WNTD

TEMPT / The Ebeling Group / Graffiti Research Lab - Day 3

Caskey Ebeling, Jose Cabaco and the sound guy prepping James Powderly, in the wife-beater, for a scene in the upcoming documentary.

Evan Roth and Zach Lieberman, being smart.

Zach and Theo Watson being smart on the couch.

TEMPT'S crew, ANGST and KEY, laser-tagging messages to him as he watches out his hospital window. TEMPT wrote with his eyes for the first time using ocular-recognition technology just a few days later. Great to watch this unfold. Thanks Mick and Caskey! 

- Melanie

TEMPT / The Ebeling Group / Graffiti Research Lab - Day 2

I got to take Theo and James to Home Depot and Fry's Electronics today to help them shop for supplies that will ultimately allow TEMPT to write again. Watching them do what they do was a great experience for me. It's not that it's so inspirational watching people shop at Home Depot and Fry's, it was watching these two follow their passion in an uncompromising way. It was watching them fearlessly try new options, knowing they could fail, and if they did fail, going back again and again, never giving up. 

Watching these guys run around like two little boys, pure and innocent and free, doing what they love with such unbridled enthusiasm, it made me think. Potentially, they could change the lives of thousands of people out there who are suffering, just like TEMPT. Just because they have the courage to be exactly who they are. Pretty fucking cool. Can I type that here? Hmm. 

- Melanie

TEMPT / The Ebeling Group / Graffiti Research Lab - Day 1

Our friend, Mick Ebeling, had this great idea. Mick runs TEG, a successful production company with offices all over the world. Mick heard about TEMPT, a well-known graffiti writer who, along with his crew, elevated graffiti to an art form in L.A. back in the day. TEMPT, aka Tony, was diagnosed with an awful disease called A.L.S. (Lou Gehrig's disease). He currently resides in a hospital bed with only control over his eye muscles. 

This SUCKS. 

Mick met Theo and Evan, who are two of the smartest and talented guys I've met in a long time. They, along with their other smart friends, including James Powderly of Graffiti Research Lab, are all really passionate about technology and open-source and art and communication and freedom. Mick told us about his idea, and we offered to help in any way we could. Mick's idea was this: Can these super smart inventive code-writing laser-tagging artists figure out a way for Tony, who can only move his eyeballs, draw again? The answer is yes. Yes, they did.

- Melanie