David Farnor | On 12, Nov 2018

One of the best horror movies of the last two decades, The Orphanage has given us the director Juan Antonio Bayona, who has since gone on to helm The Impossible and Penny Dreadful. Now, another talent behind its camera is getting a chance to shine: writer Sergio G. Sánchez.

Sánchez (Marrowbone) is teaming up with Teresa de Rosendo (Sweet Home, U.C.O.) and Paul Pen (The Light of the Fireflies, The Warning) to pen Alma, a new supernatural drama.

It follows the eponymous young girl, who survives a bus crash that kills most of her classmates, but awakes with no memories of the incident or her past. Her parents seem like strangers and her home is a place filled with secrets and mystery. She gets the growing suspicion that everyone around her is lying, trying to turn her into someone else. Trapped in a world that doesn’t feel her own, she must unravel the events that led to the accident before her true identity vanishes forever.

Sánchez says: “Alma explores my favourite themes; the journey from childhood to maturity, the threshold between life and death, the emotional space where fantasy merges with reality. Only this time within a broader canvas that will give me the opportunity to expand the narrative into multi layered, intertwined storylines with a bigger spectrum of characters. It’s going to be very exciting to bring this rich universe to life and I’m thrilled that Netflix is giving me the chance to reach a global audience with a Spanish language series that is deeply rooted in my own obsessions as a storyteller.

The series is produced by Belén Atienza (Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom, Marrowbone), Sandra Hermida (Arde Madrid, Marrowbone) and Jesús de la Vega (Intruders, Hierro). They comment: “It is a joy and a privilege for us to be joining forces with Netflix to bring to the screen Sergio’s unique and groundbreaking universe. People all around the world will be thrilled and inspired by a harrowing storytelling that springs genuine emotions from the darkest places.”

Netflix has ordered 10 episodes, with an expected release date of 2020.

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