PEDRO is a 10-minute narrative film dealing with the life of a plump 14-year-old boy in a Mexican-American family. The film particularly focuses on his adolescent sense of self and concern with his bodily image. The film's intention is to personalize the culturally induced compulsion in our society to constantly monitor the appearance of our bodies. Through the boy's psychological trauma, the film projects the emotions that thousands of children undergo as a result of being overweight. While examining the causes of his eating disorder, the narrative also highlights the often-neglected fact that such disorders do not relate only to girls and women. Set in a low-income neighborhood of San Diego, the film examines the causes of obesity prevalent among working class and lower income populations. In particular, the film surveys the growing health and weight problems related to the supply of readily available, inexpensive, high calorie packaged and fast food products that adversely affect the poorer sections of the city. The film presents the severity of the problem of negative body image among youth by examining the subtle influences of the media, society, and peer pressure on adolescents. Drawing inspiration from the documentary techniques of Direct Cinema, the camera follows the protagonist's journey over one day as he attempts to lose weight. Having lost a pound at the end of the day the protagonist feels triumphant. However, we as viewers must face his triumph with discomfort as we witness the beginning of his journey to starvation.
