Scooter LaForge: A Life of Art

From his early years as an odd man out to his drug fueled years in the swinging seventies and eighties, all the way up to the pivotal marches, Covid-19 and social upheaval of the polarizing 2020s; this doc covers Scooter LaForge's undeniable impact. A contemporary of the likes of Kieth Haring and Gail Thacker. His influence is timelessly infused within the fabric of LGBT culture during the highly romanticized days of old New York. He painted everything: Canvases, Sculptures, and even people! His artwork appears on a remarkably unique clothing line, worn by the socialites and punk rockers alike, including Debbie Harry. This is a great doc. It's the story of an artistic icon you might not realize you need to know.

"Scooter La Forge, a Life of Art" is a visually stunning glimpse into the New York City downtown art scene and the fascinating life of the popular neo expressionistic artist. The main attraction is director/producer/writer Ethan Minsker's use of visual effects and compelling animation. Minsker employs his own creative use of electrifying images, such as Scooter's mother talking about her son through a cardboard TV set, to enhance our understanding of the artist's journey, from his humble beginnings as a bullied gay youth, to San Francisco's 90's club scene, to becoming the darling of the New York art world.

Intertwined are interviews with Patricia Field and Michael Musto. Scooter offers valuable advice to young artists, mostly by teaching them to be adaptable with their environment. Scooter paints his message of love on just about anything - using found objects such as clothing, sculpture and murals. The main thrust of this movie is love. This movie is a work of art itself.

I knew some about the artist before watching this doc, but knew more about the director (had seen other art docs by him). I came away with a new appreciation for the art Scooter does and for the way a director can match the energy of a subject. Both are vibrant, colorful and fun - in the same way that Scooter's art is playful (but with a point), the doc techniques were the perfect mirror to it. No interviews felt like throwaways, the bright animation used to illustrate talking points gave it added interest and I could see myself wanting to watch docs on a few of the side characters in this too.

A refreshingly stylized documentary on an incredible artist. Minsker injects his visual style and a "wall of sound" that drives the storytelling in a compelling and entertaining way. Many documentaries can rely too much on talking heads, but Minsker uses them in a balanced way along with interviews with LaForge and captures the artist as he rises in prominence in the New York art world.

It doesn't linger long on LaForge's early days growing up or time in San Francisco, but gives you enough to understand where he came from.

I was fortunate to see the documentary in an old opera house at the 7th annual Jim Thorpe Independent Film Festival in Pennsylvania.

Ethan pinged me the other day to see if I would watch his new documentary about artist, Scooter LaForge.

"Sure, I'd be happy to!" As always.

It took several days to finish my current project and finally get around to viewing his latest film.

A few minutes into the film I remembered why Ethan's one of my favorite documentary filmmakers, realizing I should have put it on sooner.

A "creative" documenting another "creative", an artist making a film about another artist, doesn't have to be the best art documentary you've seen. But in Ethan's case for some reason, it always is. As I've lived in both places, Scooter's life in New York City and his connections to the southwest, resonated with me. His time in San Francisco are also quite interesting, as is his personal history at large.

With Scooter LaForge as his subject, you discover he's one of the greatest artists you've never heard of. Although many have. Especially other artists.

Huffington Post: "I BRAKE FOR SCOOTER LAFORGE." For good reason and I thank them for that.

Here's the esteem I hold Ethan in as a filmmaker. In 2022 I produced a WWI documentary/art film that won a lot of awards around the world.

I can't help now but watch Ethan's film and imagine how much better my film would be, had he also worked on it.

If you like Art, or are striving to be an Artist, one thing you always learn from Ethan's films is there's a lot going on out there you just don't know about.

So if you love Art, if you love Unique Characters, if you love stories told about them in creative and engaging ways? Definitely check out Ethan Minsker's.

"Scooter LaForge, a life of art"!