Hide Yo Kids, It’s Nacho Rodriguez’s “A Paedophile”

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Serious message, hilarious animation in Nacho Rodriguez‘s short A Paedophile. I’m not sure the funny design fits the tone of the film, but the skill is undeniable.

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  • Hulk

    Wow. That was intense. Very well made. It could be argued that the funny drawing style is appropriate for this piece because the kind of criminal that this film comments on, often present themselves to children as non-threatening and even somewhat amusing, and then take advantage of them in a dark and sinister way. Which perfectly matches the visual arc of this film.

    Feel free to disagree. That’s just my opinion but I’m at least glad to see this artist using the medium and style to branch out and cover an unexpected topic in an unexpected way.

  • http://nose.gulahlah.com manny

    Nacho Rodriguez is a mad man, his animation surpasses my imagination as a viewer

  • ShouldBeWorkin’

    A well executed statement.
    I figure the ugly main character represents the monstrous soul of the title character, but I would have made him look like the attractive respectable trusted authority figure alot of these creeps turn out to be.

  • Toonio

    Talking about pushing those poses WOW!

    I wanted to see a devil pedobear, but hey, not that you needed one to make this better.

  • JM WALTER

    Wow, Sick doesn´t cut it.!

  • Ermy

    Really interesting. Fantastic animation and styling. Thanks for posting the video.

  • http://weirdurl.com Zekey

    Everything that guy makes is amazing. No joke.
    Him and Pascal Campion seem to just breathe and sweat quality.

  • The brain is a funny thing

    I’m not sure that’s how it works, but it’s very well done.

  • http://www.portapuppets.does.it uncle wayne

    Wow! That IZZ fantastick. Very John K-ish, too….a style i adore!!

  • http://los-utopicos.blogspot.com allari

    Loved it! It takes talent to maintain that visual intensity!

  • Pete

    This is some of the most blatant trivialising of a serious subject I have ever seen.

    It’s not even “using humour to highlight issues” or “taking the edge off with laughter” etc. etc. etc. It’s just attempting to impress other animators using shock tactics.

    Regardless of how well it’s executed it is an arrogant piece of work pretending to be about a serious issue, and in a way belittles the issue of paedophilia, which, to a victim I’m pretty sure is very serious.

    If you’re gonna do “tasteless” at least stand by that and don’t hide behind making some “pseudo-worthy” infantile statement.

    • http://www.mistercoo.com Nacho

      Hi Pete
      I feel like you’re making many presumptions on my motivation to make this clip. I don’t mean to change your mind, but I’ll shed some light on the circumstances which led me to make this:
      A client asked me to animate the following story: “a paedophile is about to commit his crime, when a giant rat dismembers him”. This was supposed to be a happy end in the name of justice. I had an ethical dilemma, and I knew I couldn’t tell such a story. I tried to see a bigger picture, without denying the dark parts. (The client didn’t like my version)
      It makes no sense to try to explain in words what I said in pictures, but let me state the main points which I deeply believe to be true:
      “Evil” doesn’t appear spontaneously, it’s caused by a wound. A paedophile was in most cases a victim of paedophilia.
      A conflict is a fight between 2 sides, which grow more and more similar, despite their own partial views. The solution is always a rise in consciousness, a reconciliation, and not the automatic response of one side crushing the other.
      An angel who falls is a demon, a demon who rises is an angel.
      At the end of the day I was trying to talk about sin and guilt. About the toxic figure of a judge. Every character portrayed can be a part of the same person.
      Thanks to all of you.

      • Fern

        This is my issue with your take on this: The one-sided and dangerous portrayal of the “vampyric” element of pedophilia. While it may be true, depending on your source of information, that most pedophiles were victims of pedophilia, that does NOT mean that most VICTIMS BECOME PEDOPHILES! A sentiment clearly illustrated in your short and echoed specifically in your comment.

        Please get it straight, because it’s more than just a matter of proper facts and logic, it’s a matter of extreme significance to victims attempting to comprehend our existence and the chaos of this world, as well as non-victims who don’t know much about the entire subject. I suspect you fall into the latter category, so I only hope I can take an opportunity to possibly shed some light on this for you.

