There was just something about Nevada City that saved the quaint Sierra foothills town from itself that appealed to John de Graaf.
Founded by Native Americans and basically obliterated by gold miners, the picturesque town is thriving. And de Graaf, 71, having spent 40 years charting the nation’s environmental misgivings and mea culpas, couldn’t pass up a documentary-in-waiting.
“Redefining Prosperity: The Gold Rushes of Nevada City” was born with the 67-minute film screening Thursday, at 8 p.m., at the Empress Theatre in Vallejo.
Though the San Francisco native and Seattle resident doesn’t expect “Redefining Prosperity” to strike a nerve as much as his immensely popular “Affluenza” in 1997 and sequel a year later, “Escape from Affluenza,” festival screenings and theatrical releases indicate the producer maintained his lifetime mantra of creating a cinema path to unifying communities.
The documentary won the “People’s Choice Award” at the recent Wild & Scenic Film Festival at the Nevada Theatre.
The film traces Nevada City’s “back to the land movement,” with a second “gold rush” not based on greed, but on “nature, community and a sense of place.”
Again, what makes a de Graaf film is this “quality of life” subject matter.
“That’s been my obsession,” he said by phone Monday.
Though living in a material world, de Graaf is definitely not a material guy with his films slamming the absurdity of keeping up with the Joneses, not to mention the Smiths and Zuckerbergs.
“We’re too absorbed in money-making and focused on ‘stuff’ in America,” de Graaf said. “Not that it (making money) isn’t important, but we’re out of balance.”
During the last few years, de Graaf gained an appreciation not only for Nevada City’s vibrant recovery, but for its people.
“I love Nevada city as a community,” he said. “I’ve gotten to know a lot of people in the town and I’m very impressed.”
Through the years, supporters have freely offered de Graaf advise on what subjects to pursue for his documentaries — he’ll listen but understands the odds.
“In many cases, it’s just ‘This is good for 10 minutes, but not a full-length documentary,’” de Graaf said. “In many cases, there just isn’t visual stuff, which was a little bit of a problem with this (‘Redefining Prosperity’).”
The general message — a de Graaf trademark — is sustainability.
“A number of them are social issues; how we treat each other; the quality of life,” he said.
Though he’s done a film on the overworking of Americans and subsequently started a nonprofit in its wake, de Graaf said he could be just as guilty.
“Strange, I do more of it as I get older. I’m 71 and working more than ever,” he said. “Probably because I have more of a passion to get things done.”
Though believing that “people for the most part are not under any illusion,” de Graaf said he’s heard of the impact his films have.
“I enjoy it when I hear from people out of the blue, ‘Your film made me change my habits.’ Or people have cut back (on work hours) or took a different job. I hear those often,” de Graaf said. “The films make a difference and get people to think.”
What de Graaf won’t do is expect another “Affluenza,” which succeeded during a “perfect storm” of economic prosperity at the end of Bill Clinton’s second term.
“I think it just came along at the right time,” de Graaf said. “I realize it was my Andy Warhol 15 minutes of fame.”
Wherever the level of success of his documentaries, “filming certainly makes me happy,” de Graaf said. “I’ll go to a theater and people enjoy it or go to a (college) class and people are talking about it. They’re engaged in conversation. That makes me happy.”
This whole appreciation for nature jettisons de Graaf to backpacking as a 10 year old with his father at Yosemite.
“That changed everything,” he said. “You can learn to be happy without a lot of stuff.”
What de Graaf is extremely thrilled about is crusading for a viable cause. He’s started several nonprofits, including Take Back Your Time — “Improving lives by eliminating the epidemic of overwork.”
“Those things keep me hopping,” he said, excited about appearing at the Empress to answer questions after the documentary.
“I’m impressed by Vallejo,” de Graaf said, praising Empress film coordinator Steve Dunsky of the U.S. Forest Service.
“Steve and others are trying to find that good balance,” de Graaf said. “I think Vallejo is going to be a model for larger communities. The city has many assets. I find it a pretty neat place.”
Screening of “Redefining Prosperity: The Gold Rushes of Nevada City,” preceded by a short film about Alaska, 7 p.m., Empress Theatre, $10 general, free to Film Club members, 330 Virginia St., Vallejo, empresstheatre.org.
