{"id":20,"date":"2025-09-24T16:30:58","date_gmt":"2025-09-24T16:30:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/freestyleacademy.rocks\/~ZoeD\/?page_id=20"},"modified":"2026-06-03T19:35:03","modified_gmt":"2026-06-03T19:35:03","slug":"documentary","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/freestyleacademy.rocks\/~ZoeD\/documentary\/","title":{"rendered":"Documentary"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Introduction<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The idea behind the Documentary Project is learning how to creatively and honestly tell the story of someone, something, or somewhere that actually matters in your community. For my project, I chose to focus on local environmental organizations and the people behind them, specifically how grassroots, community-level action is filling the gap that larger climate policy keeps leaving behind. I interviewed Gary Hedden, one of the presidents of Greentown Los Altos, and Sierra Haik, the president of the MVHS Greenteam club, and created a research article, and a magazine spread with original graphics, around their stories and what they represent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Reflection<\/h3>\n\n\n
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The Documentary project was honestly one of the most involved projects I’ve ever done. Getting to actually sit down and talk with interviewees like Gary Hedden and Sierra Haik and then turn those conversations into a real article and magazine spread was something I hadn’t done before, and it pushed me to think a lot more carefully about how you represent real people and real issues.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What I’m most proud of is how the magazine came together visually alongside the writing. Taking research I had done myself and turning it into something that actually looked and felt like a real publication was really satisfying. This topic is already something I’m incredibly passionate about, so getting to tell these stories in a deeper and more intentional way made the project feel really personal to me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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My research paper covers local environmental organizations in the Bay Area and the real impact they’re having at a community level, specifically through the work of Greentown Los Altos and the MVHS Greenteam.<\/p>\n\n\n

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