Ep 846: Jeremy Workman & Michael Townsend

The documentary filmmaker Jeremy Workman (“The World Before Your Feet”, “Lily Topples the World” )returns for his 7th visit to the podcast with his latest work, “Secret Mall Apartment“. In 2003, eight young Rhode Islanders created a secret apartment in a hidden space inside the Providence Place Mall and lived in it for four years, filming everything along the way.  They snuck in furniture, tapped into the mall’s electricity, and even secretly constructed a brick wall with a locking door, smuggling in over 2 tons of cinderblock.  Far more than just a wild prank, the secret apartment became a deeply meaningful place for all its inhabitants – a personal expression of defiance against local gentrification, a boundary-pushing work of public/private art, and finally, a 750 square foot space that sticks it to the man! In this episode Jeremy and I are joined by the film’s subject, artist and activist Michael Townsend.

Photo credit: David Lawlor