How to Stay at Home is a short film series starring Goofy themed around life during the COVID-19 pandemic[1], released on August 11, 2021. Eric Goldberg directed and served as supervising animator on "How to Wear a Mask", while Mark Henn and Randy Haycock served as supervising animators for "Learning to Cook" and "Binge Watching", respectively. As usual, Bill Farmer voiced the Goof with Corey Burton as the stuck-up narrator.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, Goofy indulges in different activities, as the snooty narrator describes the process of getting around during such a difficult time.
First, Goofy must venture into the outside world, and prepares to do so via putting on his mask. As the narrator informs the viewer how important a mask is, Goofy ends up tangling himself with the mask, as he finds it difficult to put around his face. Once his nose and mouth are "properly" covered, he exits the home to retrieve his mail. The narrator hopes that he makes it further than the mailbox, next time.
Then, Goofy decides to cook, rather than go out to a restaurant. He collects the necessary equipment as the narrator describes, and then goes to his fridge and cabinet, both of which barely are almost empty. The narrator encourages Goofy, saying that the best chefs can turn ANYTHING into a feast. Soon, Goofy presents his dish: a mish-mash of different food, including a pie, some chips, and canned beans.
Lastly, Goofy indulges in binge watching his favorite program. As the narrator describes how the process works, Goofy is completely hooked; he still feeds himself and puts on his mask when a pizza delivery man is at his doorstep, but otherwise, his eyes are glued to the screen. He is so hooked, the narrator has to wave his hand to see if he is still alive. Eventually, night falls, as the narrator states that how long one can binge watch depends on the how many episodes a program has, and how long each episode is. Goofy, face still glued to his screen, retrieves his pajamas, blankets, and nightcap, and as the narrator wishes him a good night, Goofy falls asleep (with his eyes remaining wide open so he can watch his program).
This short series had received mixed reviews. Many have called the series on a positive note for bringing back traditional animation with the classic storyline of Goofy’s memorable antics into comedic slapstick. However, some have also found everything to be too short and underwhelming due to the fact that there were only 3 shorts with a total of approximately 6 minutes.
All of the music heard is taken from the classic Goofy shorts.
In Learning to Cook, Goofy is dressed the same way as he was in Mickey's Birthday Party. During the baking sequence, the conga from the same short can be heard.
In "Binge Watching", the unseen narrator, or rather, his hand, can finally be seen when he tries to see if Goofy is still alive.
All three shorts were dedicated in memory of Max Kohler.
The promotional art for this series is patterned after the poster for Goofy Gymnastics.
This is the shortest series to be exclusive on Disney+ with only three episodes being two minutes long each, not counting the fourth anthology episode.
