GROWING UP CHICO (Working Title)

An upcoming documentary.

Somewhere between innocence and excess, Chico didn’t just shape a generation—it left a mark you never quite outgrow.

INTRODUCTION

If you experienced your high school and/or college age years in Chico in the mid-80s to early 90s, this documentary is about you! We want your stories, your photos, your videos! We want you to share what made Chico what was for you during that time!

Growing up Chico: The weird. The wild. The wonderful.

And everything in between.

For many Gen Xers, this was a tranquil and calm time, living the small-town life, and enjoying the elements of nature Chico has to offer. For others, Generation X might have been more synonymous with Generation Excess.

For most of those who spent their formative years in Chico during this time, I imagine, the experience was somewhere in between. I moved to Chico in 1979 and moved away in 1993 after finishing up at Chico State.

The building blocks of this documentary focuses on those formative years of 14-21 (1986-1993 in my case). However, I don’t want this to just be my story. I want this to be our story. This is a story about spending your formative years in Chico (somewhere in that high school to college-aged range), with an emphasis on Generation X and those who experienced t Chico before the days of cell phones and social media.

From the music scene to the parties and riots, to the high school and college experiences, to beauty of Bidwell Park. I want the memories that made you fall in love with Chico. I want the reasons why you moved away or chose to stay. I want the stories you still tell family and friends. I want stories that bring a sorrowful tear to you when you recall them. I want stories that make you smile just to think about.

I want the memories you have that make Chico the special place it is and always will be. And, yes, the documentary will have its emphasis on Gen X, but really, I am looking for any stories and tales that are pre-2000.

How can you be in this documentary?

We are making this movie on a shoestring budget and we aren’t able to pay you for being on camera but we’re hoping you’d still be willing to share your stories. This is about the memories and stories; we’re not expecting to make money with this but, rather,  create a worthwhile movie that tells a special story.

If you have high end audio/video equipment that’s great, use that! If you don’t, most phones and earbuds will give us the quality we need (and we have a shooting guide below to help you through the process).

Still interested? Then…

This can all be done remotely with a phone and earbud. Follow the instructions below. If you live in the Southern California area and would be interested in an an person interview contact us here and we’ll see if it’s something we can arrange.

Follow the instructions below:

  1. RELEASE FORM: Fill out the Release Form here giving us permission to use your likeness and image in the documentary.
  2. SHOOTING GUIDE Read over the Shooting Guide and the Response Questions and make sure you’re interested and able. Watch the video below for additional shooting instructions. 
  3. FILM YOUR VIDEO: Shoot your video. Only respond to the provided questions (this is important for theme and continuity).
  4. UPLOAD YOUR VIDEO: Send your video to our private server here. Or, upload it to Google Drive or Dropbox and send us the link.
  5. SHARE ARCHIVAL IMAGES, VIDEO, OR PHOTOS: Scroll down to the next tab for instructions on sharing additional images or video.

Questions? Contact us here.

That’s it! We will review your footage, and if it’s right for the documentary, we’ll add it. While we can’t promise we will use everything submitted, we can promise to do our best to use what makes the most sense to tell a good story.

Do you have photos, videos, or artwork that might have a place in this documentary?

If yes, we’d love to see it. 

Growing Up Chico is being built on our memories—and we’re looking for the images and artifacts that bring them back to life. Whether it’s a snapshot from a night you barely remember or a moment you’ll never forget, these pieces help tell the story of a place and time that still lives in all of us.

You’ll need sign a release that give us the right to use the image, as well as insuring that you are the owner/creator of the image.

If you have any flyers or posters that were publicly and freely available at that time, we would love to see those too!

  1. First, sign the release form here.
  2. Next, send us what you have here.

Again, we can’t promise we will use everything submitted, but we will use what makes the most sense to tell a good story!

We’re just getting started. 

Info will be added as we move forward.

We plan on sending this documentary to the festival circuit, then releasing it on as many streaming outlets as possible once it is done.

We are not actively promoting a crowdfund campaign since the cost of production is fully covered already. However, if you are wanting to get involved and contribute to the production, funds will go primarily to increasing the production budget, festival entries, and move marketing.

THE OPTIONS

SPECIAL THANKS ($25): Contribute and get your name on the website, in the end credits, and on IMDB as a “Special Thanks.”

ASSISTANT PRODUCER ($75): The average cost to enter a film festival is about $75! Your contribution equates to a festival entry! You’ll be listed as an “Assistant Producer” on the website, in the end credits, and on IMDB.

PRODUCER ($150): Festival entries and marketing costs will be aided by your contribution. You’ll be listed as a “Producer” in the opening credits, the end credits, on the website, and on IMDB.

EXECUTIVE PRODUCER ($350): Helping us get this out there to the world! You’ll be listed as an “Executive Producer” in the opening credits (shared credit), the end credits, and on IMDB. A shared credit will have multiple executive producers at the same time in the opening credits. For an additional $150, you can have your name stand out individually announced as an “Executive Producer” in the opening credits.

PRESENTED BY ($750): Have your name or company at the start of the movie listed as “Presented by” for everyone to see! This credit may share the frame with other “Presented By” contributors. If you’re interested in solo recognition, an additional $250 gets you there! This will be in the opening credits, the end credits, on the website

Get a Perk Here!