Some consider filmmaker Robert Rodriguez's Sin City and Grindhouse to be modern film noir classics — over-the-top, graphic and disturbing.

And his low-budget El Mariachi stands as a testament to the indie spirit, launching his career as well as a series of gritty Peckinpah-inspired films such as Desperado and Once Upon a Time in Mexico.

But it's his kids movies — the Spy Kids trilogy, The Adventures of Sharkboy and Lavagirl in 3-D and now Shorts — that are a guarantee to fill theaters.

"The ones that do the best are the family films by far," Rodriguez said. "Kids are the most loyal audience you'll ever get. They'll see things a million times. They find something they like, they'll watch it over and over and over again."

In Shorts, which opens Friday, the community of Black Falls is under the thumb of black box technology despot Carbon Black, perfectly played by James Spader, until a wishing rock from outer space saves the day.

The Austin-based director said his new film — in which he cast three of his sons, Rebel (10), Rocket (13) and Racer (12) — is a throwback to the backyard comedies he made as a kid.

"It's amazing," he said. "That's how I started in San Antonio, there in my backyard I was making movies from the age of 12 until I did El Mariachi, with my 10 brothers and sisters I'd make movies just like this."

Rodriguez acknowledged that the children's films come from a different place than, say, his Quentin Tarantino collaborations.

"Yeah, but it's not a stretch," he said. "Since I started that way, it's actually just like going home again. It's very simple to think that way since I'm surrounded by five kids of my own, and we're always doing sort of creative play and making our own home movies anyway. It's just an extension of that."

What do his sons think of their on-screen performances? It's too early to tell, said Dad. "They've worked on all my movies since they were babies rolling out of the crib in some form or another," he said. "But they actually haven't even seen the movie. They're very purist about it. They want to wait until they're at the premiere.

"They've seen bits and pieces but they didn't want to see it until it was completely done."

Rodriguez said his children's height played a role in how they were cast — his two oldest sons look like teenagers "but sound like 9-year-olds." But Rebel's got a pretty mean snarl, too.

"I'm a pretty tall Mexican. I'm like 6 feet 3 inches so they're very tall for their age," he said with a laugh. "I made them be thugs in the background."

For all of Shorts' anti-technology sentiment, the filmmaker admits to being a gizmos freak. "I'm totally a gadgets guy. That's where that all comes from. I'm guilty of all those crimes," he said.

The director goes back to rough and tumble with his next film, Machete, starring Danny Trejo, Robert De Niro and Jessica Alba. He's also working on Predators, and a Sin City follow-up begins shooting next year.

Yet he's hesitant to call his Austin film factory, Troublemaker Studios, a dream come true. "I don't know if I ever dreamt that. I never thought (it was possible)," he said. "A filmmaker really hadn't come out of Texas.

"I just knew it would be something that would be fun to do. It was creative, but I really didn't know what I'd do for a living. When I started winning a lot of contests, I thought, 'Maybe I can become a filmmaker.'?"

Rodriguez attributes his success to following his instincts. "Just seeing what happens and breaking new ground by accident. There really isn't any other filmmaker in the state that has his own studio," he said. "There really wasn't any blueprint to follow, so it's all been very accidental how it's all turned out."

hsaldana@express-news.net