Hot Docs

An Interview with Former Canadian Idol Judge Farley Flex on Graffiti and Music

Yesterday we had a chance to chat with Farley Flex – the former judge on the TV hit Canadian Idol and the host of a new show called MOA.  We're also super excited to have Farley as our host for tonight’s much anticipated BTL Benefit Concert at the Virgin Mobile Mod Club in Toronto (and of course we have to plug it now! Doors open at 7pm, $15 at door - 722 College Street - first performance at 7:30pm. Come out!). 

Can you tell us a bit about MOA and the concept behind it?
MOA is a brand new show about finding new Canadian music talent in collaboration with EMI Music Canada. Based on my experience doing Canadian Idol, MOA takes things to a different level by creating an artist competition using mobile phone technology. Winners are judged by industry professionals, including myself, and awarded a contract with EMI to release a single which can lead to a major recording career.

NIL was the winner of the MOA competition in Season 1. Since you were one of the judges, what are your thoughts about NIL?
What NIL brought to the show was a unique contemporary, relevant sound. That’s what I always look for - bands that will enhance the music industry. They also had really good stage presence.

What does graffiti and street art mean to you?
My entire career was founded on hip hop and I’m young enough and old enough to remember DJ-ing, break dancing and tagging. All of that came together in this unique collaborative expression. Graffiti art is a pillar of hip hop culture. You need to a maverick personality, courage and a certain amount of rebellion to do graffiti. The art is becoming more nostalgic and it’s definitely an important element of hip hop music.

Mayor Rob Ford declared a war on graffiti last year. Do you think that was a good idea?
Its an interesting thing. Before you ridicule it you need to understand it. Governments often attack cultural expression. A word like war is not appropriate. There should be some sort of celebration that all art should be enjoyed. At the end of the day, Rob Ford has to understand that he’s inciting and energizing the efforts by taking a war-like approach – there has to be a healthy compromise.

Do you have anything to say to people who are on the fence about coming to the concert tonight at the Mod Club?
I have great respect for Canadian musicians. If you love music, these are the people you want to go see. Come out and support.

Posted: Thu, September 06, 2012 - 10:24 by Between the Lines Team | #

Interview with Singer/Songwriters Sigrun Stella and JP Saxe

Yesterday we had a chance to catch up with two of the opening acts, Sigrun Stella and JP Saxe, who will both be performing LIVE at tomorrow's Between the Lines Benefit concert at the Virgin Mobile Mod Club (722 College Street). Its not too late to buy tickets in advance or you can buy them at the door ($15).  

An Interview with Sigrun Stella

How did you get into music?
I started singing and playing piano at a young age growing up in Iceland, but i really started to take things more seriously when and persue music when I moved to Toronto. I was doing an internship at a recording studio and from there things progressed. My first album "Crazy Blue" came out last year and I’ve been performing in Canada and Iceland, over the last few years.

Why do you do what you do?
It's what I know best and it's what I love most.

What does graffiti and street art mean to you?
I like the concept of the film (Between the Lines) because I think a lot of people misunderstand the graffiti and the artists that create it. I love the visual art aspect and the stories it tells. It’s a beautiful thing, its just misunderstood.

Rob Ford declared a war on graffiti last year. Do you think that was a good idea?
No. I think he may be ignorant about graffiti and what value it can contribute to the city. The Mayor should watch this film when its done and educate himself.

What kind of Toronto would you like to live in with respect to the public spaces that exist?
We live in a great city, brightening it up with art is a good thing. I love the art community. That to me is the Toronto I know.

Do you have anything to say to people who are on the fence about coming to the concert on Thursday?
Its going to be a fun night with lots of music and it will be supporting a great cause, so come out!

An Interview with JP Saxe

How did you get into music?
I've been playing music my whole life. My parents introduced me to it in the womb and I've been in love ever since.

Why do you do what you do?
Because I wouldn't be completely happy doing anything else. Song writing helps me make sense of the world, and music enables my creativity. Being a musician also gives me the voice to speak out about the causes I care about most.

Graffiti and street art brings the walls of this city to life. Almost anything can be beautiful if the time is taken to make it that way. I've always appreciated the artists in Toronto who turned blank walls into something that provoked thought. I particularly appreciate graffiti and street art because my father has been photographing it in Toronto for years. He has a collection of hundreds of works of art on walls in this city.

