Rob Munday

The real-life story of an infamous Chilean torturer might not initially seem like the ideal subject matter for a stop-motion piece, but the freedom of short film allows risks like these to be taken and in the case of Hugo Covarrubias’ Bestia that decision certainly proved fruitful. An Oscar nominee in 2022, and winner of awards at Annecy, Clermont-Ferrand, SXSW and more, Covarrubias’ 16-min film blends a distinct animation style with an unsettling storyline to create a truly haunting short.

“Within each beast lives a victim”

Based around the life of Ingrid Olderöck, an agent of the DINA (the Chilean Secret Police) known as ‘Woman of the Dogs’ for the heinous torture methods she inflicted, Covarrubias aimed to capture the complexity of her character in this fictional story. Rather poetically describing his subject as the “meat product of a macabre society, the director hoped his narrative would show that “within each beast lives a victim”.

Presenting a layered portrait of Olderöck, without ever empathising with the atrocities she committed, was always going to be a delicate balancing act but Covarrubias finds the perfect equilibrium, his film feeling both accessible and deeply troubling at the same time. Initially, there’s a likeable element to the relationship the film’s protagonist has with her dog, but as we begin to discover the role the canine plays in her life, that relationship quickly become unnerving. The scene in the bedroom around the seven-minute mark leaving you with no doubt how twisted their connection is.

The porcelain style heads of the characters proves a perfect choice to highlight the emotionless approach to their despicable work.

Olderöck’s story is one that could have been brought to the screen in many different ways, but through Covarrubias’ aesthetic choices, once you’ve seen his stop-motion take, you can’t imagine it any other way. At first, his decision to employ a porcelain style look for the characters heads seems like it would be limiting , but the cold, emotionless feel it gives them soon convinces you otherwise.

With Bestia’s main character restricted to just six facial expressions Covarrubias explained, in an interview with Carlos Aguilar for Cartoon Brew, how that particular production decision was inspired by factual reports on how the actual Olderöck behaved. “People say that in real life Ingrid didn’t show much emotion with her face”, the director reveals. Adding that accounts claimed that her “expression was the same while walking down the street or when she was torturing people”.

Having impressed audiences and juries around the world, Bestia was recently released online by our friends at Miyu, where we’re sure it’ll rack up thousands of new fans in no time at all.