Handmade and human

Last night's documentary Bumblebeelovesyou, about street artist Bumblebee, was the work of videographer Julian Park. He and his friends, through their company, Handimade.org, believe that everyone has a story to tell and that sharing those stories brings us closer and tears down the walls we sometimes build. "Handmade, human stories."

Some stories start back when you least expect them. I first met Julian over a year ago, when I was taking pictures for another Downey Daily post. I was poking around the church I used to attend as a child when he saw me with my camera and struck up a conversation. He was such a friendly guy that I ended up enjoying a lunch with him and his friends.

Downey Daily wasn't particularly well-known back then, but he was already a regular follower. In fact, he told us last night that it was our posts about Bumblebee's work around town that started his interest in Bumblebee and eventually led to last night's documentary.

And so we come full circle. Last night was exciting, in many ways. A packed house was there for this screening, which was a great encouragement to Julian and his crew. The audience spanned all generations. Interest in the arts continues to grow in Downey. And Downey Daily played a small part.