Rob Ford declared a war on graffiti last year. Do you think that was a good idea?
Nope. Toronto is and always will be a colourful, diverse and artistic place. Our city should be a reflection of that.

What kind of Toronto would you like to live in with respect to the public spaces that exist?
I'd like to live in a place filled with as much art as possible. If a space is for our community, I'd like to see walls coming alive. Street art is a pretty inspiring thing. Tearing down walls and replacing them with something beautiful - if only we could turn all our barriers into murals.

Do you have anything to say to people who are on the fence about coming to the concert on Thursday?
Jump!

Posted: Wed, September 05, 2012 - 10:13 by Between the Lines Team | #

Special Blog by Juno-Award nominated Kinnie Starr about Music and Graffiti Art

Hello Film Lovers!

There are two days left before our Between the Lines Benefit Concert at the Mod Club and we wanted to kickstart your week with something fresh and exciting. We're excited to publish an exclusive blog written by Kinnie Starr sharing her reflections on graffiti and public space. Kinnie will be the headlining act at our Benefit Concert this Thursday, September 6/12.

Fun fact: Kinnie began her career in music through graffiti art. 

Photo: Kinnie Starr

"Graffiti, Public Space and Expression" by Kinnie Starr

As a firm believer in the beautification of urban centers through better connectivity in terms of urban planning and parks, and keeping a vibrant sense of the people who populate the city alive with brightly recounted stories on walls, I'm very happy, and proud, to be associated with the documentary "Between The Lines".

Photo: New York City's Times Square  

Graffiti isn't a 'crime'. Of course there are amateur artists who put up poorly thought out pieces on private property, but for most street artists, there is a whole lot of thought, charm, intelligence and care behind their work. To me, the real crime is the continued use of public space for corporate advertisements telling us we are 'not enough', unless we buy the new car, wear the newest looks, purchase more makeup, or otherwise engage in the mass homogenization of humanity.

Photo: Works on the steps of a favella in Rio De Janeiro by French street artistist JR  

Imagine if all the billboards promoting commodified images of 'beautiful people' or consumer products were actually billboards featuring works by provocative and thoughtful artists.

Some people would say, "O no..that would be terrible! What is art to one is garbage to the other! I would never want to look at crappy art!", but as it stands, we look at crappy corporate images all day, every day without complaining. So why can't we also feast our eyes on original, colourful images selling us nothing at all? And what if there were mandates that all billboards and public spaces circulated new works bi-weekly or monthly? Then there would be a constant parade of new imagery provoking conversation or controversy, or maybe just making that traffic jam along the Gardiner a little more beautiful sometimes.

Photo: Wall in Toronto, Canada by Graffiti Artists Elicser, Chor Boogie, Mediah and Siloette

Instead, we are stuck with big budget images. Stock images selling us products or selling us celebrity, but seldom selling us joy or enlightenment. Rob Ford wants Toronto 'clean' according to his standards. I say more color, more art, and more stories on the walls. That's 'clean' by my standards.

So hey, come out to our show and support this amazing film and the concepts and ideas that make this issue so important!

Peace.

Kinnie Starr

Posted: Tue, September 04, 2012 - 11:10 by Between the Lines Team | #

Between the Lines Live Benefit Concert at the Virgin Mobile Mod Club

Hey film enthusiasts!

We are super excited to announce details of our upcoming concert featuring Juno-nominated Canadian singer Kinnie Star with opening acts by NIL, JP Saxe and Sigrun Stella. The concert will be happening at one of Toronto’s best live music venues, the Virgin Mobile Mod Club on September 6, 2012. So grab those dancing shoes and come out and join us and connect with the rest of the community that cares about art, music and urban spaces. There are going to be a few surprise guests that we’ll announce closer to the date. Tickets go on sale starting today and you can buy here!

Curious about the artists? We thought so. Have a peek below and read up a bit more on who they are and what’s in store for this fun evening.

Kinnie Starr

Kinnie Starr is a Juno nominated artist who has toured extensively throughout her career including the UK, Europe, Japan, the US and Canada. She performed at the 2010 Vancouver Olympics, including exalted sets with the Borealis String Quartet, and at Canada’s National Aboriginal Achievement Awards on multiple occasions. In 2003 Kinnie was headhunted for her “rare and unique frame” and cast in Cirque du Soleil’s famed x-rated show, “Zumanity”. That same year she was nominated for a Juno Award as “Best New Artist”. The tri-lingual Starr is of mixed European and Mohawk descent, and is a true Canadian at her core. She is acknowledged by many highly esteemed Canadian institutions for her contributions in music, art and culture. In 2008, The Royal British Museum in Victoria, Canada formally recognized her as one of BC’s cultural icons.

