Fantastic Creatures Take Centre Stage in Complex Short Film Directed by Pablo Maestres

Director Pablo Maestres and musician Ferran Palau join forces once again in “Plora Aquí”, a project that, while part of the universe of the musician's new album, stands as a piece with its own identity. It diverges from the music video format to present a more complex story—a short film where fantastic creatures take centre stage in a world where nothing is what it seems.  

Written and directed by Pablo, the story narrates the adventure (or misadventure) of Snif, a monster who inhabits the forest and ventures into a society not as kind as it appears.

After accidentally meeting a family and being drawn in by their cream pastries, the monster embarks on an adventure that will reveal the true face of the people. Gradually, Snif becomes the town's attraction, becomes fashionable among its inhabitants, and appears in newspapers and on television, all the while growing fatter and fatter.

A story full of contradictions, tender and violent. An homage to the cinema of the ‘80s and ‘90s, to all those fantastic and misfit characters. A twisted fantasy that critiques fast-consumption society, the exploitation of characters who are quickly idolised and discarded, the perfect metaphor for understanding the current disconnection between urban life and the wild.

The piece uses two songs from the musician’s new album, while also featuring a composed and produced soundtrack for the rest of the piece by David Gracia, the director's usual composer. 

With a stellar cast featuring dancer Rober Gómez as the monster Snif, award-winning actress Bruna Cusí, and renowned Spanish model Judit Mascó, the piece was produced by Roma (Spain), in co production with Superprime (US), Spy Films (Canada), Jamm (US), and Hidden Track Records (Spain). Despite this international production, the piece was filmed entirely in Catalan in locations around Barcelona.

The project took almost a year from its writing. The construction of the monsters, a manual labour led by Agnès C. Olivé, took about three months and was a fundamental part of the process. 

Director, Pablo Maestres, noted, “Definitely, it’s the piece I would have loved to write when I was a child. I've always been a huge fan of monsters in general and characters that are monsters, not necessarily horror. In my childhood, I was obsessed with films like Frankenstein, Dracula, or E.T. On the other hand, it has been a fun challenge to create a lead character who cannot speak, where actor Rober Gómez could barely see and move freely. We had to be very clear about the movements at all times and express emotions physically, putting a childlike and naive soul into the character. So, almost more than an homage to the cinema of the '80s, it’s an homage to my childhood self.”