Piece by Piece

 

I had the privilege of attending the Piece by Piece premier at the Princess of Wales theatre for the Toronto International Film Festival. So far this is my favourite film I have seen at the festival. For those who do not know, Piece by Piece is a documentary telling the life story of Pharrell Williams through... lego. Going into the movie I didn’t really get the reason for the whole lego thing. I thought you know, that’s neat but like what is the point. Well it was actually a very unique format that strayed from a standard autobiography documentary. The format allowed them to explore things that you can not express through words or just live action. For example, they were able to illustrate feelings, the way music made him feel, and the different colours he associates with music.



I honestly did not know anything about Pharrell going into this movie. I just thought it looked cool. I learned so much about his life and it provided an interesting look behind the curtain of the music industry and hip hop scene at the time. The movie showcases how luck paired with hard work can pay off. Pharrell was truly in the right place, right time but he also created his own opportunities and opened his own doors to the industry. He did it his way and was so driven to be successful but not in the traditional money and fame sense. His version of success was rooted in creative freedom to make a living off of making music. We all find our path, our place, and our own passions was the message for me. 



I related to his daydreaming and how there was always other things going on in his head. I liked that even though it's an autobiography there was a very clear arch. He’s up - young and hopeful, then he is down, he’s lost and he doesn’t know what he wants to do with his life. Then he’s back up, he has found his passion and is finding this new found success. He's down again and he has lost what has made him unique, caving to these bloodsucking marketing guys basically. Then in the end, he rediscovers who he is, why he is even making music to begin with, and what was most important to him - his family and his real friends.



Throughout the documentary it explores why he is making music. Is it for the radio? For the market? Why do you care about the market? What makes you happy? What makes money? I think this is a very relevant problem today for young creatives and commodifying their passions and art. Are you doing it for you or are you doing it for a market? What was inspiring was that when Pharrell was his most authentic self he made his best music.



Pharrell attended the premier and spoke about the film before and after the showing. There was a mini protest of one person but he handled it really well. A very class, I respected the hell out of the way he dealt with the protestor, which is something I can’t say about everyone ever.



I really loved this movie and I had a great time watching the film. It is always fun to see the celebrities when they come out for premieres like this. He seemed so proud of this film and it was really cool to be a part of his story in a small way. Highly recommend when it hits theatres on October 11th!