NIL
Nil is a Montreal-based band that recently won the first season of the new show MOA. Mobile Artist or MOA for short is a digital platform for independent artists to compete to win a single contract deal with EMI Music and get their single serviced to radio across Canada. Bands also compete to be on the MOA digital compilation that will be serviced to all the MOA digital partners for purchase.

Sigrun Stella
Sigrun Stella is an Icelandic Canadian singer songwriter with a folk/soul sound.  Her emotionally affecting voice has been compared to Norah Jones, Joni Mitchell, Adele and Diana Krall. Songs from her recent debut album 'Crazy Blue' have regular airplay on the radio in Europe. Her music has been featured in several Canadian Films. 

JP Saxe

An emerging singer and songwriter worth watching.  JP Saxe has been called a combination of James Blunt and John Legend with a little bit of reggae and hip hop thrown in. JP is not only a singer/songwriter, but multi instrumentalist who has impressed audiences across Toronto with his lyrical ability and vocal creativity. He is the keyboardist for the Toronto Reggae Rock group, Down by Riverside and a founding member of the Toronto pop trio Trading Hearts.  He has collaborated with and played alongside artists such as Nikki Yanofsky, Slakah the Beatchild, Rehan Dalal, Craig Stickland, Philip Nozuka, and many others. He has also been a frequent performer in Jaymz Bee’s Jazz FM 91’s Jazz Safaris, impressing some of the cities most active music enthusiasts.

Posted: Mon, August 20, 2012 - 10:41 by Between the Lines Team | #

VIDEO POST - Artist Pascal Paquette on street art and Graffiti in “Graffiti Talks”

Following our announcement about our silent auction of amazing art created for our project (scroll down for details), we thought we should share our webisode with one of the amazing contributing artists, Pascal Paquette.

To introduce our project to market as we were shooting, we decided to share our footage and began a series with the Torontoist.com featuring graffiti artists. We've learned a lot from meeting with all the artists, but Pascal Paquette, who has a background as a fine artist, really gets into some different elements of graffiti in "Graffiti Talks - Webisode 3."

Meet Pascal here:

Posted: Wed, July 25, 2012 - 7:45 by Between the Lines Team | #

From a spark to a film: my personal journey with ‘Between the Lines’

As we near closer to the end of this amazing Doc Ignite campaign with the good people of Hot Docs, I wanted to share a bit about my personal journey and the film.

As a Torontonian, I’ve always loved the visceral experience in connecting with local culture and art that makes our city vibrant. This project began when an emotional chord was struck in me with Rob Ford's declaration of war on graffiti and talk of cleaning the streets and ridding them of crime and vandalism. As a citizen, I’ve always loved to see beautiful art, splahes of wild colour on otherwise grey paletted walls and rather uncomfortable with the encroachment of public advertising that seems to be pervasive in the physical spaces we exist in whether on our streetcars or our 'public squares' (Yonge and Dundas).

After Mayor Rob Ford began his graffiti eradication campaign I felt compelled to initiate this project. It really all began with a small idea to make a ripple with a colleague and gifted photographer named William Suarez. We talked about the idea of makng media about the subculture of graffiti and street artists and go deeper into their narratives and share that with the public. Kelli Kieley, our co-producer, was also working on a similar project with stencilist Joel Richardson, so it made perfect sense to join forces and expand the project. It was not long before we were speaking to city officials, property owners, professors and underground graffiti writers. We were touching on an issue that seemed to resonate with just about every person we interacted with. We were lucky to have the talented Jake Chirico join us as Director of our film. Fast forward just over a year later and here we are, partnered with the wonderful Hot Docs in the final stretch of an incredible campaign. This campaign is not just raising funds for the film however, it is also about raising a greater awareness on the issue of graffiti and street art and public space. I look forward to seeing where this incredible journey will take us. I feel honored to be a part of a project that shines a spotlight on artists that are rarely recognized. 

A special thanks to the Hot Docs family, AutoShare, District PR, Open Roof Festival and to all the artists who have supported us so far on our film.  A big very thanks also to our Ignite contributors who have helped to make this campaign a success.

Much love, on behalf of the entire Between The Lines team.

