Rodriguez's film reminder of his youth

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.