By now, you’re probably aware that Larry Clark’s seminal directorial debut Kids — the controversial portrait of life as a teenager in the lawless days of 90s New York — is celebrating its 20th anniversary this year. The cast held a reunion screening and Q&A at BAM; Supreme released a commemorative capsule collection. Think pieces were written, #tbt snaps of Chloë Sevigny, Rosario Dawson, Harmony Korine, and Leo Fitzpatrick in their first film roles were posted. But now, a few of Clark’s other kids are hoping to share the film’s untold story in a new all-access documentary, The Kids.
Although The Kids has been in pre-production for a few years, its producers launched a Kickstarter campaign yesterday. The Clark-approved project is being directed by Hamilton Harris, the Washington Square Park skater behind a particularly iconic Kids scene: the ever instructional blunt rolling tutorial. “With exclusive access to outtakes, casting videos, home movies, rare skate footage and archival photos, The Kids will take viewers inside a critical moment in urban history to explore the origins and the consequences of sudden fame,” the Kickstarter page reads.
“My hopes are that my production team and I are able to tell the inside story which was never shared, uninterrupted by outside influences,” Harris told i-D via email. “This inside perspective is not just the story of the kids who inspired Larry Clark’s directorial debut, but the story of the global youth community at large.”
Although Sevigny and Dawson went on to enjoy celebrated careers, at least five cast members died in the years following the film’s release, including Justin Pierce (who portrayed Fitzpatrick’s right hand man Capser) and pro skater Harold Hunter. The Kids aims to celebrate the real lives and stories of the people who shaped the film, paying special attention to the cultural landscape of 90s NYC. While Kids captures the thriving intersection of subcultures like skateboarding, punk, hip-hop, and the rave scene, “[it] barely glossed the surface of the poverty, racism, and segregation we experienced in real life, behind the scenes,” the page states.
In true Kids spirit, the Kickstarter’s contributor rewards are pretty amazing: commemorative zines and Supreme t-shirts, and the chance to stay in Telly’s ( Fitzpatrick’s loathsome ‘virgin surgeon’) East Village apartment, as well as skateboarding lessons, DJing how-tos, and of course, blunt rolling refresher courses with Clark’s grown-up crew.
Credits
Text Emily Manning
Photography Gunars Elmuts