Rewilding
REWILDING follows Anthony Dejesus, a 27-year-old budding artist and former inmate of Rikers Island, as he leaves New York City for the first time with Jesse Spiegel and Vitek Linhart, two avid rock climbers determined to create a program to take formerly incarcerated men into the wild. Little did they know, their adventure would become a dramatic illustration of the conflicts surrounding race and privilege gripping our nation today.
Interview with Actor/Director/Producer Jesse Spiegel
Congratulations! Why did you make your film?
The path that led me to the Rewilding program and the creation of this film began with my own troubled youth. My first of many arrests was at the age of 15. The experiences I had in those court rooms had a deep impact on me. I saw firsthand how obvious conscious bias and unequal legal representation led to Black men and boys being treated and sentenced more severely than their white counterparts for similar charges. For me, even as a teenager, this was deeply disturbing and a call to action.
During this period in my life, I was privileged enough to begin attending a yearly climbing camp in Colorado and I fell in love with exploration and adventure. I knew then that climbing was my calling; it helped me believe in myself and find a new path. While adventures in nature are a powerful tool for self-transformation, unfortunately, not everyone has access to their immense benefits. This led me, along with my Czech best friend and fellow outdoorsman, Vitek Linhart, to found a peer-to-peer program called Rewilding Adventures. Rewilding offers individuals who have been impacted by the criminal justice system opportunities to access nature and participate in transformational wilderness adventures.
This was the inspiration for the creation of the film Rewilding. I wanted to shine a light on the power of adventures in the wild alongside the blatant racial inequity of our criminal justice system, forcing viewers to look beyond their own worldview and see the reality of this broken system through the eyes of real people.
Imagine I’m a member of the audience. Why should I watch this film?
Rewilding offers something novel to the conversation about criminal injustice, race and privilege. We see characters change from within, through coming together across racial and socioeconomic lines, not with the goal to change each other into one's idea of who they think the other should be, but to share experiences and to actually see each other, regardless of the world each party comes from. It inspires the viewer to see the person behind the statistic and witness the transformative power of sharing experiences in the outdoors.
How do personal and universal themes work in your film?
The characters in the film are on a journey of self-discovery, whether they realize it in the beginning or not. As a whole, the film explores the concept of shared humanity and coming together past differences. It suggests that we all have something wild within us, something that remains untouched and untainted by societal influences that allows us to connect and come to a place of greater understanding.
How have the script and film evolved over the course of their development?
At the onset of this project, we didn’t fully realize the film would become a real life conversation about race and privilege. The fact is, when you work with people impacted by the criminal justice system, you will inevitably be working with people of color because the criminal justice system in the US is so racially slanted. We ended up with a film with far more depth than we had originally foreseen because our characters go through genuine transformation landing in a place of greater connection and understanding.
What type of feedback have you received so far?
The feedback we’ve received has been wholly positive. We most often hear from viewers that they found the film to be very emotional and found themselves teary at various points in the film. Our viewers have also said that the film takes on tough subjects with a willingness to be imperfect, to stumble through honestly and openly, and, in doing so, is a compelling and intriguing display of vulnerability.
Has the feedback surprised or challenged your point of view?
We have been working on this film for a long time and through that process have received a lot of feedback about the film, its themes and messages. The result of this process is that we have not been surprised by the response.
What are you looking to achieve by having your film more visible on www.wearemovingstories.com?
We are looking to get our film in front of film festival directors, distributors and buyers as well as parties interested in supporting our efforts in the production of a spin-off series of the film and We Are Moving Stories seems like an excellent place to do so.
Who do you need to come on board (producers, sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, journalists) to amplify this film’s message?
Sales agents, buyers, distributors, film festival directors, and journalists.
What type of impact and/or reception would you like this film to have?
Our hope is that this film will be a veritable contribution to the conversation around race and privilege. We want to encourage viewers to explore these concepts within the context of their lives.
What’s a key question that will help spark a debate or begin a conversation about this film?
Should two white mountain climbers lead outdoor adventures for people of color?
What other projects are the key creatives developing or working on now?
Jesse Spiegel & Doug Metzger started with this film and will continue with a spin-off series in which men from diverse backgrounds join us on epic adventures that are simultaneously playful and piercing. At a time when a light is being shone on toxic masculinity and our culture's habit of teaching men to suppress emotions, we use the rugged, masculine backdrop of adventure to turn the masculine stereotype on its head, infusing it with what it lacks: vulnerability, authenticity, and open, honest communication.
Interview: July 2022
We Are Moving Stories embraces new voices in drama, documentary, animation, TV, web series, music video, women's films, LGBTQIA+, POC, First Nations, scifi, supernatural, horror, world cinema. 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
Rewilding
Length:
Director
Jesse Spiegel is a filmmaker, adventurer and entrepreneur. He is focused on producing nonfiction content where epic adventures act as the backdrop for telling stories about people, trauma, bonding and vulnerability.
Producer
Doug Metzger has been involved in the production of feature films and television for 37 years and was honored with the Outstanding Directorial Achievement Award from the Directors Guild of America for his work as 1st AD on DANCES WITH WOLVES. Some of the other films he has worked on include: THE ITALIAN JOB; WONDER BOYS; ASPEN EXTREME; WITHOUT A PADDLE; LEAP OF FAITH; CITY SLICKERS; UNDER SIEGE II; and WHITE FANG.
Key cast:
Anthony DeJesus (Lead Subject), Jesse Spiegel (Subject), Vitek Linhart (Subject)
Looking for:
sales agents, distributors, film festival directors, journalists, buyers
Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/rewildingthefilm
Instagram:
https://www.instagram.com/rewildingedu/
Hashtags used:
#rewildingthefilm
More info: