Scratch (2001)

User Rating:

7.8/10   

Director:

Doug Pray

Release Date:

7 November 2001 (France)

Genre:

Documentary | Music

Plot:

A feature-length documentary film about hip-hop DJing, otherwise known as turntablism. From the South Bronx in the 1970s to San Francisco now...

Plot Keywords:

Hip Hop | D.J. | Rap | Turntable

Awards:

1 win & 2 nominations

Cast

Marc 7	...	Himself - Jurassic 5
Afra	...	Himself
Carlos Aguilar	...	Himself (as DJ Quest)
Akil	...	Himself - Jurassic 5
The Allies	...	Themselves
Almighty K.G.	...	Himself
D.J. Babu	...	Himself - Dilated Peoples / Beat Junkies (as DJ Babu)
Afrika Bambaataa	...	Himself
The Beat Junkies	...	Themselves (as Beat Junkies)
Jon Bernson	...	Himself
John Carluccio	...	Himself - Director
DJ Craze	...	Himself (as DJ Craze)
Frank Cuevas	...	Himself (as DJ Cue)
DJ Curse	...	Himself (as DJ Curse)
Steve Dee	...	Himself
Eddie Def	...	Himself
Dilated Peoples	...	Themselves
D.O.A.	...	Himself
Dot-a-Rock	...	Himself - MC (as Dot a Rock)
Grand Mixer DXT	...	Himself
Emanon	...	Himself
Snayk Eyez	...	Himself
DJ Faust	...	Himself
DJ Flare	...	Himself (as DJ Flare)
Grandmaster Flash	...	Himself (archive footage) (as Grand Master Flash)
Yoga Frog	...	Himself
Doze Green	...	Himself
Herbie Hancock	...	Himself (archive footage)
Mark Herlihy	...	Himself
Naut Humon	...	Himself - Asphodel Records
Billy Jam	...	Himself - Record Label Owner
DJ Jazzy Jay	...	Himself
Jurassic 5	...	Themselves
Kevie Kev	...	Himself - MC
Klever	...	Himself
DJ Krush	...	Himself
Lucas MacFadden	...	Himself - Jurassic 5 (as Cut Chemist)
DJ Marz	...	Himself (as DJ Marz)
Melo-D	...	Himself - Beat Junkies
Mix Master Mike	...	Himself
Mysterio	...	Himself
DJ NuMark	...	Himself - Jurassic 5 (as Numark)
Christie Z. Pabon	...	Herself
Dave Paul	...	Himself - Record Label Owner
DJ Premier	...	Himself - Gang Starr
DJ Q-Bert	...	Himself
Roc Raida	...	Himself - X-ecutioners
Kool DJ Red Alert	...	Himself (as DJ Red Alert)
DJ Relm	...	Himself (as DJ Relm)
Swift Rock	...	Himself
DJ Shadow	...	Himself
Shortcut	...	Himself (as Shortkut)
DJ Shortee	...	Herself
Mista Sinista	...	Himself - X-ecutioners
Jay Slim	...	Himself
Soup	...	Himself - Jurassic 5 (as Zaakir)
Gang Starr	...	Themselves
Steinski	...	Himself - Double Dee / Steinski
Charles Stewart	...	Himself - Jurassic 5 (as Chali 2NA)
DJ Streak	...	Himself (as DJ Streak)
DJ Swamp	...	Himself
Rob Swift	...	Himself - X-ecutioners
The Guru	...	Himself - Gang Starr (as Guru)
Grand Wizard Theodore	...	Himself
Total Eclipse	...	Himself - X-ecutioners
X-ecutioners	...	Themselves
DJ Z-Trip	...	Himself (as Z-Trip)

Directed by
Doug Pray

Produced by
Heidi Addison	....	co-producer (as Heidi Rataj Addison)
Brad Blondheim	....	producer
John Carluccio	....	associate producer
Albert Hughes	....	executive producer
Allen Hughes	....	executive producer
Ernest Meza	....	producer

Original Music by
Mix Master Mike
DJ Q-Bert		(as Qbert)

Cinematography by
Robert Bennett

Film Editing by
Doug Pray

Production Management
Carrie Fix	....	production manager: New York
Michele Van Valey	....	production manager: New York

