There are two kinds of people in this world: There are the ones who look at a crumbling Victorian with peeling paint and say, “What a dump,” and then there are the ones who say, with misty eyes and a hand to their heart, “How breathtaking. She has good bones.”

Lately, the former seems to be winning. Historic homes are disappearing faster than you can say “open concept,” replaced by boxy mega-mansions with three-car garages and no discernible soul. Old buildings all over town are being leveled, gutted, glossed over or ignored entirely. Even the beloved Art Deco facade of the Boulder Theater is showing its age (but is slated to get a facelift very soon).

If you’ve ever felt personally victimized by a teardown, or if the phrase “original crown molding” makes your heart flutter, there’s good news: the Saving Our History Film Festival is here to soothe your preservation-loving soul.

The festival, at 4 p.m. Sunday at the Chautauqua Auditorium, 900 Baseline Road, Boulder, is a one-day cinematic love letter to the places that make Boulder feel like home and to the people working to keep it that way. The lineup features four documentaries that explore the beauty, complexity and urgency of historic preservation.Presented in partnership by Historic Boulder Inc., Protect Our Past and the Colorado Chautauqua, the festival is a rallying cry that’s shouted through film.

The idea for the festival sparked when Inga Walker, a volunteer with Historic Boulder, noticed just how sharply films created in Cape Cod, Mass., resonated with Boulder’s own preservation struggles. The films, produced by nonprofit Protect Our Past, highlighted over-development, mega-mansions and disappearing character.

It was a different coast, but the same story.

“Inga called me with the idea of (Protect Our Past) and Historic Boulder partnering to present a film festival here,” said Melanie Julian Muckle, who helped spearhead the project from Historic Boulder’s side. “I then reached out to Chautauqua for a venue, because it seemed to me that the Chautauqua Auditorium was perfect as a living and vibrant embodiment of the values highlighted in several of the films … the ‘Life Rings’ film in particular.”

Chautauqua’s team was immediately on board. Historic Boulder contributed a locally made short film to round out the program. The festival lineup spans three states and several centuries’ worth of lived-in stories.

The program opens with “If Our Walls Could Talk: Discoveries!,” a film that peers inside the historic homes of Cape Cod and unearths the hopes, traditions and daily lives of the people who once filled them.

Next screening will be “Life Rings,” a powerful reflection on how houses are similar to storybooks, with each floorboard and window frame like a chapter in someone’s life. It also takes aim at the environmental impact of demolition, reminding viewers that every teardown comes with a hidden ecological price tag.

The third film, “One Big Home,” brings things into sharp political focus. Set on Martha’s Vineyard, it follows a local carpenter-turned-activist who grapples with his role in building trophy homes that threaten the character of the island he loves. Over 12 years, he documents his fight to implement size limits on new construction — a story that will feel strikingly familiar to Boulder residents navigating their own battles over land use and development.

Finally, there’s “Save the Face,” a 10-minute tribute to the Boulder Theater’s aging, yet iconic Art Deco facade and the efforts underway to preserve it. Produced by Historic Boulder, the film offers a hometown epilogue to a festival that explores what it means to fight for the soul of a place.

Though the films stretch from Cape Cod to Colorado, they share a common thread: memory, identity and the refusal to let the past be bulldozed.

“For the past 53 years, Historic Boulder Inc. has been the local nonprofit organization dedicated to saving historic places in and around Boulder,” said Muckle. “A key part of our mission is to preserve historic buildings through advocacy and education, demonstrating the value of old buildings and the many benefits of saving them rather than having our irreplaceable historic resources end up in landfills.”

Muckle said they partner with local, statewide and national organizations and are always seeking new ways to convey the message of preservation to the community.

“Film is a powerful medium for this message, and Protect Our Past, a kindred mission nonprofit in Massachusetts, has produced powerful films that resonate on the issues common to communities everywhere,” Muckle said.

Two post-film talkbacks will give audiences the chance to connect what they saw on screen with what’s happening on the ground in Boulder.

The first, following “If Our Walls Could Talk” and “Life Rings,” will feature local experts reflecting on everything from authenticity in preservation to the pros and cons of moving historic structures to new locations. Expect a discussion that blends emotion with logistics — and maybe a few strong testimonies about old-growth wood.

The second talkback, after “One Big Home” and “Save the Face,” ties things to Boulder County. Panelists will dive into the parallels between Martha’s Vineyard’s mega-home dilemma and Boulder’s growth challenges. They will speak to the ongoing effort to raise funds to restore the Boulder Theater’s aging exterior.

In a city changing faster than its planning code can keep up with, the Saving Our History Film Festival offers an opportunity to pause and look around. Through the lens of four very different documentaries, it asks Boulderites to consider what we’re holding onto — and what we’re letting slip away.

The festival is less about freezing time than it is about honoring the spaces that have helped shape us, while recognizing that preservation isn’t a sentimental indulgence but a civic responsibility.

Whether you’re a preservation buff or just someone who gets emotionally attached to old houses, this festival might change the way you look at your neighborhood.

The Saving Our History Film Festival takes place at 4 p.m. Sunday at the Chautauqua Auditorium, 100 Morning Glory Drive in Boulder. Doors open at 3:30 p.m. and tickets are $21.20. They can be purchased at chautauqua.com.