Alma short film

www.almashortfilm.com
Written and Directed by: Rodrigo Blaas
Produced by: Cecile Hokes
Music: Mastretta
Art Director: Alfonso Blaas
Lighting Supervisor: Jonatan Catalán
Character Technical Supervisor: Jaime Maestro
Character Design: Bolhem Bouchiba, Carlos Grangel,
Sergio Pablos, Santi Agustí
Animation: Daniel Peixe, ManueBover, Remi Hueso
Sound Design: Tom Myers and David Hughes
Post Production Coordinator: David Heras
Special Thanks: Keytoon, Next Limit, UserT38

[@laylover7621]

The desperation of the kid on the bike trying to escape is haunting as fuck.

[@T0mtoma]

@ige77 who’s going to open the door for that guy on the bike?

[@RicoLee27]

And trying to warn her

[@Angelbird57438]

Yay

[@suziwankenobi8807]

😹

[@Angelbird57438]

@@suziwankenobi8807 🤣

[@yunjihan4017]

*when you see a doll that looks just like you, you should probably run away*

[@meowneow9041]

I would buy that sh*t and keep it

[@emilycortes8421]

Dido!😰😆

[@annie3480]

It would be creepy finding a doll that looks like you

[@psycho_maniac1389]

Yunji Han what if I want to play with myself?

[@warlockiv3939]

I don’t like the sound of a doll looking like me that’s creepy

[@KnockMonsterr]

i think the most haunting part is the desperate breathing of the child after becoming trapped in the doll, that you can only hear when watching from her perspective, as to the outside world she is stuck as a silent puppet. really amazing storytelling

[@ZaiDrizzleDrop]

Seriously, her breathing gets more and more panicked, yet her doll’s expression is blank, masking her pain and suffering being stuck in the doll

[@ganados0]

And from there it gets depressing when you see she's gone from animate lively girl with family, friends, potential and a future of motherhood and career to an inanimate object stuck in someone's private collection.

[@ZaiDrizzleDrop]

@@ganados0 I don’t even think it’s a private collection. I think the shop is a monster (see the monster mouth for a window) that lures and steals the souls of children to eat them, Or eats the bodies when the souls enter the dolls. Notice how the door closes and opens on its own, and closes when the bike boy tries to leave.

[@HeartStruck333]

I love the detail of this short film, like how the door only has a handle on the outside, the dolls having cultural attire from different time periods insinuating that the shop has been all over the world for centuries, the only doll smiling is the one at 1:47 which also has a poster outside at 0:34, the wall of children’s names more faded than the others signifying how long they’ve been there, the missing children’s posters saying “Danger” in Spanish, The Victorian boy doll on his bike trying to warn her, the butterflies on the triangular table resembling death, and much more!

[@xFernPlant]

woahh thats insane

[@Elyricist746]

Wow.. talk about paying attention to detail!!!

[@ananyasatpathy7694]

Did you notice how the window of the shop resembles a monster's wide open Mouth.

[@vierja09]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/bWOloYGQfc91sNE

[@HeartStruck333]

@@ananyasatpathy7694 yess! I was unsure to put that in my comment though since I thought it might’ve been far fetched!

[@aeh5109]

The fact that there are dolls wearing multiple cutural and period clothing makes it even creepier. This shop must be going around the world for centuries.

[@himynameisdan9259]

oh wow I didn’t even notice that detail. That is creepy for sure

[@67gyomber]

Not the shop but the variants of the story. Where do you think Mary Shelley took the idea for creating an artificial human? Only preceeding here the stories were about clockwork people.

[@Lemonade_505]

666... hmmm.... (i am the 667th like)

[@dondog3123]

Not to mention the name on the wall that are slightly fading, which means the childrens that got trapped have been the longest than the other

[@JvW-yy6iz]

Hello everyone 😊 I'm a male from Holland 🇱🇺 and came across this short animation video.. I'll like to say, that this video was breathtaking beautiful 😍 and you're right A/E/H😊 All the details makes it even creepier, but.. still loves this one 😊👍 Sorry for my language and I'll hope you'll understand my comment 🌞 Wish everyone goodluck over there 🌈🌞 Greetings from Holland 🇱🇺

[@TheWarsquirtle]

No jump scares, just genuinely scary

[@Fenrigalo]

2:55 Saw...

[@lailamohammed8830]

Grunt Gamer so true

[@amandawoolnough]

Dylan Ingle I agree

[@grabern]

Nevermind...

[@rj7224]

sean horan lmao so fucking racist

[@KenjuKizawa]

One detail I noticed: When Alma steps further into the shop, the tiles she's stepping on start sounding like squelching and organic. You can also hear the same sounds of SOMETHING moving around behind the dolls

[@Dark_Lord_Of_YouTube]

Ahhhhh it does

[@Timmytheman87]

It’s a pretty amazing feat to create one of the most terrifying films without any jump scares or something to send big goosebumps down your spine. This is a fate worse than death. The new doll displayed at the end showing a replica of the next victim is the icing on the cake.

[@JusticeOuinn420]

This story is super creepy. Different time period clothing makes me think this shop has been doing this to children for the longest time...eventho not a single word was spoken, y'all managed to tell a creepy story and I am so here for it!!!

