Alma is a 2009 Spanish computer-animateddark fantasyhorrorshort film produced by ex-Pixar animator Rodrigo Blaas. It had received notable recognition at the Fantastic Fest awards. The word ":wikt:alma#Spanish|alma" in Spanish means "soul". The film is about a girl named Alma who wanders into a deserted town and store.
Summary
On a cold day in Barcelona, Alma comes wandering down a quiet alleyway. Encountering a wall with names of various children, she then writes her own name. Startled by a noise of mechanical clogs behind her, she turns cautiously around and discovers a doll, on display in a shop window, that looks identical to her. Curiously, she tries to enter the shop only to find that the door is locked. In frustration, Alma throws a snowball at the door. Thinking the shop is closed, Alma begins to walk away before the door suddenly opens. Alma enters the store. As Alma walks in, she is presented with shelves filled with dolls. Elated, she notices the doll of herself on a table. Walking towards it, she trips over a small toy of a boy riding a bicycle. The toy pedals across the floor and heads to the exit but the door closes before the toy can escape. Alma starts to climb a shelf to reach the doll. The moment she touches the doll, she finds herself looking at the shop below from the doll's perspective. Unable to move and trapped, Alma notices all of the other dolls whose eyes blink back at her. A different doll is immediately raised in the shop's display window. Did she seal her fate by writing her name on the wall? Or was she already chosenbeforehand like the doll raised by the mechanical clog?
In October 2010, it was announced that DreamWorks Animation is developing an animated feature film based on Alma. Short's director Rodrigo Blaas is again set to direct the feature, with Guillermo del Toro executive producing it. In November 2011, it was reported that the studio has hired Megan Holley, a writer of Sunshine Cleaning, to write a script. Del Toro, who is also helping with the story and the design work, said in June 2012 that the film was in visual development.
