A short documentary about a young man from East Baltimore who found a creative outlet in the art of yo-yo “throwing,” was selected to win the Festival Director’s Choice Award at the 2016 Telluride Mountainfilm Festival.

Throw, which was co-directed by Darren Durlach and David Larson, and produced by their Baltimore-based company, Early Light Media, was selected by festival director David Holbrooke for the award. The documentary’s subject, Coffin Nachtmahr, was also at the festival to receive the award with the filmmakers.

“It was amazing to see how well the film was received by audiences at Mountainfilm,” Larson said in a release announcing the award. “Everywhere we went in Telluride, people gravitated toward Coffin. He’s a remarkable person and an awesome performance artist. We were grateful for the opportunity to tell his story. ”

The 10-minute documentary, which was shot in prominent East Baltimore locations, such as Patterson Park and the Baltimore Cemetery, unfurls Nachtmahr’s story about finding his place through the unlikely pursuit of yo-yoing. Growing up in East Baltimore, he never felt like he fit in, until he discovered a subculture of “throwers.” Using a simple toy and doing something he loved, Nachtmahr found purpose, acceptance and community.

Throw is the first in the Invisible Thread series of documentaries that Early Light Media has planned for production. The series will explore universally relatable, people-driven stories.

Throw will premiere in Baltimore at the Patterson Theatre in the Creative Alliance on Aug. 24: click here for information on tickets and the schedule. The short documentary will also be shown at screenings across the U.S. and internationally, as part of Mountainfilm on Tour.

Photo Credit: Early Light Media