James Gen Meers, Producer

Posted: Wed, July 25, 2012 - 3:06 by Between the Lines Team | #

Own a piece of Toronto Graffiti History: Silent Auction for Graffiti Pieces by Elicser and Chou

Last week we were invited to participate at the Open Roof Festival to screen our teaser trailer for the one the big screen with a live audience for the first time. We also had a chance to talk about the film and meet some amazing Toronto urban art enthusiasts. 

We were super honoured to have two legendary graffiti writers join us, Elicser and Mon Petit Chou to do live graffiti painting on 8ftx12ft custom-made wooden “canvasses” that will be silent auctioned with proceeds going to the film.  

Custom-building the canvasses with Co-Producer James Gen Meers, Director Jake Chirico, Elicser, Pascal. Photos courtesy of Linda Theron.

Here are some photos of the final pieces.

Photos courtesy of Between the Lines by Jake Chirico and Open Roof Film Festival

Today we are very excited to announce the opening of our silent auction of these pieces to the general public. Market value for each piece (3 panels) is approximately $5,000. The starting bid is $600 per panel or $1400 for all three (by each artist). Interested buyers can obtain more information and bid here. We hope to put any funds raised after today into our Doc Ignite campaign, and we'll be sure to update you with the excitng final results!!

About the artists:

Jabari Elliot "Elicser”
Around the city of Toronto, where he grew up, he is most famous as a graffiti artist. His cast of characters walk with us along the walls and through the alleyways, and people physically interact with his art when embracing the Hug Tree, which he painted, on Queen Street West. Elicser is also a sought after illustrator.  He has been widely collected and has shown at many galleries.  He was featured in the ROM’s ‘House Paint‘ exhibit. http://www.elicser.com

Pascal Paquette "Mon Petit Chou"
A recognizable figure in two distinctive art worlds, Toronto resident Pascal Paquette has spent the last decade traversing the contemporary art scene, while learning and expanding on his graffiti writing practice under the pseudonym Mon Petit Chou. Paquette’s thematic interests interrogate the transformation of culture that occurs when two or more economic, social or cultural realities collide. He works primarily through painting but also employs street art, graffiti and photography in projects that are often site-specific or geographically dependent. Paquette is a graduate of the Graphic Arts program at La Cite Collegiale in Ottawa, Canada.  His work has been widely exhibited, including a recent show at the AGO. http://www.pascalpaquette.com

We wanted to extend a huge thanks to both Elicser and Mon Petit Chou for supporting the campaign. We also wish to thank the good people at Open Roof Festival for the opportunity to participate at the event last week. We also wanted to say thanks to the big hearts at AutoShare for generously offering additional incentives for our campaign and providing transportation for the Open Roof event.

Kelli Kieley and James Gen Meers, Producers, Between the Lines

Posted: Wed, July 25, 2012 - 1:02 by Between the Lines Team | #

VIDEO POST by Producer Kelli Kieley:  Why I Am Making A Film about Toronto Street Art and Graffiti

I have been asked a lot of questions about why I would be working on a film about graffiti and street art, mainly because of the common stories that exist in our culture on the topic.
It was curiosity that brought me to this project last June upon reading that a Toronto artist's mutual was removed without his knowledge.

As the story made headlines, I was struck by the large number of Torontonians that cared as feelings and opinions for and against the erasure were thrown around and the media buzzed.
Was it too political? Was it Stephen Harper? Was it sanctioned? Didn't he get paid?

It was the level of public interest that piqued my curiousity and inspired me to reach out to Richardson on behalf of a community group and to begin to film the ensuing events.

My only experience with street art until that time were sightings shared between kids and I as we did the Toronto hustle, to-ing and fro-ing, and these sightings were like stolen moments of stopping time in the intense City grind, almost replacing the discovery of a hive or a bird or tree sap from my childhood. Coming from Newfoundland, where trees, rocks, big sky and water provided the imagery for my childhood, and something I miss in my adult life, the corporate advertising taking over the City was disconcerting and at times felt like an assault to my senses. Often I was not interested in buying what was being sold and I was not wanting my children to buy in.

I was so glad to meet James Gen Meers who was also interested in graffiti and street art and was creating interesting events in Toronto with Salon Camden, engaging Torontonians in public discourse. His background in politics and interest in urban dialogue, arts and culture and media, segued into mine and we decided to join forces and embarked on a film project we hoped would open up the dialogue, and move past the common stereotype of graffiti vandal as the things happening on the street were much more significant than this story.

