Threat (2006) is an independent film about a straightedge "hardcore kid" and a hip hop revolutionary whose friendship is doomed by the intolerance of their respective street tribes.

It is an ensemble film of kids and young adults living in the early-to-mid-90s era of New York City's all-time highest ever murder rate, each of them suffering from a sense of doom brought on by dealing with HIV, racism, sexism, class struggle, and general nihilism.

[1][2][3][4] White, straight edge hardcore kid, Jim (Carlos Puga), and black, hip-hop radical, Fred (Keith Middleton), become friends living on New York's Lower East Side - both of them with the hope that their newfound brotherhood will bring solidarity to their disparate communities.

Pizzolo recruited fellow Long Island native Ben Knight who was still a teenager at the time and put him to work as a production designer for the film.

[10] Although shot without permits on a shoestring budget by a team of non-professional first-time filmmakers, some critics have compared Threat to such iconic films as The Warriors,[11][12] Do the Right Thing,[12] American History X,[11][13] Slacker,[14] Clerks,[13] Romper Stomper,[11] Kids,[15][16][13][17][12] Doom Generation,[17] and Suburbia.

"[18][19] Produced largely in the New York metalcore and hardcore punk scene, Threat features guest appearances by members of Most Precious Blood from the Trustkill Records label.

[20][1] Initially, the film was released as an underground VHS tape and toured across the US and Europe, playing at non-traditional venues such as record stores, hip hop clubs, skateparks, and music festivals.

It was here that The Daily Telegraph documented the sold-out screenings during Sundance as a cover story in its Saturday Magazine, leading the filmmakers to be invited on a European tour with the film.

[21] Years of touring culminated with an appearance at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival, where music-video distributor HIQI Media signed on to distribute the film to theaters.