From 1968 to 1975, gangs ruled New York City. Beyond the idealistic hopes of the civil rights movement lay a unfocused rage. Neither law enforcement nor social agency could end the escalating bloodshed. Peace came only through the most unlikely and courageous of events that would change the world for generations to come by giving birth to hip-hop culture. Rubble Kings, the most comprehensive documentation of life during this era of gang rule to date, tells the story of how a few extraordinary, forgotten people did the impossible, and how their actions impacted the world over.
In the late 1970s, the “greatest city in the world” was teetering on the edge of total chaos. A failed economy, crime and en mass housing corruption gave way to a city in crisis. Yet out of the economic and social strife that held the “Big Apple” hostage, a family of homegrown cultures that would forever change the world began to emerge. Downtown Calling not only documents, in detail, the evolution of New York City’s fertile music and art subculture during this period, but how its collective output continues to play a prominent, driving role in the international fashion, art and music industries today.
Drawing upon unprecedented insider access to ACT UP’s founding members, as well as their unique archives and action footage, A LOTTA NERVE examines not only the mechanics, actions and international rise of ACT UP, but also offers first-hand insight into the essential and individualized human factor of the emotional impact of this movement and the experiences of its members, as a result. Although A LOTTA NERVE tells how a rag-tag bunch of queers acted up, failed to stop an epidemic, and, in the process, changed your life, it is also a universal testament to the power of the individual to effect lasting, lifesaving change. A LOTTA NERVE is currently in pre- production.