Ciao Alberto is a 2021 American animated short film written and directed by McKenna Jean Harris, produced by Pixar Animation Studios, and distributed by Walt Disney Studios Motion Pictures. Set after the events of the 2021 Pixar film Luca, the short was released on November 12, 2021, on Disney+.
Unfortunately, none of the tangible romantic chemistry between Luca and Alberto was ever made official in the film, and Casarosa is now talking about why that was, even though making the characters gay was reportedly a possibility.
This reveal explains why Alberto is so jealous of Luca's friendship with Giulia. He's afraid that Luca will leave him all alone, just like Alberto's father did, so Luca instinctively rejecting him when he transformed into his sea monster form in front of Giulia was particularly traumatic.
His dad left after deciding that Alberto was old enough to take care of himself, and Alberto knows that he's probably never coming back. All of this explains why Alberto gravitated to Luca. He needed a place to belong because, although he tries to hide it, he knows that he is abandoned and alone.
Jack Dylan Grazer as Alberto Scorfano, a 14-year-old Italian boy and Luca's best friend who is enthusiastic to explore the human world. He is a free-spirited, expressive and gregarious boy who is "all about having fun".
In Luca's poignant final scene, Luca leans out of the train taking him to Genova and looks back at his parents and Alberto tearfully. As the rain drenches him, he changes into his sea monster form.
Age to me isn't an exact thing with characters, I might have given both answers for Luca, 12 and 13. He's around 12. Giulia around 13, Alberto around 14. Ercole around 18.
Luca is derived from the Latin name, Lucas, meaning “bringer of light.” Some people also believe the name may be derived from the Latin word “lucus," meaning “sacred wood.” In Italy, the name is thought to mean “man from Luciana,” a reference to an ancient district in southern Italy.
What is Luca about? Luca is about the coming-of-age of the titular character Luca, a boy sea monster who wants to explore the human village of Portorosso. Set in the Italian Riviera in the 1950s, Luca and his best monster friend Alberto have an unforgettable summer with their new human friend Giulia.
Uncle Ugo is a humanoid anglerfish who has taken up residence in the dark depths of the ocean. His toothy smile inspires nightmares. His translucent body horrifies with pulsating organs. Get to chatting with him too close to the surface and he might even ask you to punch his heart due to too much oxygen.
The two boys hug each other goodbye, and Luca says farewell to his family as he stands outside the train in his sea monster form. The credits show drawings of Luca and Giulia having fun in Genova while keeping in touch with Alberto, Massimo, and Luca's family.
'Luca' director admits they 'talked about' making the leads gay but decided to focus on a 'pre-romance' friendship. "Luca" director Enrico Casarosa said there was talk of having the leads be romantically linked. However, eventually, "we were really focusing on friendship and so pre-romance," he said.
Sometime later, while training for the bike race, Luca proposes that he and Alberto join Giulia in school at the end of the summer. This infuriates Alberto, who does not believe sea monsters will be accepted in school or even by Giulia.
Despite Giulia helping them and getting them away from the cruel humans and that her seeing the two as fellow Underdogs was what got her to show them some kindness, Alberto wasn't very sure about her. From seeing her as an odd, loud, annoying human girl that he and Luca shouldn't stay near.
