rotacismo_film poster
_what
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ricardo was born with treacher collins syndrome and with it—amongst other things—came an inability for him to pronounce the letter R. this meant he could not at first even pronounce his own name. the film explores how this idea became emblematic for his relationship with his parents. it reveals how that in learning to say his own name, and in pointing the camera at himself and his family, he fought back against their inability to talk about any of this with him.
caspar watched the film and was immediately taken by the layered emotional complexity of the work. in talking to ricardo it was clear that making the film was not just a process of self confrontation and realization, but also a process of finally and successfully communicating the level of his suffering to his inattentive parents.
caspar presented a series of potential directions the poster could take, and ricardo chose the one you see here. the poster was then made in the berlin studio using a various typefaces, a printer, lots of paper, a camera and natural light. the resulting collage is an attempt to talk both about learning to pronounce the letter R and about how this process started a deeper journey into obtaining a clearer picture of himself in the eyes of his parents.
the photograph of ricardo used in the poster was taken by the film's editor nicole moscoso. it was created specifically for the piece by using a beveled mirror.
the film was selected to play at sheffield docfest whilst we were making the poster. you can watch a trailer for it here. if you have the chance do please see this searing, brave and original film.