Directed by Melanie La Rosa • Documentary • With Costa Constantinides, Juan Shannon, Thomas Meyer • 2024 • 73 minutes

"How To Power A City" is a singular film as the first clean energy documentary that puts communities at the center. It showcases local solutions in the US and Puerto Rico, while also highlighting women and people of color leading renewable energy projects.

Audiences will travel through solar and wind power projects from the urban sprawls of New York City, Atlantic City, Las Vegas, and Detroit/Highland Park to rural towns in mountainous Vermont and communities throughout Puerto Rico. Viewers will see, firsthand, the nuts and bolts of rooftop solar, wind farms, and power plants, as well as the organizing that goes into realizing these innovative projects. A range of renewable energy projects illustrates how entire utilities, large cities, and small communities realize energy transformation through locally-based projects. The array of projects spans innovations like solar-powered streetlights and emergency solar systems for hurricane resilience, to utilities leading energy transformation, and what would have been America's first offshore wind farm. Diving deeper, the film transcends mere mechanics by exploring what it means to “power a city” through leadership, innovation, public participation, and trust.

"How To Power A City" follows a solutions approach. Its unique narrative shows viewers both the positive impacts and limitations of each solution, as well as their limitations. Audiences can consider various approaches and come to their own conclusions. These snapshots from the front lines of the clean energy revolution are a solid foundation to consider what might be next for America's energy future.