Alma is a dark fantasy horror short film produced by ex-Pixar animator Rodrigo Blaas. It was made in 2009 and released on 24th June.
I chose Alma to analyse as it takes a very different approach on how horror is usually presented to the public, you don't want to believe in this videos dark outcome for the simple reason that it's a cute, short animation, and that it's crossing a very typical tradition that all animations should have this fairy tale ending. The fact that this one doesn't, I feel, really brings out the maturity of piece, and that animation is now starting to grow into a darker, less childlike style, with a whole host of possibilities for the future.
The plot follows a young girl, by the name of Alma, with bright blue eyes and soft, curly blond hair as she discovers a replica doll of herself in a seemingly empty shop window.
As she gradually becomes more curious about both the location of this mysterious disappearing and reappearing doll, and also the bizarre, lifeless shop that keeps it, she soon finds herself falling into the trap that the audience soon discovers has ensnared so many other children like herself. Once the doll is touched by the human, they are trapped within that doll.
I find that the majority of the audience, after watching is left with a lot of questions and theories about the film, which could be the main cause of the interest and also why I find it so fascinating; questions often appear such as what is the origin of this unexplainable shop?
Who first inhabited it and for what reason?
Why children and why in dolls?
What happens after the end of the film?
and how is to be either the next victim or savior?
Upon a closer look, it is said that the front of this toy store has the main window shaped like a mouth, while two, smaller windows on each side portray the eyes to make the shop seem like a face. This leads some of the audience to believe that it is the toy store behind these deeds, instead of one singular person.
This wouldn't be the first time that an inhuman creation has been the cause of mischief within a film. Movies such as Monster House and Caroline are prime examples for when the blame can't be placed on a human source, and I honestly believe it works quite well; young adults now will have most likely spent their whole lives surrounded by animation and most have left it behind as they had gotten older though, films such as these give animation a much more contemporary theme that is much easier to allow back into maturity.
