Concerned Citizen

Artist Statement

In our reading for this week, activist Arlene Goldberg speaks of an idea called “storyland,” where she asserts the power of storytelling in shifting societal ideologies, beliefs, and the status quo. In Goldberg’s “storyland,” “we understand that the resilience that sustains communities in times of crisis is rooted in culture, in the stories of survival and social imagination that inspire people to a sense of hope and possibility even in dark times.” We as a team likewise were able observe our BYU culture and identify a director and group actively serving their fellowmen. However, our experience making this documentary is not limited to the time stamps, but rather created another story in which we can share with others and inspire.

At the start of this project, we realized how out-of-touch we were in terms of social change. Although each of us do small acts of service that are often ignored, we wanted to find someone who was a leader and organizer, as we felt society needs more individuals that are willing to raise up, commit, and guide others in service. For the first time in our BYU careers, we walked into the Y-Serve office in the Wilkenson and followed a trail of breadcrumbs to a vacant lot in the middle of Heber.

That cold Saturday morning, we came to know Johny Jacobs, director of BYU’s volunteer efforts for Rural Housing Development (RHD). RHD is a government-sponsored agency that helps homeless families secure financing for housing materials and, alongside them, help build their home. Johny became involved in the effort more than a year ago and volunteered to raise awareness and coordinate the efforts of BYU students in helping housing development. Johny goes up to work on houses every Saturday from 8 am – 12pm, usually with a different group every week as he recruits new volunteers. We came to see firsthand that, even in the Happy Valley, USA, there are those that are unable to have the pride of home ownership. Rather than ignore that homelessness is a real issue, which often can be the case in a cultural as prosperous as ours, Johny sacrifices his time to improve the lives of the poor.

In terms of our documentary, we wanted to emphasize the transformative processes occurring while Johny answered basic “what, why, and how” questions to give the sense of activity and progress. In a symbolic way, the processes that were transforming raw materials into a home were also transforming Johny and the volunteers’ personally. We sought inspiration from process piece documentaries, utilizing in particular the editing techniques seen in Smith Journal’s The Smokehouse. Much like that film, our short documentary juxtaposed actions with dialogue so there existed a sense of synergy between what was said the interview and building process. It allowed Johny’s words to have greater power, as we see an active application of his ideals towards a productive solution rather than some abstract rhetoric.

We do not know how many people will be inspired (or even watch) our short documentary. Even if it is ignored, we as a team have lived a story that is personally inspiring and motivates us to participate more actively in finding solutions to social issues.

Information about Rural Housing Development

https://yserve.byu.edu/programs/rural-housing-development