Art Department
Henry Chalfant	....	artist
Philip DeWolff	....	web graphic designer
Timi D.	....	artist
Shepard Fairey	....	web graphic designer
Damon Holzborn	....	web graphic designer
Daniel Racusin	....	graphics
Tony Tone	....	artist

Sound Department
David Bartlett	....	sound designer
David Bartlett	....	sound editor
David Bartlett	....	sound re-recording mixer
Jason Blackburn	....	sound recordist
Dan Flaherty	....	sound recordist
Eric Christopher Meza	....	sound recordist
Doug Pray	....	sound recordist
Thomas Appel	....	first sound assistant (uncredited)
Kelly Vandever	....	sound recordist (uncredited)

Visual Effects by
Rafi Ekmekian	....	motion controller
Christopher Dusendschon	....	digital imaging: THDX (uncredited)
Erick Schiele	....	title effects (uncredited)

Camera and Electrical Department
Keith Barefoot	....	electrician
Keith Barefoot	....	gaffer
Andrew Bennett	....	grip
Jason Blackburn	....	camera equipment supplier: Hollywood Camera
Matthew C. Blea	....	loader (as Matt Blea)
Theresa Dillon	....	still photographer
Timi D.	....	still photographer
Kate E. Emmert	....	loader (as Kate Emmert)
Richard Gunderman	....	assistant camera
Albert Hughes	....	additional photographer
Brian Knappenberger	....	director of photography: second unit
Steven Lubensky	....	first assistant camera
Diego Martien	....	camera production assistant
Doug Pray	....	additional photographer
Sacha Riviere	....	first assistant camera (as Sache Riviere)
Rebekah Sitty	....	first assistant camera
Perry Unjang	....	additional electrician
Perry Unjang	....	gaffer
Mark Wasserman	....	still photographer

Casting Department
Christie Z. Pabon	....	casting consultant: east coast

Editorial Department
Geof Addison	....	post-production advisor
Robert C. Auten	....	post-production advisor
Knar Kitabjian	....	assistant editor
Kelly Reese	....	telecine colorist: high definition
Dana Ross	....	color timer
Chris Webb	....	negative cutter
Joan Zapata	....	contributing editor

Music Department
Carol Sue Baker	....	music supervisor
David Bartlett	....	music editor
Jon L. Fine	....	associate music supervisor
Jonathan Hafter	....	music supervisor

Other crew
Jonathan M. Abrams	....	production assistant (as Jon Abrams)
Lashonda Adams	....	production assistant
Robert C. Auten	....	assistant: Brad Blondheim
Matthew Bales	....	production assistant (as Matt Bales)
Brad Blondheim	....	story structure
Hilly Blondheim	....	craft service
Secku Brown	....	production assistant
Usa Chaitlal	....	production assistant
Melissa Demicco	....	assistant
Annmarie Deringer	....	assistant: Allen and Albert Hughes
Jeff Dowd	....	production representative (as Jeff 'The Dude' Dowd)
Grand Mixer DXT	....	creative advisor
Mauro Fiore Jr.	....	legal advisor
Mauro Fiore Jr.	....	production attorney (as Mauro Fiore Jr., Esq.)
Eric Esiquiel Franco	....	production assistant
David Hayes	....	equipment supplier: Efilm
James Lewis	....	publicist
Joey Marcinko	....	production accountant
Eric Christopher Meza	....	key production assistant
Ernest Meza	....	legal advisor (as Ernest Meza, Esq.)
Derek Palmer	....	production assistant
Ken Pray	....	production assistant
Irwin M. Rappaport	....	production attorney
James Rizzutti	....	production assistant (as James Rizzuti)
Troy Van Valey	....	production assistant
Elizabeth Wayne	....	production assistant
Vanessa Young	....	production assistant
Dan Riley	....	legal assistant (uncredited)