[@thesterrave]

agreed

[@JusticeOuinn420]

@@thesterrave I think the best is the period clothing of the other dolls, poor Alma so curiously unaware of what is to become of her

[@thesterrave]

​@@JusticeOuinn420 i do feel bad for the victorian cyclist, just imagine trying to free yourself and not being allowed idk if he was put back in the same position or somewhere where he couldnt get out

[@JusticeOuinn420]

@@thesterrave omg just the sound of that gives me chills directly down my spine!!! I would have to say just the way you described that has to easily make that a fate worse than death!!!

[@violettbellerose1173]

The worst part is that, after having to deal with the fact that you will never see your parents or loved ones again, and that they will probably never know what happened to you, you also have to watch the next kid fall into the same trap as you did, and then the next one, and so on.

[@somerandomperson6851]

That's exactly what I was thinking. It must be pretty horrible to see that happen to others with no way to warn them.

[@SoulMusic24]

I think that little boy in the bike was trying to warn her maybe?. Even tried to escape before the door shut

[@somerandomperson6851]

@@SoulMusic24 Yeah, that's what I thought, too.

[@GooglyMoogly68]

@@SoulMusic24 I doubt it, he just wanted to leave himself

[@aminabegum7259]

I feel like she never had parents. The missing photos, and why is she alone? Her parents would have came with her.

[@philliprathbun5250]

that girl is trapped inside a doll for eternity let's play happy music at the end

[@mr.galaxyface2885]

Cause' that'll lift their spirits!

[@adrianrobertoruizmartinez9325]

her soul is trap forever in a doll, how wacky!!

[@toyfun9304]

Mr.GalaxyFace agreeded

[@omarmossad5722]

W

[@zaituniirakoze809]

Phillip Rathbun bruh if u write ur name on that board then your done for 🙇🙇😪🙈🙉🙊🙊

[@archalys0]

4:07 The blonde doll narrows her eyes shortly after looking at Alma, maybe with sympathy, disappointment or sadness, or a mix of those. Could be some sort of weariness too

[@masterjustin2246]

Probably disappointment.

[@cottonowo7522]

I CANNOT BELIEVE THEY SHOWED ME THIS IN KINDERGARTEN

[@StrawberryLexi-12345]

SAMMEE💀

[@RyanPlayz28]

Same in school

[@shaunlinz1023]

Lmao same

[@Doritos-VR]

YO SAME, THIS USED TO GIVE ME NIGHTMARES

[@floydkelley3]

What a wonderfully creepy story. All of you who are saying that you saw it in school, what a terrific teacher you must have!

[@zuziaz8613]

+Floyd Kelley I DID, IM IN YEAR 6 THOUGH, STILL CREEPS ME OUT THOUGH, LLOOLL.

[@julial3758]

+Floyd Kelley LOL, sounds like sadistic teachers to me

[@rebecca2152]

Julia L why? My teacher showed my class this and everyone got great ideas for a story

[@robloxgamerafrocup2971]

My teacher showed it me twice I'm in a y6 and y5 mix she did it so the y5 could write it

[@iexistd1661]

Our teacher showed this to our class and said that it's symbolism for liking something so much and closing youself from others xd

[@chccolate]

There are some really creepy things in this animation, and I'm going to explain why. 0:37 wanted posters of children on the wall that probably went missing because of the doll shop. It says "peligro" which means "danger" in spanish. 0:41 the window of the shop looks like a giant monster's mouth. 0:51 the names on the chalkboard are the children who wrote their names down and got sucked into their clone doll, just like what happened to alma in this short film 3:04 the doll on the bike was trying to escape the shop, trying to warn the girl to run. 3:12 the table looks like the planchette (the small piece) of an ouija board, which is triangular shaped. 4:18 the other dolls with their eyes moving are the children who wrote their names on the chalkboard and got their souls sucked into a doll. Edit: At 3:36 the kid was trying to reach the doll. The doll on the bike that tried to escape and warn alma to run is banging on the door at a much faster pace. It's hitting the door harder which creates the suspense for what's going to happen next. 4:51 i don't know if anyone else has noticed this and idk if i'm right but alma's name on the chalkboard stands out a lot. compared to the other names, alma's name is quite large and it's in the center. the meaning of the name is a bit of a hint too.. some of the names written there are less visible and look like they are vanishing or something. perhaps they have been there for a long time? which is why they are slowly disappearing. (According to one of the replies) 3:09 The table has butterfly details. Butterflies often represent death (a butterfly leaving the cocoon is like the soul leaving the body). The floor is also a spiral, showing how she’s been sucked into the trap (and how she will end up in the doll). alma means "soul" in spanish which represents their souls being put into the creepy dolls. Moral of the story is, don't go into a strange empty shop.

[@charlotteatkinson722]

We have to do this movie in school and we had to make a list of these things haha-

[@shreeyapradhan4004]

Thanks so much this is for my lesson today

[@splatterkay]

Something you and most might've missed: There's no door handle on the inside of the shop's door.

[@insiyasufi1592]

Beautifully explained

[@bechirjayar6818]

J

[@CaseNancarrow]

4:03 I love how she's looking around like "are you serious right now?"

[@OrangeSlices185]

I don't know if anyone is still reading comments here, but I noticed a cool detail. When the doll first appears, it has two gloves. But after Alma pulls off one of her gloves to touch the doll, it only has one. Really nice touch!

[@Ac_thelivie]

And there is no handle on the inside of the door

[@katrinat3583]

Aw the doll on the bikes was trying to warn her and escape :(

[@arjjunmanoj7375]

ty i could use that in my descriptive writing on this....lol

[@veryfiedd]

@@arjjunmanoj7375 what the heck thats exactly what I have for homework

[@melux3079]

@@veryfiedd same lol we are off school and they made us do work on this animation about a missing poster

[@cliffkwaku9963]

@@melux3079 We have to do the same.

