From the silent era to present-day Pixar, here’s a great collection of family-friendly short films about the moon.
The Eclipse, or the Courtship of the Sun and Moon (1907), 9 minutes
Directed by the great genius of early cinema, Georges Melies, this whimsical and hilarious silent film from 117 years ago (!!) opens with a classic re-enactment of an eclipse, featuring a devilish sun and impish moon.
Moonland (1926), 10 minutes
A boy and his dog take a trip to the Moon, where they encounter cranky bald spirits, giant mushrooms, castles, and a guy who looks mysteriously like the Wizard of Oz. This silent short by Neil McGuire features glorious fantasy backdrops and oozes imagination from every frame.
Haredevil Hare (1948), 8 minutes
A classic Bugs Bunny cartoon created by the great Chuck Jones, Haredevil Hare is one of the best Looney Tunes ever, which means it’s a highwater mark in American comedy.. Bugs is the first rabbit on the moon, but must deal with a particularly hostile and hilarious alien.
A Grand Day Out, featuring Wallace & Gromit (1989), 23 minutes
The first of Nick Park’s claymation Wallace & Gromit films, and still among the funniest. Cheese- loving inventor Wallace and his dog Gromit run out of cheese. Believing the moon is made of cheese, they build a rocket and fly to the Moon, where they encounter a coin-operated robot.
La Luna (2011), 7 minutes
A beautiful Pixar short about a young boy who ventures out on a boat with his father and grandfather, and ends up on the moon. Loosely based on a story by Italo Calvino, the film meshes analog elements such as watercolor backdrops into its palette, which was influenced by Hayao Miyazaki’s anime and Italian cartoonist Osvaldo Cavandoli (aka Cava).
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