Alike Short Film (2015) is the Goya-winning 8-minute Spanish animated shorts about a father, his son and a world that drains their color. Meaning, themes, cast, awards, free watch.
Alike Short Film (2015): The Goya-Winning Spanish Shorts About a Father, His Son and the World That Dulls Their Colors
A father rushes his son to school, and each day the boy comes home a little less himself. Alike Short Film is an eight-minute, dialogue-free animated short from Spain that won the 2016 Goya Award for Best Animated Short, played at more than 90 festivals and became a viral hit after it went online. It is often shared by teachers and parents because it asks a simple question: what is the correct path?
Quick Facts
| Detail | Info |
|---|---|
| Title | Alike |
| Directors / Writers | Daniel Martínez Lara and Rafa Cano Méndez |
| Producers | Daniel Martínez Lara and Nicolás Matji, with La Fiesta Producciones |
| Music | Oscar Araujo, performed by the Kaabestri Ensemble |
| Sound design | Aleix Vila Canela |
| Animation director | Rafa Cano Méndez |
| Software | Made in Blender |
| Runtime | About 8 minutes (8:02) |
| Country / Language | Spain / No dialogue |
| Genre | Animation, drama, family |
| Festival premiere | July 8, 2015 (Mundos Digitales) |
| Online release | December 13, 2016 |
| Ratings | IMDb 7.4/10; FilmAffinity 6.6/10 from 1,286 votes |
Watch the Trailer
A trailer exists. CGPress, which covered the film’s online release, lists an “Alike short film trailer” among its related posts, and the creators also published a making-of video. Because the film is so short, many viewers skip the trailer and watch the full film.
Watch the Shorts
Alike Short Film; The film is free online. It was held back from the internet for more than a year while it toured festivals. As Wikipedia notes, it was featured in film festivals across the world on the condition that it must not be available on the internet, and it was released online in December 2016. CGPress pointed viewers to Filmnosis for the stream, and YouTube copies are widely shared. Prefer the official upload from the creators.
Synopsis
Spoiler-free.
The official logline: in a busy life, Copi is a father who tries to teach the right way to his son, Paste. But what is the correct path? An educational resource describes the arc: the father is miserable at work while his son, still young, is optimistic about going to school. Then the boy’s cheerfulness is more and more repressed as his experiences at school worsen, and the two grow isolated in their own misery. A final scene shows them reconnecting through nature and music. There is no dialogue, so the story is told through faces, gestures, color and Oscar Araujo’s score.
Creative Team
- Daniel Martínez Lara (co-director, co-writer, producer, editor, lighting and compositing): The creator of the character Copi and founder of a Barcelona CG school.
- Rafa Cano Méndez (co-director, co-writer, animation director): He previously worked at Big Lazy Robot.
- Nicolás Matji (producer).
- Oscar Araujo (composer), Ferran Cruixent (arranger), Kaabestri Ensemble (performers).
- Animation team: Abel Tébar, Albert Papaseit, Esteban Errando, Alan Carabantes and Pedro Florido Vargas, with a larger group handling lighting, shading, compositing, crowd animation and rigging.
- Notable names in the credits: Filmnosis notes that Juan José Palomo, who directed iDiots, and Enrique Gato of Tadeo Jones appear among the credits.
Festival Journey & Recognition
The recognition record is strong:
- Goya Awards (2016): Winner, Best Animated Short Film. The Goya list places Alike Short Film in the 30th edition (the 2015 film year), crediting Martínez Lara and Cano Méndez as directors.
- Anchorage International Film Festival (2016): Winner, Best Animation.
- Sedicicorto International Film Festival (2016): Winner, Animare Award for Best Short, International Animation for Children.
- Overall: Cartoon Brew’s profile says it was selected in over 90 film festivals and winner of over 50 awards, and a nominee for the 2016 Cartoon d’Or. IMDb lists only three wins, so if you cite “50+ awards,” attribute it to the filmmakers and Cartoon Brew.
- Ranking: FilmAffinity lists it at #115 among best animated shorts of the 2010s.
The Origin Story
Alike Short Film grew from an earlier short. Filmnosis explains that it develops further themes from Martínez Lara’s previous short Changes, including work, routine and alienation, and places them in the experience of a child and a father-son relationship. The character Copi came from that earlier film, where a previous incarnation was crafted in plasticine.
The production was a collaboration. It was produced by Martínez Lara and La Fiesta P.C. with support from Pepe-School-Land, his CG school in Barcelona, and drew on alumni and professionals from other Spanish studios. Using the open-source tool Blender for a festival-winning film also became part of its story in the animation community.
Visual Style
The look is minimalist and stylized. An IMDb reviewer described it as smooth, elegant and minimalist, with great composition and framing, and a selective use of color: toned-down beige, gray and blue hues alternating with dark browns and some bright colors. That color logic is the heart of the film’s storytelling. Faces carry the emotion, and an educational summary praises the expressive faces of the father and son depicting the drudge and toil of work and school. The aesthetic continues the style of Changes, with simplified characters and a muted world that brightens only in moments of connection.
Key Themes
- Education and conformity. The film asks what we force on children in the name of the “correct path.”
- Creativity versus routine. Cartoon-and-news coverage framed it as showing how society can crush creativity.
- Work, routine and alienation. The father is as trapped as the child.
- Parent-child connection. The relationship is the film’s emotional core, and the resolution is about reconnecting.
- Nature and music as relief. The final turn suggests where joy returns.
A careful reading matters. An education guide cautions that a simplistic reading says work and school are boring, while a deeper reading says they should be innovative and fulfilling pursuits.
Critical Reception
Alike Short Film is among the best-regarded animated shorts of its decade. Cartoon Brew chose it as a pick and noted its Goya win and Cartoon d’Or nomination, and press from Switzerland to India covered its message after the online release, with headlines about what it shows about society. An IMDb reviewer who saw it at a festival with their kids said they were blown away by it. A European education project, DIALLS, includes it in a library for ages 8 to 11 with discussion prompts.
Audience scores are good but not extreme (IMDb 7.4, FilmAffinity 6.6), which reflects some debate about whether the message is too simple or one-sided.
Where to Watch
- Free online: Filmnosis and YouTube.
- Education: The DIALLS library and teaching resources include discussion prompts.
- Databases: IMDb, FilmAffinity and Cartoon Brew list credits, awards and a making-of.
Director’s Journey
Daniel Martínez Lara is a Spanish animator and filmmaker who runs a CG school in Barcelona. Before Alike Short Film he made Changes, which introduced the character Copi. After Alike’s success, CGPress reported he was set to head the next Blender open movie project. Rafa Cano Méndez worked at Big Lazy Robot before serving as the film’s animation director. Alike Short Film remains the best-known work of both.
FAQ
- Who directed Alike? Daniel Martínez Lara and Rafa Cano Méndez.
- Did Alike win a Goya? Yes, the 2016 Goya for Best Animated Short Film.
- How long is it? About eight minutes.
- Is there dialogue? No.
- What software was used? Blender.
- What does the title mean? The father and son are “alike” in being caught in the same routine, though the film also asks whether being alike should mean conformity.