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The writing's on the wall
A hip-hop design mogul samples the old-school graffiti documentary "Style Wars."

The Plot: In the early days of hip-hop, New York City youth "bombed" the system with spray paint, artistry and dreams. Co-director Tony Silver's 1983 documentary, "Style Wars," captures the emotional and political battles that ensued as graffiti writers turned the city's battered subway cars into rolling canvases.

Insider's Credentials: Marc Ecko is the founder of Ecko Unlimited apparel lines and creator of the graffiti video game "Marc Ecko's Getting Up: Contents Under Pressure" (Atari). His career kicked off in high school, when, inspired by graffiti artists, he began airbrushing T-shirts.

Overview: "This is the quintessential film about subway graffiti culture. It puts graffiti into a new context that intellectualizes the motivations of the artists. It allows you to see that these kids just wanted a voice and to make a mark on the city and pop culture."

Chapter 4: Going All City -- A young writer named Skeme and his mother debate the role of graffiti writing in his life.

"That is typical. The kid is an artist, and he wanted to express himself. Unfortunately, his mom couldn't figure out how to [rechannel] that energy. But that has to be really hard. I run a youth group called Sweat Equity Enterprises, an art and design after-school program. I take kids from underserved communities, and you see it -- the kids sometimes raise themselves."

Chapter 11: A Whole Miserable Subculture -- Zephyr, an affluent white teenager, describes the lure of graffiti.

"People are naive; they think all writers were black kids from the inner city. But a lot of trust-fund kids were doing it. I grew up in Lakewood, N.J., in an ethnically diverse neighborhood outside of Manhattan. I connected to my peer group through graffiti."

Bonus Feature: "Style Wars:" Revisited -- The filmmakers catch up with young artists from the film.

"The movie didn't get into the gnarlier parts of the culture [with crews battling over territory]. I've seen kids get pretty messed up. Kids got stabbed. But it's funny to look back now and acknowledge their youthful naiveté."

-- Rebecca Louie