[Derek]

Hey, I tried to do my write up of him for his featured torrent on karagarga. Please tell me what you think and if there's anything else you feel should be added to remember his legacy:

Adam Cooley was my best friend. If I had to pick one person who influenced me the most in life it would be him. He was a person of great intelligence, great generosity and had an encyclopaedic knowledge of everything in the arts. He influenced not only me, but countless others to be themselves, make the type of art they want to make and not care if someone disregards it or doesn’t care for it. He was all about pushing boundaries, taking artistic risks and showcasing his unique outlook on the world through his work.

His passion for movies, music, comics, literature and everything in between was one of his biggest joys in life. He consumed everything with a ravenous appetite and was ecstatic to discuss them with anyone who would listen. He could fall asleep during a movie and still somehow tell you everything that happened and his interpretation of it. It didn’t matter if it was Freddy Got Fingered or Funeral Procession of Roses, nor did it matter if it was Mean Girls or In a Year of 13 Moons -- he saw the value and purpose of it all.

Adam was a hardworking, prolific artist. He produced more work than some artists do in twenty lifetimes, and yet his body of work still feels unfulfilled, like he still had so much more to say. He came into music not really knowing what to do but it didn’t matter, he went and picked up a $100 guitar and a dollar bin Casio keyboard and did it anyway. He made films without really knowing what to do either but still; he went and did it anyway. He used a cheap digicam and Windows Movie Maker on an old PC to put together his initial films. It didn’t matter what tools he used, his unbridled creativity took the wheel and produced works of great complexity and originality. He took cues from some of his favourite film makers; a bare emotional shot from Takeshi Kitano, a stylistic shot from Godard, and a general aesthetic not unlike his favourite director Giuseppe Andrews. But he was not a sum of his influences, he was a true original and there will never be someone like him ever again.

I hope that someone out there becomes inspired by his work through his death, much like he has inspired me and many others while he was alive and breathing. He will never be forgotten. I’ll miss you buddy.

Peace broseph,
Derek McArthur