Exit Through the Gift Shop Page #2

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You can't do that here.

It's to take pictures.

Right.

Not here.

Not that, no.

That's graffiti.

That's not graffiti.

No, no, but that's not.

That's not graffiti.

Then remove it,

because you guys got to go.

That's an art.

That's an art.

You guys need to go.

But this is,

like, Space Invader.

You know Space Invader?

I know Space Invader.

Not here, no.

You don't know Space Invader?

Go!

I was filming Space Invader,

but I wanted more.

You know?

So I mean, it's like,

I could get him all the time,

so I wanted somebody

that I couldn't get.

NARRATOR:
Thierry's opportunity

to meet someone

who could keep him

in steady thrills

came a few days later

when Invader arranged to meet up

with another

West Coast street artist.

His name was Shepard Fairey.

One day,

Shepard would be famous

for transforming the face

of an unknown senator

into a universally

recognized icon.

But even back in 2000,

Shepard was the world's

most prolific street artist.

Shepard's experiment

with the power of repetition

went back to 1989

and an image based

on cult '70s wrestler

Andre the Giant.

Combining Andre's face

with a command to obey,

Shepard had already clocked up

over a million hits

around the world.

And although

he didn't know it yet,

his world was about

to collide head-on

with Thierry's.

Shepard Fairey

was at Kinko's on Vine,

and Space Invader had something,

a trouble with something,

and he couldn't make it

that moment.

But me, I wanted

to meet the guy,

so what I did,

I went and meet him.

- Invader.

- No, Thierry.

I didn't ask him;

I just filmed.

That was my thing.

I didn't ask him anything.

When I came,

I came with a camera,

and I start filming.

So why did you do him?

You don't know?

- Uh...

- Oh, you knew the guy.

He's funny-looking.

No.

Oh, you didn't know him?

- No, I didn't know him.

- Do you think he's dead, or...

Oh, he's dead, yeah.

Yeah?

So you have a partner works

with you, eh?

Yeah.

This is Amanda.

Amanda, how are you doing?

- Hi. Nice to meet you.

- Nice to meet you too.

So how long

you been doing this?

Oh, yeah?

That's a lot of paper.

Yeah.

What do you do?

I film.

NARRATOR:
That night when

Shepard did meet Space Invader,

he took him on a tour

of the city.

Thierry was there

filming everything

that Space Invader was doing

and then, of course,

once I was with Space Invader,

everything I was doing.

You should probably

put an invader

up on Hollywood Boulevard.

What do you think, Thierry?

Yeah.

NARRATOR:
And when Invader

returned to France,

Thierry simply carried on,

tagging along

at Shepard's side

whenever the artist

went out in the streets.

- 2:
00... if he's gonna be out

past 2:
00,

he needs to call at 2:00.

Okay.

I'll make him.

Otherwise, he gets beat,

and he sleeps on the couch.

Amanda always thought

that he was weird,

but I said it's great

that we're getting

a lot of this stuff on tape.

And for me to have someone there

as a lookout was always good.

Keep your eye out for the cops.

I finally did train him

to not turn the light on

while I was on a billboard

or a rooftop,

where he was gonna

blow my cover.

No, no, no, don't use that.

Yeah.

NARRATOR:
After ten months

of Thierry's constant presence,

the question inevitably arose:

What exactly

was Thierry filming for?

It's cool, though, right?

NARRATOR:

And that was the moment

Thierry came up with a big idea

that would dictate

the path of his life

for the next eight years.

In the beginning,

you're, like, thinking,

like, "The guy's gonna film me

one time, two times,

three times, five times,

ten times, twelve times,"

but after a while,

he's like,

"What you gonna do?"

Because usually people film

a day, two days, three days,

and they make something

out of it.

But I kept filming,

so he's like,

"What you gonna do?"

And I said, "I'm gonna make

a street art documentary,"

you know?

Take two.

NARRATOR:
In his new role

as documentary filmmaker,

Thierry now started traveling

the world with Shepard,

recording every detail

of the artist's life.

I knew that

couldn't be far away.

Even though

the Andre the Giant sticker

was just an inside joke

and I was just having fun,

I liked the idea of the more

stickers that are out there,

the more important it seems;

the more important it seems,

the more people

want to know what it is,

the more they ask each other,

and it gains real power

from perceived power.

Can I talk to you

for a second?

Police officer.

I'm not gonna arrest you.

I'm not gonna arrest you.

I just want

to talk to you, dude.

Don't film from that side.

Film from this side over here.

You understand why, right?

Because you're gonna

attract attention.

Oop! Whoa!

It was like a big adventure

every night.

We were going

on top of buildings

and going on top of something

that was not just illegal;

it was dangerous.

But I would do it

because I wanted to show

that I could do it.

You know, it was not like,

I'm downstairs

and you are upstairs

doing your thing

and I'm filming.

No.

I would go upstairs,

and I would go even up, up more

to have the shot that is great.

He just wanted to go

whenever I was going,

and he was always...

he was always very diligent

about climbing,

about helping move the buckets,

the ladder.

He was not only a filmer,

but in ways,

he was an accomplice,

and I don't know whether

it's just that he's passionate

or whether

it's that he's passionate

and he's kinda crazy.

But I respect passion.

NARRATOR:

But it wasn't just Shepard

who caught Thierry's eye.

As he ventured further afield,

Thierry was constantly meeting

street artists.

And in my head,

I wanted to make a movie

about street art,

so I wanted to get

as much people as possible.

Even people who tell me,

"No, I don't want to be filmed,"

I find a way

of making the no as a yes.

Oh, cool.

I love the design of it.

So you draw.

You know how to draw?

It's a painting.

Yeah.

And I start to know one,

and one make me

meet another one.

Very important

when you put the poster

to see where

you're gonna put it.

Usually, I just...

I choose a wall

'cause I like it,

I like what it feels like,

you know?

The texture.

When I go with the artist,

I'm just living them life.

You know?

I'm a ghost

when I'm with them.

I'm kind of a ghost.

Don't you wish to be taller

sometimes?

Shut the f*** up.

So what name you are using?

Borf.

It was the name

of my best friend

who killed himself

when we were 16...

And I just do it to...

I don't know...

commemorate his life.

You gonna hit that?

We're gonna do both.

- Are you gonna do both?

- Yeah.

But, like, I think it'd be cool

if you came up with us.

Excuse me, sir?

Can I have a quick word

with you, sir, please?

Excuse me?

Could I just have a quick word

with you, please?

If I can ask you to stop

any recording that you're doing.

- It's not recording.

- That's fine.

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