If you enjoy watching creativity at work on shows like Project Runway or doing your own art or craft, Beautiful Losers is the movie for you here at this year’s SXSW. Combining animation, fantastic score and subjects who live to create, the film is a kind of roadmap for following your own bliss.

Perhaps you are familiar with one or more of these artists: Shepard Fairey, Margaret Kilgallen, Mike Mills, Barry McGee, Jo Jackson, Chris Johanson, Stephen Powers, Geoff McFetridge, Thomas Campbell, Ed Templeton and Harmony Korine. I had no idea who these people were, but as with any movie, I give myself over to the director and allow them to take me along on an exploration. We come to learn, if, like me, you didn’t already know, that these are significant and influential contemporary artists who have had major impact on the images that we look at every day.

I’m not an art aficionado though, so diving into the deep end of an art discussion would be lost on me and doesn’t happen here. Beautiful Losers explores creativity. As teenagers who were into punk, skateboarding and hip hop, they created posters and murals, decorated their skateboards and held groups shows that were really more like parties for their extended group of friends. Over time, their work matured and the market took notice, yet these artists somehow remember how and why they do what they do; they take their friendships seriously; and they appear to remain grounded in independence to do the kind of work that is important to them.

Besides having great subjects, the film is superbly crafted. Using all the tools in the documentary filmmakers toolbox, director Aaron Rose uses his own art to weave together all of the threads of his subject’s stories into a very fine film. One more screening on Thursday, 4 PM at the Alamo Ritz.

Karina Longworth’s podcast with director Aaron Rose