Skate or Die

By the end of his teens, Leo Castillo has already endured more tragedy than most: witnessing an older brother killed by police, a younger brother wooed ever-closer to gang affiliation, an impoverished home-life and a father he's never known. Through this tumult, skateboarding has always provided him solace, a literal and figurative vehicle to escape the rampant violence of his southwest Chicago neighborhood.

That is until one summer day, when a bullet rips through his calf, causing nerve damage and threatening his ability to ever skate again. Faced with this reality and armed with little more than street-smarts and the support of his best friend Beaver, Leo begins to forge his own unlikely path to adulthood. From helping spearhead the construction of a neighborhood skatepark to teaching his own after-school skateboarding class at the local high school, Leo discovers ways to transform a youthful passion into a productive future. But with each step forward, it seems a past he can't quite escape keeps trying to drag him and his family back down.