Joel Richardson turned out to be passionate, interesting and talented artist, who is never boring and plays with multiple personas. I have since assisted him in some of his projects, here and abroad, which extend beyond street art, and during one of them I reconnecteded with the talented Jake Chirico which marked the inception of our dynamic Between the Lines team.

The political nature of this enigmatic artist has led to the removal of his work several times since last June, such as this piece in Catskill, New York, which Jake Chirico was onsite to capture for Between the Lines recently.

It's been an honor to meet a wonderful variety of artists since then, all of whom are interesting in a plethora of ways. They all appear to want to share something, whether it is to proliferate their name, to make a protest, to tell a joke, to
destroy and share their anger, or to practice and share their artistic abilities with the public. Some of them are rebels, some intellectuals, but they all seem to be asking whether public space is actually public, and are making it such. These interesting people and their work inspired our web series "Graffii Talks" that has been broadcast on Torontoist. We thought we would be a great gift to share our findings, graffiti style, as we further developed the project. There are three webisodes and our latest is in the works.

While traveling in my hometown of Newfoundland recently, I discovered an almost secret public exhibition of street art, an exchange by international artists that had been quietly thrown up right in downtown St. john's without much notice (and no media attention).

I wondered how long this lax attitude about public art installations would remain as the historically poor province enjoys a period of marked economic growth, and at what time the City spaces would command such a
price that the luxury of the large free canvases to share with the public would be protected for those saved for paying customers who want to sell their goods. Or when this idea would be co-opted and used for a Spectacle a la Scotiabank.
For now the walls and City space are not as contentious as in the big City of Toronto. The two, and soon thee, legal graffiti walls there indicate an attempt to work with artists by officially allocating some of the public space for arts purposes and expression.

These issues that are the meta text of this story, and other stories like it globally - of battles between politicians and corporations with artists- are what we hope to uncover in this film about street art and graffiti. All while sharing some really interesting art and the people who create it.

I am sincerely grateful for the interest, appreciation and support that has been shown for our project, and the tremendous work by our talented and passionate team - Director Jake Chirico and Editor Andrew
Cromey, Nekhat Ahmed, David Magnusson, Kawai Lam - who have been working on this project as a labour of love. Also to the artists and individuals who have opened themselves up to us. Thanks to Hot Docs who have given us so much support and training in this exciting Doc Ignite journey.

Looking forward to making what we hope will be a great film to share with you.

Posted: Tue, July 24, 2012 - 10:11 by Between the Lines Team | #

VIDEO POST - Between the Lines interviews BOMB IT Director Jon Reiss

We caught up with Jon Reiss, Director of the legendary graffiti film BOMB IT, during Hot Docs this year to solicit some advice and we got the opportunity to put him in front of the camera for some questions on graffiti and street art. Bomb It 2 is set for release this fall, look for it in theatres: http://www.bombit-themovie.com/ Jon has some amazing insights and we wanted to share this clip during our Doc Ignite campaign as it lends well discussion we plan to uncork in our film.

In order to make this happen, we need your help.
Please support our film: http://www.hotdocs.ca/docignite/project/between_the_lines
We have great incentives for our supporters!

Music Track is Gold Tooth Shine by the Amazing Toronto-based CATL!! Thanks to those guys for providing their awesome music to our webisodes (more here on VIMEO) and film project.
Check them out or BUY THEIR ALBUM here: http://catl.bandcamp.com/

Spread the word and Follow us on Twitter: BTLdoc or give us a "like" on facebook: http://www.facebook.com/betweenthelinesdocumentary

Posted: Mon, July 23, 2012 - 12:37 by Between the Lines Team | #

Blog Post by Director Jake Chirico: How Between the Lines Drafted Me

About a year ago, I had an idea for a film based around fictional characters created by real artists who carry out political works in public spaces. Coincidentally, I had just begun working out the concept when I was approached by Producer Kelli Kieley about the possibility of working on a project together. It turned out that Kelli and co-producer, James Gen Meers, had been working on a documentary provoked by Toronto Mayor Rob Ford's self proclaimed "War on Graffiti" and asked if I would like to be involved. As both an artist and citizen of Toronto, I felt drawn into the so-called "War on Graffiti", language which inevitably forces people to take sides - you're either for graffiti or for a "cleaner" city. However, I don't feel that graffiti and street art is the totally us-against-them issue that Ford's War leads one to believe, and I know that so many others are sure it isn't as well. There are so many different groups of people involved in and affected by graffiti - vandals, artists, policymakers, public advertising companies, property owners and the list goes on. It's hard to ignore as a prominent segue into large issues including freedom of expression, democratic control, and the definition of art. Between the Lines is a film that has been begging to be made for a while now.