[@madhuniveditha1144]

@@veryfiedd omg same

[@pok3.m0n_54]

*Beginning of the video*: Aw, what a cute video! *sees the doll* Shit.

[@guinealover6674]

Blizzard You put * around the word. Not like *this. You have to put it around both sides of the word.

[@CreepoZ]

Like * this * *hello*

[@guinealover6674]

Blizzard Np.

[@emmarosea7218]

Lol

[@rebecca2152]

guinealover6674 !!! Like *this*?

[@plcthelegacy4131]

I think what generally creeped me out was that one doll behind Alma at 4:08 who just looked completely apathetic and desensitize. Like, "Oh, another one? Oh well..."

[@leonardosomma4196]

STILL HAVEN'T FORGIVEN THE TEACHERS FIR SHOWING US THIS IN PRIMARY SCHOOL!

[@2kkkk24]

we went to the same school do you remember me

[@leonardosomma4196]

@@2kkkk24 say Ur real name if u want to convince me..then I'll see....

[@2kkkk24]

@@leonardosomma4196 Laquarious Hogglefart is the name Sir

[@This_doesnt_feel_right]

AS A PRIMARY SCHOOL STUDENT (IM LITERALLY 11) YES.

[@hannahthomas3424]

I only just watched this today at school and it's so creepy

[@rajprajay]

ohhh!!! this the Backstory of Toy Story....

[@dhansen1991]

Yep well there goes my childhood

[@guinealover6674]

Prajay G Raj The music reminded me of it, too.

[@jasmines3617]

+MrMovieLover I wouldnt worry...

[@eggpower6079]

woooooow! New theory

[@Kajimityphoon]

@@guinealover6674 btw this is a ex Pixar animator so I'm concerned

[@Jolly_juice99]

4:10 doll in green dress: “you just had to touch it, didn’t ya?”

[@abandoned5268]

Pff

[@lilmissrockchick4962]

The doll with Blonde Ringlets

[@quandaledingle614]

She looks like Betty boop

[@MoikaSwirl_]

The blond one behind the green doll: My disappointment is immeasurable.

[@StrawberryLexi-12345]

Ikr 😭

[@Atomic181]

I was so traumatised and haunted by this short film when I was younger. I think I just had a fear of being unable to speak and being trapped. Truly one of the most scary animations for me when I was young.

[@projectdreamzz]

My teacher made us watch this and write it into a story when I was in primary school 😭

[@Atomic181]

@@projectdreamzz omfg same i had to pull her aside and ask what are you even doing 💀

[@BlueMagicite]

A bunch of wonderful layers packed into 6 minutes. Lots to say about how we look for our idealized selves, the need for perfection, the idea that this is a phenomenon across periods and cultures... and a fun detail is how Alma's name is in the credits sequence itself. Makes it seem like part of the idea is about getting recognition even if it means trapping yourself into something with no freedom and meant to be sold for another. Lots about that can be applied for many people trying to break into the film industry or how kids grow up thinking this "house of dolls" is really worth the trouble getting into anyways. Especially loved how the house itself toys with her in not letting her in at first, just like many industries do.

[@raphaelchan7574]

This comment honestly deserves more recognition. Thanks for letting me know the meaning behind this short movie 😊

[@NathanAu]

well alma in spanish means soul...so your soul gets transfered into a doll

[@finnbint-savage4946]

Really? :0

[@itzpush6541]

Yeah but what happens to the physical body?

[@benedekwollner7718]

Soul... And in Hungarian alma means apple

[@user-lu6ug6hf5f]

In Portuguese too, it means soul

[@guldin5317]

Alma to me it's just alma '-'

[@hannahmae8574]

*doll moves from table to shelf* Alma: Oh, totally not weird at all🙈✨💕👑

[@Batman.-]

Ikr I would have noped out of there real fast

[@quandaledingle614]

LOL

[@ronzasabah5676]

Hay! My name is Alma!

[@potato22222]

this is how kids die.... :(

[@himynameisdan9259]

NIALL PFP!! I love him also out of curiosity did you have to watch this vid for school? I did lol

[@crisptomato9495]

Alma has a really good character design, I especially like her colour scheme!

[@QueenCass93]

All these people from school or TikTok watching this & I saw it way back when it first came out. Never scared Me. I love the thrills and music in it.

[@peterfrank3365]

Poor Alma would then see through that window, her parents, in distraught, placing posters of her on the wall of names; shouting her name in the brink of a tearful breakdown.

[@Emily-wh5ot]

gee peter that’s pretty dark

[@peterfrank3365]

@@Emily-wh5ot Sorry. That thought was stuck with me for years since I first saw this short.

[@chloeshiers]

If you see in the beginning, all the missing children posters on wall near the shop. Must be some of the kids that were trapped

[@suzannegittins7553]

What goes on in your mind-

[@anthonyloveschickens]

@@peterfrank3365 same

[@Batman.-]

I felt so bad for the biker doll, imagine the hope he had to finally leave and then the girl doesn’t even open the door for him lmao

[@Leanmeantigerqueen2000]

I know right? So rude of her!

[@ntaentae6264]

There's no door handle on the inside

[@lplayed.]

