Downtown 81Downtown 81

Fashion-photographer Bertoglio's portrait of the New York art scene circa 1981. The main focus is the provocative 19-year-old artist Jean-Michel Basquiat, already known for his excursions into street graffiti art and pioneering electro-beat. Shot as "New York Beat" in 1980-81 but completed for release nearly 20 years later when archival footage thought to have been lost was recovered. Many of the film's original sound elements were lost during the 20 years it spent in limbo, so much of the dialogue has been re-dubbed.