The number of violent offences involving knives has reached an all-time high in England and Wales in 2019, making the situation hard to describe as anything but an epidemic. So when London-based film director Matt Dempsey was commissioned by the Barbican to produce a short documentary on BikeStormz, a grassroots organisation tackling youth violent crime with bicycles and mass ride-outs, he was immediately gripped by the challenge.
“This story was of particular interest to me because the youth demographic featured is one that’s not generally the first that comes to mind when talking about social action projects,” explains Dempsey. “Once we began filming, it was amazing to see how normal they were. They were just a bunch of guys hanging out doing something they love, but being driven by an…
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Treadlie (Digital) - 1 Issue, #25 October 2019