@@ntaentae6264 lol

[@HH-qz1cg]

@@ntaentae6264 imagine she held the door open and everyone just went out 😂

[@ThaGuyXaii]

The biker doll is i think warning her

[@unspoken2460]

I remember watching this wayyy back in year 5, absolutely traumatised

[@firemiracle]

I remember that back in 2010, dreamworks was actually planning to make a movie based on this short with Guillermo del Toro executive producing it, and i was so excited for it, but as time passed on, no updates about it were announced and later found out that it was cancelled.

[@josephdimambro-denson497]

I had to write my own version of what happened after she touches the doll as a creative writing exercise in primary school and 8 years later I still find it haunting.

[@jonathanrobles4336]

same

[@harrietives]

yea, we had to do a short paragraph as a writing exercise in year 3?!? this made me have nightmares because i was so little.

[@commandercheese7408]

I'm doing that tomorrow

[@SleepyCrumpet]

Same…

[@Python-xs2iv]

I'm curious, what did you write?

[@kiikii711]

the doll that's dressed differently 1:47 is the reason the door opens. and she's the only doll with a big smile.... I'm thinking she manages the shop

[@ratkingwastaken]

Maybe

[@fwtxyare]

I know I’m 2 years late but I like how when I clicked the time stamp it just an up close frame of the doll 😂😂😂😂

[@jblegend5272]

emerald williams u could be right

[@noelmaldonado7829]

emerald williams maybe cause she does have a creepy smile

[@lilmissrockchick4962]

I had a story about that doll. Judging by her costume, I thought she was part of some kind of parade, or travelling circus. The Circus or Parade was travelling through Barcelona (Where this is set), and Circus or Parade travelled down this street or she either ran away, and ran down this street. She stopped and wrote her name on the Chalkboard. You all know the rest, I don't need to continue...

[@hkjtgdkjhgtrkjhjktgjrjkjfd3444]

At the beginning, a wanted poster of somebody with a wide grin is shown. As alma approaches the door, a doll with a wide grin is shown - they could have been the earliest victim and now, the shop-keeper who welcomes the children in OR her only sense (sight/vision) is left. Just before grasping that doll, she must've had a huge smile, thinking about how the doll looked exactly like her and nobody was there to stop her. When people enter the shop, if the dolls had all their senses then they could easily warn the child and draw them away. Maybe she's grinning as she's been there for so long that she's became unresponsive/sadistic to any other children being captured. I'm lead to believe that she's been there for so long as her outfit looks vintage!

[@angryman...]

i accidentslly found this shit again it jas been so long my old choldhood trauma is BACK.😢

[@palindinX]

So the cycle repeats itself for the next child who looks identical to doll? Well, isn't that fucked up......

[@healingkayla]

Its because Alma, and the other children wrote their name on that wall at the start; it is connected. Plus in ghost stories you have to leave the logic.

[@lol-yw7pr]

Jouni Heinonen hi

[@stefanymendez4777]

Moon Street Hispanic name their kids alma (soul in Spanish)😅

[@zoegonzalez3616]

Moon Street mi hispanic cousin is called alma, it’s actually a really common name in south america

[@aris6463]

Moon Street it’s a common name actually

[@sylvymilky4790]

Other dolls: First time? Alma: ``👁👄👁``

[@xannabx365]

HAHAHA

[@WhyAreWeHere1028]

Lol, I think it happened so many times that the doll with the curly blond hair behind Alma’s doll seemed annoyed or was like “welp, another stupid kids done it again” by the look of her eyes 👀

[@alexandraanderson3988]

They're probably like hi how are you 😂😅😊😊 caught up in this mess too 😭😭 but In hindsight tho it's not funny

[@cjhammer0623]

I gotta say, my music teacher showed us this when I was in preschool and it had scarred me for life, but now that I’m older I think this is pretty good! Nostalgia, am I right? 😂

[@ZoeGabbie]

Dude PRESCHOOL? Kids are like 3 when they go to preschool; my goodness

[@user-cm1tq3pf2n]

i just randomly remmembered this work of art existed

[@MadAsAHatter52]

Same

[@avpguy11]

Great. Wasn't planning on sleeping tonight anyway.

[@aayankafle]

lololololololololololol lololololololololololol

[@katrinat3583]

Me watching this at 4 am 👁👄👁

[@sofia4464]

@@katrinat3583 I'm watching it at 3am 😶

[@neneglamorous4194]

😂

[@olliepainter2155]

Respond to a comment 6 years later please

[@ganados0]

3:45 onwards is horrifying, Alma's soul has been put in the doll, we can see from her perspective which is like she's seeing through a scope instead of human eyes and the only thing she's seeing and liable to see for a long time is this view of the shop. We can infer her doll has no eye lids like the one behind it so they're permanently open all the time, she can't close them for sleep, dust, bugs or anything and moving her eyes is the only power she has left over herself. She can hear her new eyes move and her own breathing, which is audibly growing into a panic, and it sounds like she really wants to scream but can't and doesn't seem to be hearing the eyes of the other dolls moving suggesting her only remaining sense is vision. She is going to be trapped there, seeing the sun rise and set for days, then weeks, then months and years. She'll not gain much in the way of information, no family, no friends, no school, no occasions to celebrate, just memories and the possibility she'll lose her mind in a few decades wondering if being human was some delusion.

[@Lemonade_505]

that's deep

[@mushforbrains.]

