If one day you have to walk through a Patagonian forest in Argentina, do not stop paying attention or looking at all sides. In that land live Los Peques, gnomes who distribute tenderness, sympathy and philosophical depth in almost equal doses. Like any self-respecting Argentine, they like football (one of them is a fan of Boca Juniors, while another does not lose his foot to the River Plate) and drink mate (that characteristic infusion of the Río de la Plata). And, like good gnomes, they have a maximum idol: La Smurfette, that blonde and bluish young woman who shared a village with 100 male companions.
These are computer cartoons that were born in the province of Neuquén, in southern Argentina, about two years ago, thanks to the ingenuity and patience of Christian Olmos, Patricia Papa and Sergio Capua, partners in an advertising agency called Power Comunicación. And they are, like many successful projects in this country, direct children of the economic crisis that hit hard in 2001.
These gnomes construct short, one-and-a-half-minute episodes that tend to leave a message in addition to entertaining. The success has been resounding in the area. Therefore, Los Peques did not take long to disembark in the nearby provinces: Río Negro, La Pampa, Chubut, Córdoba The projection is even more important.
The Kids have developed their own culture, depending on the environment in which they move. They have a lot of Mapuche influence, but also other typical features of the multiple collectivities that have populated Argentina.
"We wanted to link ourselves to the activity of telling stories tells Olmos. Because of our activity, we had been able to put together cartoons for certain local customer requirements and we always had the idea of generating something bigger." The story began with only two characters. Today there are seven and an eighth is added these days; it is estimated that they will reach 12 shortly. "From the stories we already have devised, we estimate that in total there will be about 25 characters with lines of dialogue, beyond the extras," says Olmos.
The backgrounds where the story takes place are images of the real world, shots and photographs obtained in the rich landscapes offered by Argentine Patagonia. "That gives us a real environment of illumination, of the time of day, whether it is in the morning, afternoon or night, and temperature says the ideologue of these gnomes, to complete later: it is incredible to see how computerized drawings are integrated with the real environment."
There's a gnome on my screen
The first cable operator to provide a space on its screen to Los Peques was the regional Cablevisión del Comahue, to broadcast during the advertising cuts in two of its signals: Canal 9 and América.
"We quickly gained screen in nearby regions. Our projection for 2004 is to cover all of Patagonia. In a second stage, we intend to reach the entire north of the country," says Olmos, who has already won a Martín Fierro for this product (the main prize given to television programs in the country).
"We believe we can have national reach, in principle. Our faith is based on the fact that we have remained two years without receiving investments or aid, with few technical resources and a lot of effort and sacrifice of our own," Olmos enthuses. The creative clarifies that the project is self-sustaining, "although in a way that we did not believe was going to happen: merchandising".
At the moment there are around 100 different handmade products related to Los Peques: t-shirts, stuffed animals, gift cards, posters, mugs, pencils and even sheets and padding. They are marketed by email on the gnomes website (
www.elrincondelospeques.com.ar), in its own place in Neuquén called El rincón de Los Peques and in La Anónima, a very popular supermarket chain in the interior of Argentina. The videos that collect the stories have also been all the rage. The 26 episodes broadcast so far were collected in five volumes of 15 minutes each.
The duration was not an idea of the people of Power Communication, but a requirement of the market. "They asked us so much to take the first video, that we had to do it with the material we had, which added up to only those 15 minutes," explains Olmos. The fifth of these volumes, of recent release in the market, had a flood of orders and signs well in advance of the release date. "They spent the episodes thousands of times on television, but still there are parents who assure us that their children spent the cassettes," says the creative. On the other hand, they are receiving orders to franchise the brand. "We are analyzing this issue very carefully, because we want to do it well," says Olmos.
A stumble that was not fallen
The story of Los Peques goes from success to success, except for one point: the landing in Buenos Aires. "On the one hand, we did very well when we presented it, because it was a highly valued product, but on the other, there were demands that, at that time, we could not meet," says Olmos.
A chapter of Los Peques has a production process that lasts 20 days, something unacceptable for a television channel in the capital, which needs to renew its screen very frequently. "They came to ask us for a daily chapter and of greater duration," recalls the father of these gnomes and, immediately, highlights the virtues of his current audience: "Here people endure us as long as necessary. Sometimes it took us up to a month to deliver the new chapter, but when it came out, the viewers were hooked without problems." The experience in Neuquén and in other parts of the interior of the country allows them, according to Olmos, "to continue earning flight hours."
Growth poses a dilemma in the world of the creators of Los Peques. "Even though we grew a low profile, we couldn't stop the product from transcending borders. Therefore, we know that the chance to reach other spheres is only a matter of time," Olmos analyzes, and then concludes: "It is hard for me to think that, at some point, growth will prevent me from continuing with the craftsmanship I have done so far, with this pleasure of coming to my studio and sitting with my gnomes, to see how we continue to tell the story." The ideologue of the product affirms that the evolution that Los Peques live will force him to generate a company with more structure and more resources, which is dedicated all year round to creating new chapters, but affirms that "we can not distance ourselves much from the artisanal, because we would lose the spark that made them grow."
Anyway, Christian knows that Los Peques videos have been seen in places like Spain, Mexico, Ecuador and even in exotic Indonesia. But there is a lot of time to grow. Olmos himself assures that his priority concern is "to finish the next chapter". Although, intimately, he longs for the moment to show the world the first feature film about Los Peques, the most ambitious project that involves these characters.
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