What We Do Is Secret (film)

What We Do Is Secret (film)

What We Do Is Secret is a 2007 American biographical film about Darby Crash, singer of the late-1970s Los Angeles punk rock band the Germs. Rodger Grossman directed the film and wrote the screenplay, based on a story he had written with Michelle Baer Ghaffari, a friend of Crash's and co-producer of the film. Shane West stars as Crash, while Rick Gonzalez, Bijou Phillips, and Noah Segan respectively portray Germs members Pat Smear, Lorna Doom, and Don Bolles.

The film follows the formation and career of the Germs, focusing on Crash's mysterious "five-year plan", his homosexual relationship with Rob Henley (played by Ashton Holmes), and his experimentation with heroin, culminating in his December 1980 suicide. The film is titled after the lead track on the Germs' (GI) album.

There was almost a decade of production of the film, considering how it was beset by changes in production staff and adjustments in casting. Grossman stated that the extended process was "actually a blessing in disguise"; it provided him the chance to conduct “thousands of hours of original interviews,” and the time to come across the film’s lead, Shane West, an actor he feels “did a masterful job capturing Crash on film.” The film was produced by Rhino Films, Picture Machine, Red Rover Films and King Records as well as being independently produced and financed. The film premiered at the Los Angeles Film Festival on June 23, 2007, and is being distributed theatrically and on video by Peace Arch Entertainment beginning August 2008.