This film is a celebration of the underdog!
PRESS
San Francisco Examiner (front page)
Casco Bay Weekly (Portland Maine)
--------------------------------------
Electronic Press Kit (zipped PDF. of printable scans of ten pages of newspaper articles from all over the US and Canada. 3 megs.)
-------------------------------------
San Francisco Bay Guardian april 10, 2002:
Go your own way. Big-ass summer movies are right around the corner, so before the merch-heavy superheroes and Jedi knights get the better of you, do a little preventive soul cleansing at Other Cinema tonight with Michael Dean's D.I.Y. or Die: How to Survive as an Independent Artist. Dean's hour-long documentary is a paean to American indie artists of all stripes Ian MacKaye, Lydia Lunch, Lynn Breedlove, Mike Watt, Jim Rose, and Beth Lisick are just some of the participants in this exploration of how creative types pursue their art regardless of what the Man has to say about it. Also on the bill are two films that pay tribute to the Butthole Surfers and Miles Montalbano's comedy short "Love and the Monster." 8:30 p.m., Artists' Television Access, 992 Valencia, S.F. $5. (Cheryl Eddy)
--------------------------------------
Washington DC City Paper May 17, 2002:
Despite its title, Michael Dean's 50-plus-minute documentary D.I.Y. or Die: How to Survive as an Independent Artist focuses more on the why than the how. Questions such as "Why make art?" and "Why not sell out?" are answered in an unrehearsed (and sometimes unsatisfactory) manner that does more to reinforce the motivations of its already converted audience than offer practical advice on how to start a label. And when it's not bogged down by the self- martyring suffering-artist routine of New York's "Demonic Erotica" artist John John Jesse, D.I.Y. or Dieŭs more humble interviewees (including New York photographer Richard Kern, ex-Dinosaur Jr frontman J Mascis, and D.C.'s own Ian MacKaye) offer interesting and often humorous dialogue that proudly displays the ethics of independent art and culture. For some D.C. punkers, this may seem old hat, but the eccentricities of D.I.Y. or Die's colorful cast will keep even the indier-than-thou thoroughly entertained. The film screens at 9 and 11 p.m. at Chief Ike's Mambo Room, 1725 Columbia Road NW. $1-$6. (202) 332-2211. (Matthew Borlik)
--------------------------------------
DiYReporter.com. December 2002:
D.I.Y. OR DIE: Burn This DVD (DVD) This documentary by Michael W. Dean isn't a manual on how to publish a fanzine or start a band. Rather, it's a look into the very souls of a group of talented and dedicated individuals who have chosen to live as artists, on their own terms and outside the mainstream. Call it the Zen of DIY, if you will; but by any name, it's a wonderfully revealing look into a truly alternative lifestyle as embraced by not only musicians but poets, artists, writers, and photographers. For that reason, there's no one on this DVD who would qualify as "famous" by the standards of People magazine or MTV. Anyone familiar with the world of underground music, though, will recognize such articulate and well-traveled spokepersons as Ian MacKaye of Fugazi, Lydia Lunch, Mike Watt, J Mascis, Jim "Foetus" Thirlwell, circus performer Jim Rose, and photographer/filmmaker Richard Kern. The original title of the documentary, when released on video, was "D.I.Y. Or Die: How To Survive As An Independent Artist," which sums it up perfectly. With the exception of one short passage on Napster, the material hasn't become dated at all; in fact, you'll find the wisdom and insight served up here to be timeless. Whether the person speaking into the camera writes, paints, sings, draws comics, or plays guitar, the message is the same: Be yourself, be true to your art, and do it because you love it (because there probably ain't any money in it.) This DVD version (which, by the way, is deliberately not copy-protected by the manufacturer, so you can burn copies for all your friends) includes 60 minutes of bonuses: You get additional interview footage of MacKaye, Lunch, artist Liza Matlack, and punk-rock roadie Little Mike, new interviews with indie-rock mavericks like Steve Albini and Maggie Estep, mini-documentaries on the making of the video and its original release tour, and the full audio of the filmmakers' interview with Mike Watt (who lectures on the how's and why's of "jammin' econo," his slang for touring cheaply so you can turn a profit without worrying about label support.) And if you keep poking around the DVD, there are even a few semi-hidden surprises, including mildly perverse performances by Jim Rose and Dave Brockie (better known as Oderus Urungus of GWAR.)
- Jim Testa