Cast

Banksy, Thierry Guetta, Space Invader, Rhys Ifans, Shephard Fairey

Film description

I guess my ambition was to make a film that would do for graffiti art what Karate Kid did for martial arts, a film that would get every school kid in the world picking up a spray can and having a go. As it turns out, I think we may have made a film that does for street art what Jaws did for water skiing, says Banksy, the legendary British graffiti artist, who has managed to conceal his identity for years despite a worldwide manhunt. In his directorial debut, Exit Through the Gift Shop, Banksy steers clear of a documentary about street artists, serving up instead a spectacular provocation in the spirit of his lightning fast urban guerilla tactics. It is the story of Thierry Guetta, an eccentric French vintage clothing shop keeper and amateur film maker, in his attempts to locate and befriend Banksy, only to have the artist turn the camera back on its owner. Guetta chances upon the Los Angeles street art scene and documents the work of icons like Monsieur André , Swoon, Sweet Toof and Ron English. Guetta’s break comes when he takes on a nom de guerre to become artist Mr. Brainwash. Exit Through the Gift Shop is a dark comedy and thriller about urban guerillas and incisive commentary on the inevitable commercialization of underground art.

Ewa Szabłowska