The young filmmakers were drawn to Patterson for many reasons. He is quite the personality in his biker get-up, wiry beard, and sporting the skull caps he and partner Elsa Rensaa design. His artist’s pulse has always been on the youth culture, photographing subjects the filmmakers were interested in, such as graffiti, art, and a wide range of characters from the streets of their childhood—drug dealers, rabbis, hookers, poets, and drag queens. Patterson gives Solomon, Levin, and Furst plenty of credit for sticking to the project. “They had tremendous patience, spending hours and hours tweaking, shaving off miniscule amounts to make it fit together. They had determination, vitality, and strength. They didn’t do things the easy way. It was pretty heroic.”

To read the article in its entirety, pick up the Summer 2008 issue of Beyond Race Magazine.