Jamaica Bay Lives

UPDATE (5/30/2014): Jamaica Bay Lives has moved on to the next phase and we are now collaborating with New York City Audubon to finish the project. This partnership wouldn't have been possible without our ioby start-up funding. 

To learn more about our project, head to www.jamaicabaylives.com and make a donation by visiting ttps://www.gifttool.com/donations/Donate?ID=1123&AID=2904.

Jamaica Bay is located in the largest city in America. Nearly 500,000 people live within a ten-minute drive. Yet most New Yorkers have never even heard of Jamaica Bay.

Why? Because for much of its history, this was a place you’d rather forget. Starting with fish-oil and horse-rendering factories that opened on Barren Island in the 19^th century, Jamaica Bay has been a place to put all things unwanted. From towering landfills to sewage treatment plants, Jamaica Bay has suffered more than its share of abuses.  

But abuse it is only part of the bay’s story. Jamaica Bay has a rich history that has never been properly celebrated, from the legendary oysters that were once the toast of New York to the fascinating and distinct communities that line its shores.

Now in the 21^st century, the bay has reached a new inflection point. A major initiative is underway to transform the bay into a “world class” harbor estuary, but what does that mean and who gets to decide its future?

“Jamaica Bay Lives” will weave together the history, the people and the issues into a rich visual fabric that explores this fascinating place. This first-ever, feature-length film on the bay will convey the complexity of its problems and the lack of easy solutions.

This film’s ultimate goal is to elevate the public dialog about Jamaica Bay, to engage more New Yorkers in the fight for a better future and to help secure the bay’s rightful place in the pantheon of great New York City places.

Our main focus at this stage of work is to hire a professional editor to package the film into a trailer that we can show to foundations, local PBS stations and the public. We have already conducted the most critical interviews and shot footage around the bay. But in order to get more people interested in the project and take it to the next level, we have to be able to demonstrate how important this film is -- and in this case, that means having a high-quality, professional movie trailer. Our producer, director, production assistant and business manager are all currently volunteering their time. For us, this is a labor of love; we have paid all of our expenses out of our own pockets. But we must hire an editor to get a high level of professionalism. We cannot accomplish this on our own and we need your help to tell Jamaica Bay's story.

Although it faces more environmental challenges than you can count, Jamaica Bay's biggest problem may not be environmental at all. Despite so many people living nearby, and the impressive work of a committed number of advocates, the biggest threat to Jamaica Bay's future is the lack of a cohesive constituency to fight for it. So many people living nearby don't know it, think it's irreparably polluted or --  worse yet -- don't even know it's there. Our documentary film will bridge that gap by educating the public about the bay and its history, engaging them in the fight for its future, and influencing decision-makers at all levels that Jamaica Bay is a place worth saving.