Goat (PG)

A diminutive young buck aspires to compete with rhinos and horses in ‘roarball’ in this lightning-speed basketball animation.

Will Harris is a goat, referred to in the hyper-aggressive world of roarball as a “small” and, as such, could never make it as a player going up against horses, crocs, gorillas and bears.

Will’s dream is to play roarball for a living, and his hero is the iconic black panther Jett Fillmore, the greatest player in the league who captains Will’s own local team.  His endless tenacity and love of the game ends up leading to a viral video which lands him a social media-friendly spot as the sixth player on the team, but playing alongside his hero ends up being a psychological nightmare, especially when he starts to outplay the ageing legend.

The main thrust of this story is simply some dumb, fun, obvious lessons about teamwork and its important relevance with regards to dreamwork. At its heart, GOAT is a classic underdog story, with all the weary clichés that it must bring: think The Mighty Ducks with a Zootropolis twist and you’re not far off.