        Recent studies have shown repeatedly that victims are NOT more likely to become pedophiles, and it is mistaken notions like the one you presented that contribute to the perpetuation of alienation and stigmatization of victims. I’m trying to hold back in my indignation right now, because I am EXTREMELY offended, but I value creativity and good intentions, and pride myself in not going off the rails as much as possible.

        I respect anyone willing to open up dialogue about such a difficult and distressing subject as this, especially one so pertinent, universal, and long overdo for serious mainstream discussion. It is a tightrope, but again, please respect the need for more “serious mainstream discussion,” and LESS awkward caricatures or partly-accurate understandings.

    • Justin Weber

      I think there is a lot more than humor that can be taken from an exaggerated drawing or an exaggerated piece of animation. We are just used to seeing it used for straight-up cartoony humor.

      I see it as illustrating a very visceral issue in a very visceral way. I don’t see it as existing purely for shock value. Great work, Nacho.

    • Eric P

      I don’t know Pete. I watched the animation without the sound on (I usually have the speakers turned off on my laptop) and What I saw was the recurring cycle of pedophilia broken at the end by one person choosing to do so. Maybe the audio changed the tone some how, but I didn’t see anything flip or trivial here.

    • The brain is a funny thing

      As much as I agree to a certain extent…look at how nicely it’s animated!

    • nettle

      I agree with you, this is horrifically tasteless. And as a survivor of child sexual abuse I intensely dislike the message that being abused automatically makes you into a paedophile as an adult.

      • http://www.mistercoo.com Nacho

        Hi Nettle
        I’m sorry if that’s the message you got. I would have never said that, although the situation is ambiguous enough to be read like that, I’m afraid.
        I’m close to a few people who have also been abused, which is something way more common than we’d like to think. And none of them would harm a fly.
        I tried to talk about the origin of a problem. An abuser was probably a victim. But a victim can evolve in many different ways, possitive and negative. Most of the people I know have really evolve past the problem, though it took effort and courage.

  • James

    It’s more about the particular pedophile in the cartoon and not really suppose to be a commentary on the broader social and political issues of that particular type of sexual deviancy.

    If you look at the guy’s other work, it looks more like he’s having fun/experimenting with these animated shorts. I doubt he’s looking to make a statement.

    • Jon H

      Whether he’s looking to make a statement or not his art certainly did. Intentions matter to some extent but ultimately art has to stand on it’s own for better or worse.

  • Joel

    I got more shock value from this than I did theme or… value. His points are made, but I don’t think this film does the issue justice and the rise in consciousness is made rather abruptly and without clear (enough) impetus. At least not enough to justify the shocking “climax,” which seemed to be in the film without a real purpose (even the repeating cycle of pedophilia had more of a purpose and statement).

    • http://www.mistercoo.com Nacho

      Hi Joel
      I agree with you to a great extent. This clip is far from perfect, and you pointed out the main flaws. And yet, many people have got my message, seeing past the narrative/conceptual mistakes. I was the first to be surprised.

      • Joel

        Hello, Nacho! In spite of my nitpicking, I find myself warming up to this film in retrospect. The topic/theme was VERY grave and extremely unlikely to be done in animation, but you did it with due respect and thoughtfulness toward the subject. I initially wasn’t a fan of the idea of the visually abstract take on such a concrete and serious subject, but (a.) this is animation, the prime medium for being abstract and (b.) it wasn’t vague, confusing, or even bad. I actually find the film and the abstract parts quite good when I come back to it. The shocking scene still shocks me (go figure), but considering the subject matter and situation, the scene is rightfully horrific and it’s not so out-of-place and arbitrary, unlike just about every other animated film with shocking content (e.g. just about every Spike & Mike short). To wrap it up, I like this film a lot more than I did the first time around. Kudos to you and your mastery of the craft, Mr. Rodriguez.

        Also, I love how thoughtful and gracious your comments are. ^_^ And judging from your website, you are a master of animation, Flash, cartooning, and storytelling.

  • Ton

    I think its a brilliant and somewhat powerful film really. Its cartoony, stylized and exaggerated which makes it entertaining to watch – and that the shock value is definitely played by the animation. When I watched this, I was expecting a super comedic short, but then it just got really dark and then really sentimental. Maybe its not making a statement about the issues of pedophilia, but it uses the issue as a setting for the film itself. If you read the response by Nacho to Pete above, he totally knows what he wanted to show – and I definitely got what he said after watching it. I’m glad that he went for a more double sided short because the original idea (although discourages the acts of pedophilia) is a kind of shallow point of view.