Photo courtesy of Best Fan

With this film I saw an opportunity to really get into the core issues behind efforts to eradicate graffiti, which has actually provoked illegal artists to action, and try to figure out possible solutions that will make an actual difference - or at least dispel some myths about the dynamic people behind it. Since I started shooting, I've been experiencing a sub-culture largely foreign to me for most of my life. I am meeting new street and graffiti artists, and learning more about the city I live in than I ever thought I would. Each artist is completely unique and their philosophies regarding public space are not unified and often conflict. I can't wait to help show viewers the human face of graffiti and how far from black and white the issues are.

Photo courtesy of the North Bay Nugget

In light of the Occupy movement, a shift in the dynamics between citizens, politicians, and corporations is dominating the public sphere. I feel excited to be exploring this through the contentious issues surrounding graffiti and street art, especially in the context of a very tangible local conflict and peoples' relationship to public space.

Jake Chirico

Director, Between the Lines

Posted: Mon, July 23, 2012 - 9:48 by Between the Lines Team | #

Street and Graffiti Artists support the campaign with T-Shirt designs

We've had so many amazing artists step forward to show their support for our project. We would ike to feature our Limited Edition T-shirt line designed in collaboration with the Toronto-based clothing designer, Clothing Brand Experiment, and two amazing graffiti and street artists, ANSER and Things. You can get receive a Limited Edition T-shirt as part of the $155 FIREBOMB incentive level and up.

The Artists

THINGS

Things, creator of the famous Mayor Rob Ford head that has been stenciled across Toronto, is a locally-based street artist. Things is behind the well-known "Post No Bills" campaign in Toronto.

Here's his latest work popping up around town.

ANSER

We are also very excited to have the elusive Anser support our campaign with his mysterious "painted lady" piece that has appeared on windows and walls over the last few years. In a recent interview, ANSER explained that "a personal fall out with graffiti, feeling the art form in itself was a little inaccessible and elitist" led to the creation of the mysterious painted lady that has become legendary in Toronto.

Anser’s show at Funktion Gallery, “A Mysterious Date with Anser.” Photos by funkaoshi.

We want to extend a big thanks to both Anser and Things for for supporting our Doc Ignite campaign through the contribution of their art.

Posted: Sun, July 22, 2012 - 5:08 by Between the Lines Team | #

An interview with Toronto Graffiti Artist EGR

Last week I interviewed EGR for our next Graffiti Talks episode. She's incredible. Her art, not to be confused with Elicser's style, is very painterly and quite recognizable. One of her most well known street works lives on the front of the El Mocambo at Spadina and College (Toronto). As impressive as it is, this piece was done about a decade ago and her style has developed in leaps and bounds since then. Street art only represents a fraction of her talent as is evident in her canvas work and musical collaborations.

Photo by Jeff Kirk

What impresses me the most is how grounded she is in her perspective on street art and how well it speaks to my own views. She tells me: "I think that there are majorly more important problems [than graffiti vandalism] like just hearing about what went down in Scarborough last week is absolutely horrific and it just goes to show you that there really needs to be more attention on the pertinent issues of today. Violence is real. Violence is happening around us. I think that instead of being anti-war we need to be pro-peace… so more angels being painted, more, you know, colour in the city, more art events, more public art, more acceptance of each other. We're worried about what some teenage kid wrote on the street? It's ridiculous! Ultimately I'm thinking about what could help. I see it as a responsibility. I just would like to think that by seeing street art, it would remind them that they have an individual voice and that they can make a change."

I've had the opportunity to film in Lesotho and Cambodia, shooting documentary material about the HIV/AIDS pandemic. The experience has completely changed my outlook on life in the West. I've seen real problems on massive scales that are unlike anything we have to deal with in Canada. What city officials have deemed a War on Graffiti is just a mismanaged waste of resources. The real issue is the integral freedom of expression. Graffiti and street art are so misunderstood and undervalued by policymakers that a great deal of its potential lies dormant. We're doing everything we can to help artists get through the barriers and tap it.

