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. 

Runaway from Ringling Computer Animation on Vimeo.

See more of Chillie on the team’s Facebook Page.

@zachsokol