    This is about a character (or characters) who is a pedophile due to a previous experience, and its transformed him into this ugly beast. Its not a statement about pedophilia, but it shows how something like it can affect a character’s mind and motives. As a short, I think its very successful and not only demonstrates Nacho’s amazing animation skills – but to show his effective concepts beyond the norm and to see things at different points of view.

  • Funkybat

    The animation was amazing, reminiscent of “old John K.” but far more visually coherent than most of what John K. has done recently. The representation of how the cycle of abuse perpetuates was artfully done (and not over-long, which is always a risk with such cyclical animation.) The end was dramatic, though I wasn’t entirely clear on how the redemption/healing was initiated. Perhaps the utter destruction by the rat? In any event, it was not really “funny” but instead fascinating to watch, disturbing but not exploitative. Great job, Nacho!

  • DJM

    This was a great piece of animation, but I think it would have been even more informative if the kid grew into an average joe who tried to control the rat, but eventually caved in to eat it and regrettably repeat the process.

    I’m glad pedophilia is getting some sympathy, or more so it seems these days. It can be a very debilitating condition, and those who suffer from it rarely get help until they are at their most desperate. Hopefully, with more awareness there would be more help available, which in turn would lead to less victims.

  • Pete

    Hello Nacho,
    Thanks for responding in such a considered way to my comments.
    To be clear: Everything apart from the subject material is to be admired in this, and as an animator you have done an amazing job. No question.
    However…when a client asks you to animate: “a paedophile is about to commit his crime, when a giant rat dismembers him”, you CAN choose to say “no”.
    I was asked to create a campaign of cigarette commercials once, and said “no” – it’s possible.
    While I think it’s a ludicrous brief of your client to give anyone, and whether they like the result or not, it’s being shown as your own work, so a viewer will presume that it is from your point of view.
    I see your point about the cycle of paedophiles becoming paedophiles – that much is very clear in the film and common knowledge, but for all your talent in execution, the subject matter comes across as being flippant.
    Sorry to sound harsh, but I think this subject is beneath your considerable talent, unless you really give it the attention that it deserves. There are lots of great, funny, exaggerated, sick, twisted things in this film that make me wish you’d just made it about something less…unfunny…than paedophilia.

    • DJM

      How is wanting to inform people about the circumstances of a serious mental condition flippant?

      I assume your cigarette analogy was for a pro-stance agenda. That is very different than pedophilia. People are unable to choose what they are attracted, but they can easily choose what they consume. Nacho did a very good thing by taking a client’s rather mean-spirited request and turning it into a well considered piece on a horrible mental condition. You may not be able to see it, but he did take the high route. It’s the exaggerated poses and excessive violence that are needed to draw the viewer in to bring attention and thought to something they themselves might have never tried weigh.

      • Claymore

        People cannot easily choose what they consume for a variety of reasons such as mental health issues, disability, poverty, being a child, having children and thus considerable time constraints, addiction, and various other reasons such as food deserts (as in, there are places within the u.s., for instance where there really is a shortage of accessible, healthy food). I completely agree that we shouldn’t abuse paedophiles, but you really ought to check your priviledge, if you have sympathy for child molesters then you should know better than to condemn vast swathes of people who are really struggling as victims of their own avarice. Fat people and smokers (many of whom started when they were too young to know any better) don’t deserve to be shat on anymore than paedophiles.

      • Claymore

        Oh, and, to be clear, I don’t think it’s ok to abuse child molesters either (death penalty/genital cutting/rape are all forms of abuse).

  • Pete

    Correction to last post: “paedophiles becoming paedophiles” should of course be “victims becoming paedophiles” – sorry

  • Fraser

    I wouldn’t call the animation hilarious – brilliant and disturbing, but not hilarious!

  • Vzk

    A cartoon about Jerry Sandusky?

  • http://www.frankpanucci.com Frank Panucci

    The message is unimportant because the cartoon is so nifty. It’s beautifully done! It makes me want to buy cereal for some reason.