Oren Mashkovski and Mysh recently collaborated on this Flash-animated short, titled The Battery Menace, that encourages us to recycle our batteries. It was commissioned by Monkey Business, an industrial design company based in Israel.

Some of you may recall last year’s post about Titmouse’s day where the animators could create whatever they wanted. This year Titmouse set the day aside again, calling it 5 Second Animation Day. Not everyone used Flash, but it seems most did. Here’s some of my favorites:

A-Trak Recess by Jeremy Polgar.

CrapHat by Parker Simmons

LA-based band Shiny Toy Guns have paired up with internationally-acclaimed artist Glen Hanson and Hollywood studio Six Point Harness to create their latest music video. Ghost Town is off the band’s sophomore album Season of Poison, and the Flash-animated video was designed and directed by Hanson, who has experience on TV series like Beetlejuice and Spy Groove. After the video, go read an interview with Hanson over at animationmagazine.com.

Steven K.L. Olson, a producer and the lead animator on SuperNews (which will reveal half-hour episodes next month), recently worked on an animated short for the political satire site 23/6. The short, titled Just Be Lucky, was written and directed by A.D. Miles, who you may know from Reno 911 or Tim and Eric Awesome Show. Miles is spoofing the 1951 civil defense film Duck and Cover, by teaching us new lessons like “Hate + Fertilizer = Bomb.”

So, you’ve got a little less than 2 weeks to sort out your Valentine’s Day plans, but before you start, take a minute and watch this Happy Tree Friends short, titled Cold Hearted. It’s romantic, in a bloody, dismembered cadaver sorta way.

Newteevee.com recently voted YouTube’s HD service to be the best, so go to the site and watch this same HTF episode in glorious high definition.