About the Event
You Can Color Outside the Lines: The Story of the Big Boys
Directed by Joe Salinas
Written + Edited by Andrew Leeper
(2026, US, 90 min.)
Friday, October 30, 7:00 p.m.
Joe Salinas and Andrew Leeper in attendance.
Q&A after screening.
(*With a limited number of hand-screened posters available!)
Nearly a decade in the making, You Can Color Outside the Lines tells the story of the Big Boys, the wildly original Austin, TX band that fused punk, funk, skateboarding, performance art, humor, and radical self-expression into something entirely their own in the early 1980s. Long before genre-blending became fashionable, the Big Boys proved that creativity mattered more than rules—and inspired generations to create on their own terms.
More than a music documentary, You Can Color Outside the Lines is a celebration of individuality, DIY culture, skateboarding, friendship, art, and the freedom to forge your own path.
Narrated by Damian Abraham (Fucked Up and Turned Out A Punk podcast), the film features more than 40 interviews with punk, skateboarding, and creative legends including Ian MacKaye, Steve Albini, Jeff Ament, Tony Alva, Keith Morris, J Mascis, Fred Armisen, Mike Watt, John Doe, Exene Cervenka, David Yow, Glen E. Friedman, and many more.
Salinas began production in 2016, traveling thousands of miles and capturing the stories of musicians, artists, skaters, and friends whose lives were touched by the Big Boys. After years of broken-down Winnebago’s, and a global pandemic, Austin filmmaker, animator, and designer Andrew Leeper teamed up with Salinas in 2024. Together, they dug through thousands of flyers, photographs, videos, and archival treasures to uncover the story behind a band whose influence continues to resonate far beyond Texas roots.
Free and open to the public.
Sarofim Hall is located at the corner of Entrance 8 via University Blvd. and Stockton St.
Discounted parking is available in West Lot 4. $6 flat rate, credit card required.
Free and open to the public.