Pretty sure this goes in your 7th grade literature book, not the comment section

[@blueberryboy369]

@@mushforbrains. you is a gacha tuber shut youre mouths sir you is 8 years oldings makeing

[@sehansadesilva3833]

their eye lids are not actually open forever cos that creepy doll on the right next to almas clone could blink

[@ganados0]

@@sehansadesilva3833 I noticed that one did but it looks like one built to have that feature. The sitting doll to her bottom right has eye lashes built into it's face, the shy doll to the far left on her shelf has eye lids but they seem fixed that way too. I didn't notice until typing but on the shelf below them is a doll with a green ribbon, her eyes have eye lids so it's possible they all have them.

[@CB101.]

Bro, I watched this during ELA and it sent a chill down my spine

[@catsoverdogsanyday]

I remember watching this in Y5 and being creeped tf out of it. Crazy to re-watch it now.

[@Scarshadow666]

This animated short is one of the creepiest doll-based horror shorts I've seen! Every once in a while, I rewatch this video to remind me how spine-chilling it is!

[@breanna6452]

It’s really not all that tho

[@Scarshadow666]

@@breanna6452 Eh, that is a good point lol! It's probably not particularly special compared to most doll-based horror media/art, but it's still a great animated horror short (imo). ^^ ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

[@mishalom8318]

Same

[@alices.hawaii]

I learnt this in primary school

[@Ur_Least_favorite_Friend]

Fun fact: when alma first sees the doll, it has two gloves on, like her (or him) but after she takes off one of her gloves to grab the doll, it only has one glove on.

[@latenightcashews]

that's such a neat detail

[@ElChipsFiestaBuffet]

I didn't see that I am looking very closely its not there

[@ElChipsFiestaBuffet]

Hold on I see it now

[@Ur_Least_favorite_Friend]

@@ElChipsFiestaBuffet maybe you missed it

[@friendlyneighborhoodweeb]

Holy cow! Now that's following movement on another level!

[@Tiaaaaxx]

watched this in primary school

[@dawnparrish6910]

I use this in my 6th grade ELA classes to teach tone and mood. The students always LOVE it!!!

[@cjkeys5040]

Coming back to this after almost 9 years is weird to see how vividly I remember this story

[@stariveart]

Ikr??? I still remember it and rapidly got back to see it

[@GlitterPeach]

damn@@stariveart

[@MarinaMelody-sw1ck]

same #memoryunlocked

[@andi-kt4ky]

i like how this is my quarantine homework. Yes now I'm going to write a full story about alma and not get nightmares.

[@baxterboy123yt]

same here atleast im not the only one

[@ameliamack3259]

something even scarier i got shown in yr 4 is francis that was terrifying

[@aris6463]

why are your teachers making your watch this? what subject is this for?

[@baxterboy123yt]

@@aris6463 literature/ English

[@andi-kt4ky]

@@aris6463 English, i had to write a gothic fiction or something, i don't remember.

[@caseygoddard1922]

Teacher: what did Alma trip over? Me: *BICYCLE BOY*

[@mariemorgan7759]

The table, in the center of the shop where Alma finds the doll for the second time, is shaped like the ouija board planchette.

[@graciekingston7966]

A new meaning of Toys are us 🧸😂

[@ryleecard-parnell2850]

Holy sh1t

[@shaydailly]

Toys "R" Us isn't creepy at all. In my country, the store closed down 2 years ago due to bankruptcy. It is now Amazon.

[@danilo8]

@@BobaShakeMallow think a bit more with what he meant with “toys are us”

[@_Inesitaa_]

OMG this fucking killed me 😂😂😂😂😂

[@Lemonade_505]

😟

[@sandora2cute1]

sad that the doll on the bike tried to escape :( this is a creepy and sad short. And is the table at 3:12 supposed to look like a ouija board piece or maybe its just me who thinks it looks like one

[@Yixxyy]

Lia V. No it does look like one

[@cataymelanie]

I saw the board

[@sandora2cute1]

B2! ! Is the rug the board? This doll shop is the game itself. Trapping souls of playful children who desire toys.

[@sandora2cute1]

Also did she sell her soul by writing her name on the chalkboard?

[@Yixxyy]

Lia V. I think the chalk board is a way the doll maker got all the names of his victims (everyone he captured)

[@QuiGonJohn1999]

I saw this in like the 4th grade while doing a project on Pixar, we watched a bunch of the Pixar shorts to analyze what the meaning behind them were Then this played, everyone looked so uncomfortable while watching even the teacher was kinda of shook because of the short. My gut was telling me that this wasn’t Pixar but I didn’t say anything. After the short finished the teacher just said “Ok… anyone want to give their thoughts?” No one did.

[@Minimalassault]

This is so disturbing I remember getting nightmares as a kid

[@sara-ls5pm]

if you look carefully, in the beginning there’s a few missing posters all over the walls and one of them is a sketch of a little boy with a bit of a side part. when alma enters the store his doll is sitting on the left side of the door :)

[@_Inesitaa_]

Not 'his' , her. Alma is name for girls.

[@sara-ls5pm]

@@_Inesitaa_ i’m not referring to alma. im referring to the boy in the poster. HIS doll is shown in the store.

[@Lemonade_505]

oof thats scary

[@sehansadesilva3833]

never thought about that

[@MrASZHanazaki]

In mother russia, the dolls plays with YOU!

[@apxbyonic6637]

Tayce Axel this is spain

[@lucyleja5304]

really? that would kill me if it was true

[@averagebritishguy7082]

That's Soviet Russia ya dunce.

[@kyyoomi]

APXByonic *ehem* this is america, police be trippin now

[@ww2isjtc56]

Ironically there is a person who lives in Russia who does these types of stuff

[@_hearts_4_christina_]

We watched this in year 6 agesss ago and I still remember- we had to write a writing peice on it.

