Downtown '81 23 years old

Downtown '81

The film is a day in the life of a young artist, Jean-Michel Basquiat, who needs to raise money to reclaim the apartment from which he has been evicted. He wanders the downtown streets carrying a painting he hopes to sell, encountering friends, whose lives (and performances) we peek into.

Credits

Downtown '81 Cast

Name Character
Debbie Harry She was 56, now 79 years old as Fairy Godmother
John Lurie He was 48, now 71 years old as Himself
Amos Poe He was 50, now 74 years old as Conversationalist at Mudd Club
Debi Mazar She was 36, now 60 years old as Peppermint Lounge Dancer
Vincent Gallo He was 40, now 63 years old as Himself
Eszter Balint She was 35, now 58 years old as Himself
Arto Lindsay He was 27, now 71 years old as Himself
Cookie Mueller She was 52, 40 years old when she died as 2nd Go-Go Dancer
Saul Williams He was 29, now 52 years old as Jean's Narration (voice)
Coati Mundi He was 38, now 61 years old as Himself
Jean-Michel Basquiat He was 40, 27 years old when he died as Jean
Kid Creole He was 50, now 74 years old as August Darnell
Fab 5 Freddy as Graffiti Artist
Ted Bafaloukos He was 55, now 78 years old as Junk Dealer
Michael Holman as Michael
Chris Stein He was 30, now 74 years old as The Felons band member
Lee Quiñones He was 41, now 64 years old as Graffiti Artist

Downtown '81 Crew

Name Department
Edo Bertoglio as Director. He was 50 (now 73) years old Directing
John McNulty as Director of Photography. He was 121 (63) years old when He died Camera
Robert Maier as Sound Mixer. He was 30 (now 73) years old Sound
Downtown '81 poster
Downtown '81 (23 years)

  • Release day: Friday, July 13, 2001
  • Runtime: 72 minutes