Still taken from an episode
Punk in the East Los Backyard Scene
“It Was Worth It”
It always makes me feel funny when I see big brands promote themselves by showing their affinity with small subcultures... Ok, now that that’s been covered, let’s drool over this series of vignettes depicting the East L.A. punk scene, and have friend crushes on the cute punks featured in it. It was made by photographer, filmmaker and Columbus, Ohio native Angela Boatwright for Vans’ (sigh) Living off the Wall series.
It's a flashy portrait that, although sincere and interested, doesn't even begin to approach the history and complexity of the scene. As Dangerous Minds wrote in a great post recently, for a truer and more thorough portrait of the often over-looked L.A. punk scene, watch Los Crudos member Martin Sorrondeguy’s documentary Beyond the Screams (Mas Alla de Los Gritos), made in 1999. Or travel back to 2008 and check out the exhibit Vexing: Female Voices of East L.A. Punk at Claremont Museum of Art.
Episode 2 — Anthony
Episode 3 — Lauren
Episode 4 — Nekro
Episode 5 — The Show
Hanna Hurr is a co-founding editor of Mask Magazine.
