“Saving the Foothills” by Cody Westheimer, taking a selfie, will debut Sunday at the Majorie Luke Theatre. The film follows the grassroots effort to save the West Mesa of the San Marcos Foothills, and features original compositions by the filmmaker.
“Saving the Foothills” by Cody Westheimer, taking a selfie, will debut Sunday at the Majorie Luke Theatre. The film follows the grassroots effort to save the West Mesa of the San Marcos Foothills, and features original compositions by the filmmaker. Credit: Cody Westheimer photo

“Saving the Foothills,” a film by local filmmaker, composer and musician Cody Westheimer, opens with a dramatic image. A man stands alone in a foggy landscape and recounts the day in 2021 when he blocked a bulldozer from digging a new road into an undeveloped patch of land in the Santa Barbara foothills.

That was a pivotal moment in the fight to save 101 acres of the West Mesa in the San Marcos Foothills from development. A grassroots coalition of people and organizations overcame not only heavy equipment, but achieved a seemingly impossible goal: to raise $18.6 million in 90 days to purchase the property.

Westheimer’s 30-minute film will debut as part of the Green Film Series at the Marjorie Luke Theatre (at Santa Barbara Junior High School) at 4 p.m. Sunday. Tickets are $10, available at the door or online by clicking here.

The event also will feature other short films, such as “Open Space,” which was shot in local open spaces such as the Douglas Family Preserve and More Mesa. As with the new film, Westheimer composed and performed the score.

Live performances will include Westheimer’s duet for shakuhachi flute performed with Bob Sedivy, augmented with video of local open spaces projected behind the artists.

Following the screening, he will join a panel for a discussion and questions from the audience. Many of the panelists also appear in his film, including nonprofit guru Geoff Green, the moderator; Nancy Weiss and Julia Laraway from the Foothills Forever leadership council; Marianne Parra from the Santa Ynez Band of Chumash Indians; Ken Owen of Channel Islands Restoration; and Scott Orlosky, who faced down the bulldozer.

Westheimer grew up in Santa Barbara but spent most of his adult life in Los Angeles as a successful composer. He estimated that he has scored more than 50 feature films and 200 hours of television, including iconic themes for coverage of the Tour de France, the National Dog Show and America’s Cup, among others. 

He returned to Santa Barbara in 2020 with his wife, Julia Newmann, also a composer, and their young daughter. 

"Saving the Foothills" focuses on the community effort in 2020 to buy the last remaining piece of undeveloped land in the San Marcos Foothills. It includes the history of the area, from Chumash days to its use as a farm and dairy, and as a filming location for early movies by local Flying A Studios.
“Saving the Foothills” focuses on the community effort in 2020 to buy the last remaining piece of undeveloped land in the San Marcos Foothills. It includes the history of the area, from Chumash days to its use as a farm and dairy, and as a filming location for early movies by local Flying A Studios. Credit: Cody Westheimer photo

An avid runner and cyclist, he said he was delighted with the proximity to open space.

“In LA, it could take 40 minutes to get to a trailhead. Here, it is three-quarters of a mile from our house to dirt,” he said, interviewing in his home studio off Foothill Road. “San Marcos Preserve is the closest trail, and I love that I can immerse myself in nature so quickly.”

Like many residents, he said he was not aware of the threat of development to the West Mesa area, assuming that the preserve encompassed all the area’s open space, until “I stumbled over protesters one day,” he recalled.

The issue was a 101-acre plot of land, the last remaining undeveloped in the San Marcos Foothills. The film traces the area’s history, from Chumash days through its use as a farm and dairy, and as a location for early films by local Flying A Studios. Archival photographs complement Westheimer’s sweeping cinematography, along with footage from TV newscasts.

The film focuses on efforts to protect the last remaining undeveloped land in the San Marcos Foothills. The developer had donated 200 acres for a preserve, completed eight luxury homes, and had plans for more when a grassroots campaign began to purchase the property. Homes completed in 2019 are located in the left and middle regions, near the top boundary.
The film focuses on efforts to protect the last remaining undeveloped land in the San Marcos Foothills. The developer had donated 200 acres for a preserve, completed eight luxury homes, and had plans for more when a grassroots campaign began to purchase the property. Homes completed in 2019 are located in the left and middle regions, near the top boundary. Credit: Channel Islands Restoration map

The land was subdivided in the 1950s and changed hands several times until 2005, when an agreement was made to allow The Chadmar Group to develop 15 luxury homes on two parcels in exchange for donating 200 acres for preservation. That land became the San Marcos Foothills Preserve, while Chadmar retained ownership of the rest. The first group of eight homes was finished in 2019.

Interviews with local activists explore why saving the remaining land became a priority, and how negotiations with Chadmar reached an impasse with the bulldozer incident. Eight people were detained by police, including Orlosky and four Chumash women who also blocked heavy equipment. Chuck Lande, Chadmar founder and CEO, appears in Zoom interviews with Westheimer.

Ultimately, Lande agreed to sell the land for $16 million and set what seemed to be an impossible 90-day deadline.

“Cody’s film captures the incredibly uplifting moment of thousands of people who helped preserve this land,” Weiss said. “It’s the legacy for those of us still involved with Foothills Forever. When a community pulls together, we can achieve great things united.” 

During the campaign, Westheimer produced four 90-second promotional pieces for social media as part of the grassroots campaign. As with his new film, he donated his expertise.

Tribal elder Ernestine Ygnacio De Soto, center, provides a Chumash blessing at the June 2021 Save San Marcos Foothills celebration that announced that the Foothills Forever coalition had raised .6 million in just 90 days, allowing them to purchase the property. This campaign is the subject of a new film titled “Saving the Foothills.” At far right is developer Chuck Lande of Chadmar Group.
Tribal elder Ernestine Ygnacio De Soto, center, provides a Chumash blessing at the June 2021 Save San Marcos Foothills celebration that announced that the Foothills Forever coalition had raised $18.6 million in just 90 days, allowing them to purchase the property. This campaign is the subject of a new film titled “Saving the Foothills.” At far right is developer Chuck Lande of Chadmar Group. Credit: Noozhawk file photo

“He gave us additional tools to push out, which beautifully captured the spirit of the land and the people who were — and still are — so passionate about this place,” Weiss added. “They contributed to the momentum and helped us achieve a full snowball effect.”

In total, 5,500 volunteers and donors joined the campaign. Though the purchase price was raised, fundraising is still underway for an endowment for continued preservation and restoration.

Working on the film, Westheimer was reminded of his involvement as a teen with his father to save Goleta’s Ellwood Mesa Open Space. 

“I’m right back in it, and it is very personal for me. It’s my form of activism; that’s how I got involved,” he said. “I wanted to save the foothills for my daughter. And just like I worked with my dad for Ellwood, she got involved.”

He noted that he is now intrigued with what he calls “impact filmmaking” and plans to do more films. Next up, he will travel to Norway to snorkel with orcas, but he still finds time to run in the San Marcos Foothills at least twice a week. 

“It feels like California might have been like if it had never been developed, but it is nestled amongst development,” Westheimer said. “It feels so peaceful yet so primal. It’s life-affirming.”