Desplazamiento Forzado

Overview

Cristosal is a human rights organization working across Central America to defend and promote the rights of people affected by violence, forced displacement, and inequality. Between 2019 and 2021, Cristosal and AWO International led a program providing legal counseling and support to families forced to relocate within their own countries due to violence and insecurity.

As part of this initiative, Cristosal commissioned an animated short film to raise awareness about internal forced migration, humanizing the impact of violence on families and amplifying the voices behind the data.

Context & Challenge

Forced internal displacement is often discussed through statistics, policies, and reports, making it difficult for broader audiences to emotionally connect with the lived experiences of affected families. Cristosal needed a storytelling format that could:

• Communicate a complex social issue in an accessible and empathetic way

• Protect the dignity and safety of real families

• Be adaptable for use across advocacy campaigns, presentations, and social platforms

The challenge was to translate real experiences into a concise, emotionally resonant narrative without oversimplifying or sensationalizing the subject.

My Role

Lead Animator

I collaborated closely with the director, writer, and a team of graphic designers and illustrators. While the director and writer developed the story, script, and storyboard, I was responsible for bringing the narrative to life through animation, with significant creative freedom in pacing, visual storytelling, transitions, and emotional tone.

My responsibilities included:

• Translating storyboards and script into a cohesive animated film

• Defining motion language, rhythm, and emotional beats

• Collaborating with designers to transform static illustrations into animated scenes

• Ensuring narrative clarity and emotional continuity across the full 6-minute runtime

Process

Narrative Foundation

The director and writer created the story, script, and storyboard, based on real cases supported by Cristosal’s legal program. The film follows a single mother and her two children who are forced to leave their city, business, friends, and family behind to seek safety in a rural village.

From Storyboard to Film

Before animation began, I collaborated with graphic designers and illustrators to define the visual assets needed, ensuring illustrations were structured in a way that supported layered animation and smooth transitions. With the storyboard and visual assets as a guide, I had creative freedom to shape the final film through animation decisions, including:

• Pacing and timing to emphasize emotional moments

• Scene transitions that reflected disruption, loss, and uncertainty

• Visual metaphors expressed through movement rather than dialogue

• Silence, pauses, and rhythm to let key moments breathe

Animation & Visual Execution

Using the static vector assets, I:

• Built animated scenes that maintained a restrained, respectful tone

• Used subtle motion and camera movement to guide attention without distraction

• Balanced emotional storytelling with clarity, avoiding graphic or sensational imagery

• Ensured consistency in style, motion, and visual language across scenes

The animation was designed to support the story—not overpower it—allowing viewers to focus on the human impact of displacement.

Final Outcome

The final piece—a 6-minute animated short film—translated complex legal and humanitarian work into an emotionally accessible narrative, making the issue easier to understand for a wider audience. The film was shared through social media and used in awareness campaigns, presentations, and advocacy efforts.

Reflection

This project reinforced the importance of interpretive design and storytelling—where the role of the animator is not just execution, but translation. While the story and script provided the foundation, animation became the tool that shaped how audiences felt the experience.

Working on this project strengthened my ability to:

• Collaborate across disciplines with clear creative boundaries

• Translate sensitive subject matter into respectful visual narratives

• Use motion as a storytelling device rather than decoration