Jake Chirico, Director

Posted: Sun, July 22, 2012 - 10:56 by Between the Lines Team | #

Limited Edition art pieces by Denial for the final 4 days of the campaign

Toronto-based artist Denial has just donated "Limited Edition" hand-painted art pieces for the final 4 days of our campaign for any supporters at the $55 Bonfire level or higher. The art piece is sprayed on a piece of 12"x16" wooden board valued at $100.

You can learn more about Denial's work here.

We have been so fortunate to have some great local artists help support our campaign. On Thursday, July 19 at the Open Roof Festival, two amazing Toronto-based graffiti writers, Elicser and Mon Petit Chou painted two 8x12 foot wooden boards for silent auction to help us realize our goal. 

Thank you so very much for your incredible and ongoing support, it means a lot to our team and will help us make our film.

Posted: Fri, July 20, 2012 - 12:29 by Between the Lines Team | #

Exciting new offer - AutoShare will match Doc Ignite incentives for final 7 days of the campaign

Salut Film Lovers,

As we saddle up in this final leg of our Doc Ignite campaign we have some very exciting news to share with you all!

For the next 7 days, AutoShare has generously offered to match any Doc Ignite incentive at the $100, $155  and $225 levels with AutoShare memberships and driving credits of equivalent value or more. This means that in addition to all the great 'Between The Lines' incentives you will also get additional incentives from AutoShare.  There are more details provided at the bottom of the blog.

So there is an interesting story about our relationship with AutoShare because two characters of our film, Spud and Deadboy, have both participated in one of their rad initiatives called “Keys to Wonderful” that integrates the creative works of select street and graffiti artists into AutoShare signs (see below).

So now Toronto has a ton of AutoShare signs sprinkled all across the city that have each been hand-crafted by Toronto-based street and graffiti artists. Here’s a video we liked of one of the 6 artists they selected to work on this project 

A big high five to Kevin McLaughlin, AutoShare's Founder and President, for supporting local artists, making cool signs and thinking outside the box. We're loving it!

AutoShare & Between The Lines Incentives:

INFERNO package: $100

You’re part of our crew. For $100, you’ll get:

Thank You in the Credits
Between the Lines Sticker package
Ticket to the After Party for our Secret Screening@ The Bloor Cinema!
Ticket to the Between The Lines concert at The MOD Club in September
Digital download of the finished film in advance of everyone else delivered straight to the electronic device of your choosing!

AutoShare will match donations at the $100 level with an AutoShare single membership ($129value)

FIREBOMB package: $155

Bombshell styles! For $155, you’ll get:

Digital download of the finished film in advance of everyone else delivered straight to the electronic device of your choosing!
Your Choice between a Limited Edition stencil print, created and signed by an enormously talented Toronto street artist featured in Between the Lines OR a Limited Edition CBE t-shirt created by one of the talented artists in our film.
Ticket to the Between The Lines concert at The MOD Club in September
Between the Lines Sticker package
2 for 1 coupon for the Hot Docs film festival! Thank You in the Credits
After Party for our Secret Screening@ The Bloor Cinema!

AutoShare will match donations at the $155 level with a $150 AutoShare package including a single membership ($129 value) and driving credits ($50 value). Total Value of $179.

COLLECTORS package: $225

For Arts and Culture Enthusiasts… The Collector’s Package includes:

Limited Edition stencil print
Limited Edition CBE t-shirt created by Between The Lines featured artists, a
Limited Edition signed DVD of the final film
Ticket to the Between The Lines concert at The MOD Club in September
Digital download of the finished film in advance of everyone else delivered straight to the electronic device of your choosing!
Between the Lines Sticker package
Thank You in the credits of the film and on our website
Hot Docs 4-Package DVD set!

AutoShare will match donations at the $225 level with a $300 AutoShare package including a family membership ($179 value) and driving credits ($100 value). ($279 value)

Posted: Wed, July 18, 2012 - 2:40 by Between the Lines Team | #

Super fun graffiti art contest

Happy Monday Film and Graffiti Art Enthusiasts! 

Are you ready to win?! We are super stoked to announce a Between the Lines graffiti contest.

Over the weekend Director Jake Chirico shot a piece that caught his eye (below).

Here’s the game: tell us WHO the artist is and WHERE this particular graffiti piece is located in the city.

Send your own, wider picture if you can (not necessary but we'll tweet it)!

We'll be tweeting clues so keep your twitter eyes peeled on our BTL twitter feed today and tomorrow for hints and updates.

