Utilizing such varied materials as concrete, papier-mâché, and blown-out tires, disparate Los Angeles street artists give new life to the dwindling remnants of the city’s public payphones by repurposing them as canvases for unique creative expressions. With the streets as their gallery, our heroes defy vandalism laws, maintenance crews, haters, and history itself to deliver a moment’s levity to the right kind of passerby. By keeping its focus on the artists, the phones, and the ephemeral nature of both art and technology, this short documentary thoughtfully invites its audience to appreciate what’s being lost as the world moves on.

Director's Statement

This film was born of six years documenting the rapid decline of the payphones of Los Angeles: getting to know individual specimens around the city, noticing the subtle changes over time, and bearing witness to their eradication from the landscape. Themes of loss and letting go are buoyed by the cast of indefatigable street artists and their ability to turn ruin and decline (and garbage!) into a source of joy and ephemeral beauty. The film lives in the tension between creation and decay, ultimately accepting of the fact that all things must pass.

Category: Documentary.
Themes: Arts, Community.

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