[@_hearts_4_christina_]

and my teacher said sum about how the biker was probs trynna prevent alma from touching the doll, but it actually looked so deperate to escape that place-

[@omarbaba9892]

SAME lol

[@abdullahshah4510]

What's your school

[@Thoth0333]

that’s nuts, we looked at this film back in year 6, I can’t believe I’ve managed to find it again

[@nihilist6062]

i remembered i found this masterpiece when i was around the 3rd grade. back then i was too dumb to understand how creepy the plot is. suddenly today, i really want to watch this film again. now that i'm in 11th grade, i found the plot is actually so disturbing somehow...

[@tactical_ghost199]

Just being trapped unable to move for eternity, nobody will ever find you and it’s just horrifying

[@DavidJohnson-lh1yi]

@@tactical_ghost199 Kinda like kars from jojo tho everything was good after he stopped thinking

[@first-acc-lol]

12th now?

[@freddddd367]

@@tactical_ghost199 ah they only have to wait another 5 billion years til the sun explodes and finally they will actually die...

[@ganados0]

You have an inkling of what she's lost: her future as a human being.

[@Abirre]

Watching again and again ! This short movie keeps revealing its secrets each time ! The first reflection of Alma on the shopwindow portrays It as an eye!The shop is watching Alma passing by , as it watched all the other children before. The shop is alive , the shop is evil !

[@Lemonade_505]

8 years later no likes

[@HeartStruck333]

Who cares about likes? It’s a KZbin comment

[@hisfavworstnightmare]

if you didn’t have to write a creative writing story on this when you were in primary school, you did not have a childhood

[@mochibearhunt4424]

fr

[@ChaoticSiIence]

True

[@Poison_root]

For anyone in my class who’s watching this; there’s missing posters, not only kids have been tunred into dolls (there are adult dolls, and some dolls have been worn down, indicating that they have been there for a while.

[@eiram4214]

The one with the bicycle trying to escape unfortunately the door closed.

[@idreadFell365]

Mission failed, we’ll get em next time

[@Rosa4Real]

So whoever writes their name on the wall.....this is great!

[@TheHeelers-zx6hi]

I would never ever go near a doll like me for that very reason, or because of a sick prank

[@zaynedickens2450]

My theory about this is the shop is sentient. It sees a kid walking by and is able to make a doll that looks like them within second. The window to the shop looks like an angler fish mouth. Placing the dolls in the window is like setting bait. At first alma isn't able to get into the shop. She gets annoyed and throws a snow ball at the door, angering the shop. So it opens the door for her. It moves her doll self closer into the shop by putting it on the center table first. Alma takes the bait again. Bicycle doll does try to stop her and lead her way. The shop knows this and shuts the door as fast as possible. Along with it moves Doll Alma on the furthest self from the door.

[@merrakchikhadija572]

True

[@ganados0]

Mine is the building is a private showroom with an automated doll factory below it, fuelled by the bodies of the children. It translocates magically to many cities around the world into back alleys and has a contract wall nearby. It sends invitations to children to come alone at night. Alma here is just a casual victim, a carefree girl who ran down a street and unknowingly signed her soul over. It's run by the smiling doll by the entrance who can transform at will from doll to a witch she prefers to spend her time as a doll and mostly uses time as human for when she has guests over for a viewing. This is her private collection, she can feed off souls over hundreds of years but hasn't finished with a single one yet because she gradually gets bored and puts them in storage. The dolls work like human bodies but they are fixed into position, their only sense is sight, they can't feel, smell, hear or taste. The child can think and hear their own thoughts and voice but it's limited like if the dolls mouth is closed they'll only ever mumble and even then, after decades the child 'adapts' b losing it's mind, the bicycle doll for instance keeps making a run for the door but it's demented, it's been doing that for over a hundred years and forgot why. Some dolls with eyelids can sleep and dream, they remember being human all too well but have been there for so long, they know even if they escape, there's no one out there for them as their relatives died long ago.

[@Angehavenmeiam]

THE BOYS IN MY CLASS LEGIT STARTED SCREAMING AS SOON AS THE SOUL OF ALMA GOT SUCKED INTO THAT DOLL AND IT WAS SO FUNNY LMAOOO

[@luhvx_xx]

BRO SAMEE

[@ganados0]

The tricycle doll is Victorian, he's been there for over a hundred years! 3:10 look closely at the shelf when Alma's looking around, specifically at the space where her doll appears when she ducks her head seconds later, there's a black shadowy mass she failed to notice. One of the twin dolls at 3:30 is damaged, it's eye is cataracted, given that Alma's doll is more attractive then her physical self the dolls are built to perfection as a lure, the damage may have happened after the soul transfer and it seems the shop doesn't repair damaged dolls. 4:20 I wonder if that was a mother and her daughter in the top left corner who wandered too close to the store and were trapped. 4:35 She's an adorable doll, she'll soon be the vessel of some sweet girls soul. Also Alma's doll before she was in it, had grey iris eyes with what looks like a camera lens, when she touches it at 3:45 we see images of her, snapshots of her screaming she may have been in two places on touching it seeing herself from the dolls eyes and reacting in shock to this. We see her perspective after this, her being pulled into a circle of featureless porcelain dolls passing them into one that has it's arms out in a welcoming fashion, as if the doll she was absorbed by was embracing her. The Victorian boy is gone at this point, maybe time has passed or the boy was placed back on his space magically.

