Wild and Scenic Film Festival - Another Way of Living: The Story of Reston, VA
Robert Simon had a vision for American life. While 1950s post-war suburban sprawl prioritized individualism, homogeneity, and single-family homes, he dreamed of a model of living that valued community, nature, and social equity.
Interview with Director/Producer Rebekah Wingert-Jabi
Watch Another Way of Living: The Story of Reston, VA on Tubi
Congratulations! Why did you make your film?
Reston, VA was an innovative design for a New Town that prioritized community, nature, and social equity, integrating citizens across racial, economic, and religious divides. Growing up here, I lived this experience, which I grew to appreciate greatly after moving away.
When I moved back to Reston as an adult in 2009, residents were preparing for the 50th anniversary. It was the perfect chance for me to dig into the history of my community and its founder. As a filmmaker, documentary was the natural way for me to explore this history.
We were very lucky to be able to capture the (very socially active) last few years of Simon’s life. I saw how his dream for Reston was rooted in the things he cared about so deeply: people, nature, the arts. Reston is also entering into a phase of redevelopment amidst rapid population growth with the introduction of Metro, so we also wanted to create a way to remind and educate people about the incredible history of Reston and the ideals it has represented from its inception.
Imagine I’m a member of the audience. Why should I watch this film?
To get inspired about being involved with local citizen groups and have a voice in the decisions that affect how you experience your community! For planners an developers, to be encouraged about the possibilities to connect people to each other and to the natural world through the built environment.
How do personal and universal themes work in your film?
The film focuses around the central theme of community and the idea that thoughtful planning can create spaces for meaningful human interaction within our built environment. The residents take up the mantle of maintaining this ideal over time through consistent activism. This is mirrored in Simon’s personal journey, as the early social initiatives in Reston contribute to its financial struggles that see him exiled to a more isolated suburban existence, as well as his eventual return to Reston as an active community leader.
How have the script and film evolved over the course of their development and production?
The outcomes of the interviews and archival research really dictated how the story would be told. Growing up and living in Reston, we were familiar with the mythology of the “social goals”, such as the citizenry demanding a homeless shelter, or the efforts to hold developers accountable for maintaining these goals, but it took a lot of digging to get to the best representation of the truth. We also could not have predicted that we would be able to capture a verite example of resident activism to maintain affordable housing, illustrating how deeply Simon’s original ideals still impact current community philosophies.
What type of feedback have you received so far?
We have received extremely positive feedback, particularly from developers and urban planners who are excited to share in such a hopeful story about how thoughtful development can be beneficial to human relationships, as well as how our built environment can coexist with a preserved natural environment.
Has the feedback surprised or challenged your point of view?
It has surprised us how many communities are struggling with issues similar to those we have raised in our film, such as how to maintain an inclusive society, protect and sustain the natural environment, and develop communities that build interaction between people and the natural world.
What are you looking to achieve by having your film more visible on www.wearemovingstories.com?
We hope to bring awareness to the two screenings at the Wild and Scenic Film Festival as well as to bring awareness to the availability of the film for classroom and institutional discussions through our educational distributors The Video Project (videoproject.com).
Who do you need to come on board (producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, journalists) to amplify this film’s message?
University department chairs – we would like to see the film added to curricula in urban planning, architecture, and public policy programs across the globe. Community leaders – we would like to see the film used by local community groups to inspire local citizen involvement in their communities.
What type of impact and/or reception would you like this film to have?
We hope that this film influences the next generation of developers and planners to consider human connectedness, to each other and to the natural world, and encourages viewers to seek out local community engagement.
What’s a key question that will help spark a debate or begin a conversation about this film?
Is it possible to deliberately plan for a diverse, inclusive community that aims to sustain our natural environment?
What are the key creatives developing or working on now?
Rebekah Wingert-Jabi is producing and editing a feature-length documentary with Just Vision.
Interview: January 2017
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We Are Moving Stories embraces new voices in drama, documentary, animation, TV, web series and music video. If you have just made a film - we'd love to hear from you. Or if you know a filmmaker - can you recommend us? More info: Carmela
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Another Way of Living: The Story of Reston, VA
Robert Simon had a vision for American life. While 1950s post-war suburban sprawl prioritized individualism, homogeneity, and single-family homes, he dreamed of a model of living that valued community, nature, and social equity.
Length: 69 min.
Director: Rebekah Wingert-Jabi
Producer: Rebekah Wingert-Jabi, Vicky Wingert & Susan Jones
About the director and producer:
Rebekah Wingert-Jabi is an award-winning director and producer with over 14 years of experience in film and television. Her film My Neighbourhood premiered at the Tribeca Film Festival in 2012, was broadcast on Al Jazeera English, and released online by The Guardian before being recognized with the prestigious Peabody Award.
Key cast: Robert Simon, founder of Reston; Patrick Phillips, Global CEO of the Urban Land Institute.
Looking for (producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, journalists): Educational/institutional buyers
Funders: Reston Community Center, Fairfax County, Reston Association, Reston Historic Trust, The Peterson Companies, Greater Reston Chamber of Commerce, Comstock, Wetland Studies & Solutions, Reston Hospital Center, The JBG Companies, Initiative for Public Art-Reston, Cooley, LLP
Made in association with: Reston Community Center
Release date: Nov, 2015
Where will it screen in the next month?
Wild and Scenic Film Festival, Nevada City, CA
On Saturday, January 14, 2017 at 1:00pm
And Sunday, January 15, 2017 at 4:30pm