The Pikme-Up Documentary

[Not Afraid]

Last night, we were fortunante to attend the first public showing of a new documentary about one of the very first coffee houese/performance spaces in Los Angeles - the Pikme-up. The Egyptian in Hollywood was the scene for a very cool "reunion" of sorts before and after the screening.

The Pikme-up was.....well, let's just quote the film site:

In the mid-1980's the coffeehouse movement in Los Angeles was beginning with wild promise. A tattered Hollywood storefront called The Pikme-up became the prototype for a new subculture that started as an unruly rebellion and exploded into a national phenomenon. The place was a bohemian revolution, a happening of ideas, poetry, music, and performance where a motley group of outcasts formed a unique community and an enduring family.

Chris and I used to hang out at the Pikme-up quite a bit. My friend Andrew was a barista and performance programmer there. Many of our friends performed over the years - including one Christian Meinke. The place was also frequented by a young kid named Beck, John Fleck (one of the NEA4) the legendary Exene Cervenka and an unknown Vigo Mortinson. The producers/writers/directors of the film - Scott Hessels, Andrew Crane and James Keitel were all involved in some capacity with the place.

Visuals for the film was compiled from reels and reels of film James took at the time and kept in his garage since that time, piles of photographs from the era and current interviews conducted by Andrew. UCLA Design|Media Arts added some really amazing animated effects and sequences to the film. The result is a effective capture of an amazing time and place in history that became a huge influenced of art culture in LA.

For me, one screening wasn't enough. I want to see it again and again. I was to see the faces and performances of our dear friend, Jim Riva, again since Jim was one of the ones - of many - we lost to AIDS. I want to experience the magic of the memories I have from that time again. But, the film is going to go on to the festival circuit before I can see it again. I hope it does well, because, it is REALLY FANTASTIC.

It is strange to see your "past life" as a documentary. And, the screening was made bittersweet by the fact that, on Wednesday, Scott Hessels leaves LA for good. But, it also makes my long even more for that type of energy and creativity that existed in one place.

I'd say...see it....but you'll have to wait for it to make it through the festival circuit and, hopefully, become a bit more widely available. You can be sure Chris and I will keep you updated.