Thanks
Michael Babcock	....	special thanks
Lorrie Boula	....	major thanks
DJ Cam	....	special thanks (as DJ Cam)
John Carluccio	....	major thanks
Annmarie Deringer	....	major thanks (as AnnMarie Deringer)
DJ Design	....	special thanks (as DJ Design)
Sarah Diamond	....	special thanks
DJ Disk	....	special thanks
Robert Downey Sr.	....	special thanks
Grand Mixer DXT	....	major thanks (as DXT)
Thom 'Coach' Ehle	....	special thanks (as Thom 'Coach' Ehly)
Grandmaster Flash	....	special thanks (as Grand Master Flash)
Esther Friedman	....	special thanks
Spoonie Gee	....	special thanks
Brian Gibbon	....	special thanks
Tommy Gunn	....	major thanks
Lisa M. Haugen	....	special thanks
Mark Herlihy	....	special thanks
Billy Jam	....	major thanks
John Paul Jones	....	special thanks
Josh Kouzomis	....	special thanks
Pamela Lillis	....	special thanks (as Pamela Lillig James)
Jimmy Page	....	special thanks
Christie Z. Pahon	....	major thanks
Robert Plant	....	special thanks
'Lee' George Quinones	....	special thanks (as Raymond Lee George Quinones)
Kool DJ Red Alert	....	special thanks (as Red Alert)
D. Shabazz	....	special thanks (as DJ Shabazz)
Jeffrey A. Townes	....	special thanks (as Jazzy Jeff)
T-Ray	....	special thanks

Production Companies

• Firewalks Film
• Magic Lamp
• Ridgeway Entertainment

Distributors

• Metropolitan Filmexport (France)
• Momentum Pictures
• Palm Pictures
• Warner Bros. Pictures

MPAA:

Rated R for language.

Runtime:

92 min | UK:91 min

Country:

USA

Language:

English

Color:

Color

Sound Mix:

Dolby Digital

Certification:

UK:15 | USA:R

Filming Locations:

National Orange Show Event Center, San Bernardino, California, USA

Company:

Firewalks Film

Trivia:

In the DVD commentary, director Doug Pray says that he was having a lot of difficult arranging interviews with many DJs, until DJ Qbert signed on. After Qbert's interview, DJs started calling Pray volunteering themselves.

Movie Connections:

Features The 26th Annual Grammy Awards (1984) (TV)

Soundtrack:

Melting Pot

Scratcher's Delight

Scratch is the story of scratch music's evolution from its birth in the late seventies/ early eighties to its ever growing musical status in modern day culture. Scratch tells the story of the music with the help of some of the most important scratch pioneers of the last 20 years, such as Babu (of Dilated Peoples and Beat Junkies), DJ Q-Bert and Afrika Bambaataa amongst others. These interviews give us an incite about how the music was born and its growth. We also get helpful tips on the art of scratching from Q-Bert and Mix Master Mike (from The Beastie Boys).

I am interested in a lot of genres of music, jazz, rock, indie etc. but I have never invested much interest in scratching, sure I have all the classic rap albums, Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, Eminem etc. and I have recently got into new hip-hop (a musical genre that uses DJs a lot) such as Dilated Peoples (who's performance in the film made my day), Blackalicious and Jurassic 5 (also featured), but I still had no idea of the art of scratching (or turntablism as it's referred to here), so I went into this movie no sure what to expect.

This movie is very similar to a lot of the documentaries that have been appearing in the last few years from America, such as Baadasssss Cinema (the story of blacksploitation films), The Backyard and Beyond the Mat (both about the growing popularity of wrestling). But the documentary it seemed to have the most in common with was American Pimp (the story of surprise, surprise American pimps). It was almost the same documentary, sharp editing, grainy camera work, loud soundtrack, sharp dialogue and the DJ's taking over the part of the flamboyant, over the top and eccentric pimps and matching them for madness on every level. And I was justified in my beliefs when I read in the credits that the film was produced by the two directors of American Pimp, Allen and Albert Hughes (who also directed Dead Presidents and From Hell) and later found out that the director of Scratch, Doug Pray was also the editor of American Pimp (he also edited Scratch).

It's not surprising that it is edited by the director as the editing is an important part of the movie and helps the music get noticed a lot more. He almost makes the footage like the music, rewinding it slowing it down, speeding it up and all sorts of other techniques, which although brilliant do give you a bit of a headache after an hour or so.

But apart from the moderate headache this is a very good movie that I thing will really change your opinion on scratching if you aren't a fan. And if you are a fan then this is a must see. Good direction, superb editing and an interesting subject matter, go and see it if you get the chance.

7 out of 10