Buscando Alma

Buscando Alma is a heartfelt dramatic short film about a trans Honduran-American woman called Cristina trying to reconnect with her mother Alma. Having been pulled apart against their will many years ago, the two characters pray that they can find their way back to one another. This is definitely one of the better short films I’ve had the pleasure of watching this year, and it exemplifies a kind of socially conscious – yet cinematically inventive – mode of movie making which we clearly need more of, and should also be seen by many (in a perfect world). It’s a story filled with hope, filmed and constructed with great skill. So, let’s dive deeper into why it works as well as it does.

Telling a sensitive and nuanced story is not such a simple task, but through sincerity and craft, this movie makes it look easy. Specifically, the way in which the film represents feelings of anxiety, and a desire for acceptance and connection, feels incredibly authentic. It's a work filled with compassion and qualities which allow the audience to engage emotionally in every moment. Viewers will be particularly impressed by the story’s subtle yet effective dual-narrative structure, in which we also get to see the life of Cristina’s mother Alma in her day-to-day life. The fact that, for instance, we get to see Alma interact casually with others and perform the day’s chores really means that we get to know the character more intimately, and thus we care even more deeply. Both characters are yearning for that wonderful connection which they’ve lost through tragedy. Cristina’s identity as a trans woman leads to complex and perceptive emotional ideas which then also relates to family and memory, so it’s a great thing to see a drama truthfully and respectfully dealing with these very human concepts (as opposed to a film exploiting that topic simply as a story device or gimmick). It’s completely organic all the way through, and technically speaking, this is also top-notch filmmaking.

To tell this story – dealing very much in the realm of subjective memory, and even spiritual connection – the filmmakers opted for a soft aesthetic. While using a spherical lens makes the images feel less conventionally ‘cinematic’ and more grounded in reality (and therefore expressing some level of a real-world narrative), its luscious soft focus then achieves a unique, dreamy mood; as if while our two main characters are present in the everyday, they’re preoccupied in their heads with memories and wishes. The gentle, balanced light and diffusion additionally creates a similar effect, and is also just pleasing to witness as an audience-member. A high-end production such as this also has crisp, flawless sound, and – rather amazingly – an original score which sounds terrific, and very much fits with the tone of the piece. All of these techniques are implemented in rather sentimental fashion (something which a cynical critic might knock), but it gets away with it because of the deepness of the characters and the reality of the issues at play. One can’t help but be swept up in the emotion, especially at its cathartic end.