‘Mr. Brainwash’: Michael D. Ratner To Direct Doc About French Street Artist Featured In ‘Exit Through The Gift Shop’

EXCLUSIVE: French artist Thierry Guetta aka Mr. Brainwash, who gained prominence after appearing in Banksy’s 2010 film Exit Through the Gift Shop, is getting his own documentary. The feature-length pic hails from OBB Pictures and will be directed by Michael D. Ratner, who helmed and executive produced Justin Bieber: Seasons for YouTube Originals and its follow-up Justin Bieber: Next Chapter.

Featuring never-before-seen archival footage, Mr. Brainwash will chronicle Guetta’s journey from obscurity to worldwide street art phenomena. The film will feature interviews with Banksy and other notable figures in the street art scene and dive into Guetta’s life and high-profile collaborations with the likes of Madonna, Michael Jackson, the Red Hot Chili Peppers and others. It also will examine the roots of Mr. Brainwash’s identity, and questions our fascination with art, talent and ubiquity while serving as a critique of modern art.

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“10 years ago who could have predicted Mr Brainwash’s evolution in the contemporary art scene? Since Exit Through The Gift Shop, I never stopped creating and I am thrilled to be telling my story with Michael and the OBB team. Who knows who I am really? What is art? Watch out!” said Guetta.

“Like many people, I remember seeing Exit Through the Gift Shop for the first time and being completely blown away by this unbelievably enigmatic character known as Mr. Brainwash,” added Ratner, CEO and founder of OBB Media. “I couldn’t be more excited to dive in and explore the art world in a larger capacity – things like what makes a squiggly line sell for a million dollars when it looks like a toddler made it.”

Ratner is wrapping up the four-part documentary Demi Lovato: Dancing with the Devil, which is set to premiere March 16 as the SXSW headliner. He is producing Mr. Brainwash with Scott Ratner, Kfir Goldberg and Arlen Konopaki. Co-producers for OBB are Miranda Sherman and Andy Mininger.

Michael D. Ratner and OBB Media are repped by UTA, 3 Arts and Morris Yorn.

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