As someone trying to write “LiTeRaRy FiCtiOn”, I avoid ever having a ‘point’ to my stories – there’s no message or agenda in We Move. But for much of history, stories have served real-world purposes, with messages that teach and help people. Important information (there are lions in that valley, that water isn’t safe to drink, etc) was conveyed through fiction because stories are easy to remember and interesting to consume. I think Disney and Pixar short films continue this tradition – I binged a whole collection of them with my girlfriend when we got a free trial of Disney+ a few weeks ago. Standouts include ‘Bao’, ‘Piper’ and ‘Far from the Tree’ which in different ways are cautionary tales about overprotective parenting. They teach and they entertain, two things that some literary short fiction may potentially lose sight of. It’s also worth noting that the racoons in ‘Far from the Tree’ are super cute. 

Walt Disney Animation Studios, 2021