A group of students at the Ringling School of Art and Design in Florida should be expecting a call from Pixar sometime soon. Emily Buchanan, Esther Parobek and Susan Yung released a three minute short in August called Runaway that is pretty much the cutest thing I've watched since Up came out, despite its $3,000 budget raised via crowdsourcing. The team used CGI to take the omnipresent crank "Is your refrigerator running?" and turn it into personified heart-melter focused on an animated (literally and figuratively) fridge named Chillie.The 50s-friendly home appliance stands up and leaves his kitchen home when he thinks his human owner is going to replace him with a Sub Zero-type upgrade.I won't spoil the story--especially since it's short enough to watch at work without getting in trouble--but there are enough winks and wit in this story that sets it apart from other art school projects.Take, for example, the retail signs in the background: we see "Trader Poe's" and a cheeky take on Whole Foods. Another great touch is Chillie's ice cube tears and his organs being replaced by magnets and photos.Take a break from work and watch this little gem. If you didn't know better, you'd think it was a Disney or Pixar-sponsored joint.See more of Chillie on the team's Facebook Page.@zachsokol
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