[@JaxonElzinga]

Fate worse than death. The only solace these victims have would be going mad and losing themselves to delusions amidst the monotony of their new "lives"

[@hijabis4life]

I don’t get it where’s the mum and daughter

[@ganados0]

@@hijabis4life Pause at 4:20, at the top left you'll see two dolls: a large one in a grey dress and a small blonde girl in an olive dress.

[@hijabis4life]

@@ganados0 damn wtf didn’t realise that

[@Python-xs2iv]

What shadowy mass?

[@cantstopwontstopreading]

The fact that the townspeople didn't even notice that loads of kids went missing, the same names of the kids were on the wall, and creepy dolls looking like their kids were just across the street

[@DuckyDrool_YT]

Few years back we did an essay on this in school haha….

[@sandydog426]

Judging by the time period several of the other dolls' clothes are from, they've been stuck on that shelf for many, many years. The little boy on the bike looks Victorian. I wonder if they have any sense of time passing, or of the fact that anyone who would have missed them or continued to look for them is long dead. I wonder if they had to watch people give up searching.

[@400subswithnovideos7]

Why does this remind me of coraline so much?

[@joshuajoe1419]

Because the horror, dolls, and animation style.

[@elliecooper3207]

The doll coraline had that the boys grandmother had

[@regansballs]

dolls looking like the main character occurs in both stories

[@Xan_7082]

because both Coraline and Alma didn't understand that a doll that looks just like you should be an instant red flag

[@theereriotaku1790]

I remember being made to watch this short film when I was 10 or 11 for school, I will never forget how creepy this short film was, good job!!!

[@azrael0842]

I watched this when I was younger in class. It remains to be one of my favorite short films because it’s so good!

[@nicepossum1974]

I watch this 6 years ago at school and I just realized that the dolls are all wearing clothes from different eras. The shop must have been going on for ages lol

[@AwSoMeFactOry]

I believe this was based on Europe when kids disappearing like 10 millions back then. Europe governments announced that they did that few months ago and thats why there's Europian kids at random place working in harsh condition

[@unconventionalworldofrock]

I watched this about 11 years ago when I was in year 5. I still occasionally watch it and it still leaves me speechless like it did the first time.

[@isabellacatlin8038]

A really interesting detail is at 4:12 you can see that Alma’s doll has a glove off just like how she took it off before her soul was trapped

[@Fireeater-rl4ep]

I could barely eat dinner after watching this, I was so freaked out! Now, almost a decade later, I have returned, and am gratified to know everyone else is just as spooked! Also, if you're a teacher, don't freakin' show this in your class! You're gonna screw kids up!

[@acoolcat8160]

Im still somewhat phobic of dolls from this. When i was shown it in school i was terrified.

[@Batman.-]

I thought I was the only kid in my class seriously freaked so I didn’t say anything lmao

[@orca_finn]

i got shown this in school 5 years ago, they showed it us in writing club and we had to describe details of what was happening

[@Melanie-kx6bd]

My teacher let us watch this in our class 💀💀

[@Melanie-kx6bd]

@@orca_finn same

[@Leanmeantigerqueen2000]

I never really understood why some kids desired to have a doll that looked like them. Like no, I don’t want a mini me, that’s just creepy, I want a doll with her own unique looks and style! Also, I can’t help but wonder a few things: 1. Once you write your name on the chalkboard, are you doomed? Or can you just ignore the shop all together and continue on with your life? 2. Say there’s a child that doesn’t want the doll that looks like them, and instead takes a liking to another doll in the shop? Would they be able to escape with another doll? 3. With that many children going missing, it makes one wonder why there seems to be no action being done to prevent it. Like, why would children still be allowed to walk around by themselves unsupervised? Why isn’t there more police on patrol or something? Regardless, this is a very creepy and wonderfully animated story!

[@Sunset_feels414]

Also why is no one else there?

[@himynameisdan9259]

Yeah that is a good question. I also wonder if there is a shopkeeper who hides somewhere in the shop, or has a room in the back or something. He/she probably has intentions to trap kids.

[@Lemonade_505]

@@himynameisdan9259 i think it's a shop created by some devils

[@ganados0]

1. Maybe, a child could just run along without checking out the shop, writing your name on a wall used to be bad behaviour so they could technically do that and bolt at the first sound behind them thinking the storekeepers after them. 2. With the camera lens eyes gone, the doll may not absorb their body/soul, so they might be able to leave or maybe the store won't let them until they let the doll go. It should be noted there's no door handle on the inside, maybe they'll be stuck until the next child comes along but by then curiosity may kill the cat so to speak. 3. In some places kids are allowed outside to play, in modern times they're less inclined with the mod cons and parents fears they'll be picked up but in some places kids can run around freely. We don't know how many the store takes, it might only take a few within a time frame, like five kids every ten years.

[@barbarahuber9392]

They probably did but when nothing happened they let their guard down. They had their own lives to lead.

[@aderynamos1866]

We had to watch this in primary school almost ten years ago so that we could practice our creative writing. Scared the hell out of us.

[@StrawberryLexi-12345]

If u actually look close enough there are missing posters on the wall of what looks like children! not only that but when the lil doll falls you can actually see it tried to escape the shop! Idk I just thought that was cool😭 thx for reading!

[@turtlesonfleek2279]

We watched this in Y5 (4th grade) and holy damn... Are they even allowed to show this creepy stuff?

[@Yixxyy]

Same!!!

