk to visit Hiccup and his family.
Catch the animated short here:
The Secret Life of Pets 2: Super Gidget (2019)
Length: 4 minutes
Max just can’t seem to catch a break. In Super Gidget, Max got kidnapped by an army of squirrels and Super Gidget is the only one who can save him. Max’s captor is a flea that is capable of controlling minds. But with Gidget’s pluckiness, strength and brains, she is willing to brave all obstacles to save the love of her life. But wait… is it a dream!?
Catch the trailer here:
Minions: Yellow is the New Black (2018)
Length: 4 minutes
Right before what happened in Despicable Me 3, where the minions were imprisoned, a few of them got a taste of freedom as they break free with the help of a human inmate. But did they succeed in staying free?
Catch the trailer here:
Sing: Love at First Sight (2017)
Length: 4 minutes
If you watched Sing, you would have remembered the kooky eyed iguana Miss Crawly. Did you know that she is voiced over by director Garth Jennings? In this animated short, Miss Crawly reunites with Johnny the Gorilla. During a piano lesson, she started to reminiscence about her youth and romance. Johnny convinces her that it is not too late to find someone and helps her set up a profile on a dating website.
Catch the trailer here:
Frozen: Olaf's Frozen Adventure (2017)
Length: 22 minutes
It’s the first holiday season since the gates reopened after the events in the first Frozen movie. The townspeople of Arendelle have all retreated to their homes for their individual holiday customs. This is when sisters Anna and Elsa realise that they don’t have any family traditions of their own. Upon hearing that, Olaf sets out on an adventure with Sven around the kingdom, with the idea of bringing home the best holiday traditions to celebrate with his new family. How many traditions will he find?
Catch the trailer here:
Inside Out: Riley’s First Date? (2015)
Length: 5 minutes
While Inside Out explored an 11-year-old girl’s emotions when she moved into a new city with her parents, in this short, Riley is now 12 and on the verge of teenhood. Riley’s First Date? focuses on her parent’s emotions when they suspect that Riley is going out with a boy named Jordan. While her mother acts all cool and calm, her dad decides to do the opposite, by being intimidating and interrogatory. Will Riley share with them her private life?
Catch the trailer here:
Shrek: Thriller Night (2011)
Length: 6 minutes
It’s Halloween and Shrek is bored. He decided to do something scary. Parodying Michael Jackson’s Thriller music video, we are brought along Shrek’s ghoulish adventure where he meets deceased characters such as Lord Farquaad, Mongo, Rumpelstiltskin, Fifi, Fairy Godmother, Prince Charming and King Harold in his frog form appear as zombies. Shrek definitely got more than he bargained for.
Catch the animated short here:
Kung Fu Panda: Secrets of the Furious Five (2008)
Length: 25 minutes
Following what happened in the first Kung Fu Panda movie, Po is now established as the Dragon Warrior. But Master Shifu has presented him with a new challenge- teaching a class of rambunctious bunny children. After getting the attention of the class, Po teaches them that fighting is only one aspect of kung fu, and that true kung fu is about “excellence of self”. To explain what he means, Po tells the stories of each of his comrades, The Furious Five, and how they each faced challenges in their youth and overcame them to become true kung fu masters.
Catch the trailer here:
