Climate Spring wraps up its first-ever Changing Climate Narratives storytelling course

Earlier this month, Climate Spring wrapped up its first-ever Changing Climate Narratives course, an eight-week programme to empower script consultants, script editors and development executives to integrate impactful climate storytelling into their film and TV projects.

In collaboration with Torino FilmLab, the course was designed to tackle one of the most urgent challenges of our time: how to portray the climate crisis in ways that inspire change without resorting to dystopia, clichés or simplistic solutions.

Participants were inspired by thought-provoking sessions with leading experts, including Kate Raworth, Immandeep Kaur, Caroline Hickman, Keggie Carew, Maryam Pasha, Mick Ford, Rob Hopkins and more. One participant noted: “It was truly eye-opening to hear from such diverse and brilliant voices. The case studies and conversations helped me visualise how we can practically realise the future we’re striving for as filmmakers.”

The course went beyond simply offering knowledge and insights; it provided a hands-on approach to rethinking narratives, with sessions focused on film and TV case studies and crafting sophisticated, authentic stories that avoid the pitfalls of dystopian or overly optimistic tropes. The course not only equipped participants with practical skills but also built a community of like-minded professionals eager to rewrite the climate narrative.

Testimonials:

"We had an incredible lineup of diverse guests and brilliant voices who all shared insightful and powerful learnings. That, alongside lots of thought-provoking TV and film case studies and conversations around them too, all helped me visualise and practically realise the future we’re collectively striving for. It's all starting to feel tangible - in seeing how we, as filmmakers and TV developers, can collaborate to make a real impact. I’m feeling much more hopeful about applying what I’ve learned since doing the course. It's also great that we have built a community amongst ourselves where we can stay connected and catch up and share more about it!" - Kiren Dhadwal, Story Producer

"It takes a village to write a climate story! As filmmakers, we've mastered the craft of telling stories - befriending a whale, a superhero saving the world, conquering new planets ... but reflecting on a monumental challenge like climate change? That’s still a struggle. Why is it so hard to tell a climate story? What options are there besides utopias and dystopias? How do we portray hope without making people complacent? And how can we avoid preaching? The list of difficult questions goes on. The film industry has made great progress, particularly in Green Production (plant-based menus, less travel, reusing materials, sharing economy for production, etc.), but on the content and storytelling side, there's still so much to learn! Beyond the stories themselves, we need to reflect on HOW we tell them - their structure, the way characters interact, our relationship with the planet and ourselves, and how we incorporate future-proof values and desires, to name a few. It’s been a real pleasure to take part in the first edition of an eight-week programme Climate Narratives course organised by Climate Spring and TorinoFilmLab! Along with the growing interest in climate narratives, the community of filmmakers invested in this challenge is also growing. I’m really grateful and excited to be part of such a community because it’s challenging, fascinating, frightening, and so many other things to write stories that matter! Thank you for this great initiative!" - Eva Čeh, Storyteller, Script Writer & Director

Image credit: Eva Čeh

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