[@itisjoefilms8959]

IKR

[@inactive8202]

ComicalGeeks//VideoGames SAME I acc jump out of ma chair in class I almost died xD

[@geonuuks]

ComicalGeek -- I'm in year 5 and we watched this yesterday

[@n.y5345]

pastel axolotl watched this two weeks ago in year 8 watching it again for homework purposes lol

[@BHM_Productions]

I wouldn't call this creepy or scary whatsoever. More like very interesting; a concept that deserves elaboration. I get serious Coraline vibes from this.

[@guinealover6674]

BHM Productions Same! I thought I was the only one thinking of Coraline.

[@rainpooper7088]

BHM Productions I heard it will be made into a movie soon.

[@guinealover6674]

Rainpooper Me too. Do I want to see it? I really can't decide.

[@rainpooper7088]

guinealover6674 !!! It does look like it would make for a genuinely creepy movie that doesn't rely on jumpscares. But I have no idea how they want to make a whole story about this.

[@guinealover6674]

Rainpooper I guess we'll see, but for now we can hope for the best.

[@oksanasirokina99]

I’m here from school writing ✍️ making a story at school about alma

[@tf2kemba]

crazy cool animation and story telling for a youtube video taht was made 14 years ago. impressive

[@FairyGodMuvaNina]

If the children's souls transferred into the dolls then what happened to their physical bodies???

[@deadmouldytree7290]

om nom nom

[@kmysamaXX]

The store is an entity that eats people, mostly kids cause they are easier to drive inside the store. So their bodies are eaten by that thing.

[@FairyGodMuvaNina]

omg

[@ubaidubai_]

it would've been increasingly creepy if as she's looking frantically around the shop something suddenly shoves her off the shelf plummeting onto the sofa bouncing off and landing upside down in front of her cold dead body staring straight into her lifeless dead eyes

[@kennedy-cu7in]

maybe they disintegrate?

[@notmydivision6130]

i know its predictable...but i hate how it ends like its just a normal cute short film when its actually not... IT BARELY SOUNDS LIKE NOTHING HAPPENED

[@bluephire]

Maybe that's the point. A doll stealing someone's soul is just another ordinary day in this world. It happens, but life just keeps on moving.

[@R.P.McMurphy]

J Downs that kind of make it worst XD

[@teddyroberts554]

hello luhan icon

[@Kajimityphoon]

Ik how you feel Vegeta 😂

[@Kajimityphoon]

@@bluephire I think the animator is trying to tell us about child abductors too and after so long people just act like it's an ordinary day while the familes is worried to death the chalkboard shows the children who we're abducted, the shop represent the abductors and the dolls represent how abductors lure children to them like a friend or a fun treat but it's really a trick making the moral of the story if be careful who you meet and never talk to strangers

[@irenes3t]

i came back!! i watched this in yr 6 and had to do a story board on it and i just now remembered about this

[@marwahhb]

This has to be by far my favourite and also most nostalgic video on youtube

[@1cho456]

Wall: poster for missing children Dolls: missing children Shop: kidnapper This is my interpretation of the film please feel free to tell me yours

[@jamescarey1140]

I agree

[@CC-sq1kf]

I had a theory that the building itself is actually sentient. That would explain why everything moves around on its own and why the window looks like a face.

[@finlaybatch1442]

Uhu

[@rosiehill228]

mine is just dont touch things in creepy shops

[@ganados0]

Wall: A lure, who started off that trend? Dolls: contain the souls of the missing children, what happens to their bodies? are they absorbed? turned into some fuel for the store? Shop: Crafting these inanimate bodies and transferring the souls to them for reasons unknown. Could be evil in that it targets children or it may be benevolent and ignorant of the gravity of what it's doing.

[@idontknow-3273]

We watched this in our school and everyone screamed at the same time it was funny but also scary 😰

[@haggisfartsplays9169]

I don’t know ;-; same but we didn’t scream

[@thisrandomchannel4419]

Scream? Me and my class can't relate though :) Nobody screamed...

[@minionmaddnesstuff]

Same

[@eclipsxchxn4236]

no i was the only one scared I STILL AM

[@DaLilZero]

I also watched it in school WHAT THE HELL IS TJOS

[@georgia3043]

As someone who was terrified of dolls as a child and still is, this is the only horror situation i can one hundred percent guarantee say i would survive.

[@DoriesDollies]

This is still one of me fave shorts of all time 🥰💖

[@charlotteprocter9837]

I did this as a year 6 bit of creative writing now ive come back to it years later for no reason whatsoever

[@veryfiedd]

im literally doing it now for homework in year 7

[@gruffcube]

Same here

[@strangerdanger830]

i did it in year 5 and still forever scarred

[@izzyalmond8946]

I saw this when i was like 9 my teacher showed us it. Still haunts me

[@elliecooper3207]

I’m genuinely still traumatised

[@big.pp.energy]

Same lmao

[@daddypig2454]

omg me too

[@nootify]

I'm back here to relive this

[@user-tg8yu5nl7w]

Это далеко не фильм для детей, а судя по комментариям, его смотрят дети, с подачи,, учителей,, Для ЧЕГО?????

[@itstotallynotacc]

0:37 : idk if anybody else commented about this but you can kind of see like a mouth of something and Alma is in there. watched this in class earlier in the year for different types of moods. we were traumatized.

[@vynberry]

WHAT I WATCHED IT TOO?? (At school)

[@what6893]

I never saw this for school. I just stumbled upon it a few years ago and randomly remembered it.