ALAMANCE COUNTY, N.C. -- Officials in Gibsonville say if you don't know where you've been, you can't know where you're going. That's why they had students at Elon University create a documentary of the town's past.

“There must have been about 70 or 80 people that came through all day and they were really excited to share their stories,” said Jay McMerty, a documentary instructor at Elon University.

When students first started interviewing people in Gibsonville, there was no shortage of stories.

“They were excited, they dug out of their basements and attics and their closets for these pictures that had huge significance in historical value and they came in and they shared with us,” explained McMerty.

Officials in the town first thought of the documentary while they were trying to come up with ways to revitalize the downtown area.

“The idea was, let's do something that's a community activity and also historically so you can see how it works on a couple different levels. One would be just getting people together -- old people and young people -- (and) another is documenting the past,” added Neil Bromilow, Gibsonville planning board member.

But the project became more than a film; it was a piece of living history that Bromilow says he'll never forget.

“So here's Dr Rippy, you know he's an old man, telling me a story about when he was a young man, seeing a guy who was at Gettysburg. So I am thinking I am one step away from the guy who was at Gettysburg, so it's kind of like living history in a sense,” Bromilow pointed out.

By saving that living history, the documentary students got a hands-on look at exactly what their profession can do.

“But mostly it's for the people of Gibsonville and the history of it, and all of those scanned photos will be in their archives, and so about a year and a half worth of work by the students in the School of Communications will really be there for a long time for them,” said McMerty.

Thanks to the students work, a long time just got a little bit longer.

The students are putting the final touches on the film right now. They hope to have it completely finished by the end of the summer.