Exit Through the Gift Shop

Exit Through the Gift Shop is a 2010 British documentary credited to the street artist Banksy, following Thierry Guetta, a French immigrant in Los Angeles who spent years filming street artists including Shepard Fairey and Banksy, and who, after failing to assemble his own footage into a film, was persuaded by Banksy to let him take over the project. The resulting film also traces Guetta's own transformation into a street artist calling himself Mr. Brainwash, whose sudden commercial success confounds the very artists he had once filmed. The film received an Academy Award nomination for Best Documentary Feature and near universal critical acclaim, and it became known for a lasting debate over whether it is a genuine documentary or an elaborate prank by Banksy, who when asked directly if the film was real answered simply, yes.