So what’s the prize? You get to take home everything in the $155 Firebomb Incentive which includes:

• A Limited Edition T-shirt featuring the art of one of two incredibly talented graf artists, Anser and Things.
• Your name in the credits of our film
• You are coming with us to the Secret Screening and After Party @ the Bloor Cinema
• A 2 for 1 coupon for the Hot Docs Festival
• A ticket to the 'Between The Lines' big, fun concert and wild dance party at the Virgin Mobile Mod Club with some awesome bands (TBA soon)
• A digital download of the film before anyone else 
• A street art sticker pack created by graffiti artists featured in the film

There is one prize for one lucky winner. If you think you got the digs on this artist, email us direct at betweenthelinesdoc@gmail.com. We're excited to hear from you. Happy hunting and good luck!!

Posted: Mon, July 09, 2012 - 11:26 by Between the Lines Team | #

Designs by graffiti and street artists Anser and Things unveiled!

Hey Film Lovers!!

We’re so happy to announce that we’ve reached $5K of our $15K goal to help complete our film about graffiti in Toronto.

In case you haven’t seen our trailer yet have a peek!

We’ve got some great incentives for anyone who supports our film.

We’re super stoked to unveil our Limited Edition T-shirts featuring the art of two incredibly talented graf artists, Anser and Things.

Here are some initial designs coming through the pipes. 

Be bold, be Bonfire @ $155, you’ll be one of the few awesome urbanites rockin’ these Limited Edition tees. You also get a special thanks in the credits, a download of our film, secret screening, 2 for 1 coupon for the Hot Docs Festival and most importantly, a ticket to our wild and crazy upcoming concert @ the Mod Club with some amazing bands to be announced very soon! 

Stay tuned and keep following us on Twitter.

Happy Friday and much love,

The BTL crew

Posted: Fri, July 06, 2012 - 1:37 by Between the Lines Team | #

Funny moment with stencilist Joel Richardson - street art can get a bit messy sometimes.

Last Sunday while shooting Joel Richardson putting up his stencil piece behind 99 Sudbury of his famous Grassroots Financial Revolutionary Suitman, there was a super funny behind the scenes moment that we were lucky enough to capture on film. Check it out! 

Posted: Tue, June 26, 2012 - 1:19 by Between the Lines Team | #

Limited Edition T-Shirt Designers Selected!!!

We're pleased to say that we have selected our designs and will be releasing some of Toronto's hottest shirts this week!!!!

We love that you support our film, but we want to be sure you get cool, quality items that you will be proud to wear or hang.

For our campaign, we decided to partner up with an amazing Toronto-based clothing design company called Clothing Brand Experiment that make some awesome hoodies and t-shirts. Check out some of the Limited Edition artist partnerships CBE has done in the past here: 

Posted: Mon, June 25, 2012 - 2:36 by Between the Lines Team | #

Live Painting and great tunes at 99 Sudbury this Sunday!

To warm things up during our Doc Ignite campaign, we have some live street art happening on the back of the building and some bands that have contributed music to our project will perform at 99 Sudbury's urban garden.

This weekend, June 17/2012,  artist Joel Richardson, the artist whose mural was erased last summer by the City even though they commissioned it, will paint one of his latest pieces from his SUITMAN project (http://www.suitman.ca). The Roncy Boys will perform at 3pm and Jimi Maze of Canary Mine will warm up the deck in the early afternoon.

Posted: Fri, June 15, 2012 - 12:15 by Between the Lines Team | #

All Fired Up for our Doc Ignite Campaign!

We couldn't be more thrilled to have been selected by Hot Docs to be their second EVER Doc Ignite project... and more grateful for all the support they have given us to get us to our big Launch!

We've got some great incentives that we will roll out as the campaign progresses - amazing artwork, cool, local, ethical, designer t-shirts, a fab party at 99 Sudbury, and much more.

We'll be checking in regularly to engage directly with you about updates on the film and interesting developments we come across... We hope to spark a dialogue about art in the public realm, street art, urban culture, policy-making, and a host of other topics we think you might find interesting. Of course, there's always something to talk about in Toronto with our infamous Mayor!

Don't forget to follow us on twitter: @btldoc

Find us on facebook: http://www.facebook.com/betweenthelinesdocumentary

Or visit our website: http://www.betweenthelinesdoc.com

Posted: Fri, June 15, 2012 - 9:11 by Between the Lines Team | #