Pitch
A compelling locally made drama featuring a protagonist who competantly deals with extreme weather events
Description
Summary
I propose that a script (and demonstration series) is written for a compelling series that deals with preparation for and handling of extreme weather events linked to climate change over one very bad year (four seasons) from a climate perspective. The difference between this and a normal drama would be that how the main characters acted would be backed up by science based and therefore instructional to the local community. A generic script could be written for say a 4-8 episode drama (where each episode took place during a particular season of the year) ticking off all the likely challenges the climate change will bring to a given community but the script could be tailored by local film makers to suit a local audience, ideally the drama would include local actors and/or film stars.
The hero of the story would competently prepare his community for disasters and calmly lead the community during the disaster being there to pickup the pieces after the disaster had passed. If the show proved popular there could be spin off episodes where the hero explained in greater detail how people can improve their resilience to climate change.
The story would need to be compelling and include the physical an emotional journey of the characters, human drama, love and loss in a culturally appropriate way, it is not good enough to impose a story that fact based and not tailored to a local audience.
The hero be resourceful a local MacGyver who understand how to best deploy locally available resources to meet the challenge of climate change but also what must be obtained and brought into the community to improve resilience and why, showing how best to spend community resources.
Books and information pamphlets could be generated that reference the film providing another medium to get the message of climate resilience across.
Local governments and NGOs could use the drama series as a shorthand to explain what they are doing and why when it comes to climate resilience.
What actions do you propose?
The actions I propose are:
- The writing of the generic script of a climate change themed drama that can be adapted to a local audience. With the possibility of scripts being written for spin-off documentaries or other short information pieces related to the series.
- NGOs and Governments organising for the script to be made into a drama by local film makers and prompting the film to the target community
- NGOs working with the cast to provide a way the locals can have their questions answered regarding particular elements of the drama
Who will take these actions?
I propose a generic script is written by the film makers in collaboration with climate scientist, NGOs and emergency responders etc that can be adapted by local film makers into a compelling climate change themed drama for local consumption. NGOs governments etc would then work with local film makers to fund and promote the drama series and any spin off/information campaigns etc.
-Generic script and spin off documentaries: Experienced film makers and writers, climate scientists, NGOs or Emergency responders specialising in disaster recovery.
-Local production: Local film film makers and actors liaising with expert support.
-Ongoing information and support: NGOs, governments and local actors with assistance from both local and overseas expertise.
Where will these actions be taken?
The generic script can be written anywhere. The local adaptation of the film will be made as local as possible to the target community. Providing the community with a way to ask questions about aspects of the drama would ideally be local i.e. a community Q and A with the cast or NGO.
Some possible locations for the locally made drama include:
India - In particular areas that have a local film scene such as Tamil Nadu (Tollywood) and Mumbai (Bollywood)
Pakistan - Lahore (Lollywood).
Nigeria - Lagos (Nollywood)
Each of these places is vulnerable to the impacts of climate change and has local film and environmental expertise that could be moblised for this project.
What are other key benefits?
The series could help communities anticipate climate hazards via the narrative. An example is something along the lines of: The main character is watching a news report or a documentary on the predicted local impacts of climate change on TV with a group of friends, a debate ensues which fleshes out what potential hazards are and why this is important for the local community. The documentary being discussed could be made available for the audience (done as a stand alone film project) that they themselves can watch. Only the key points of the documentary would be discussed in the series however.
The main benefit to this project would be behavior change that could improve the local conversation about climate change and influence the behavior and actions of local communities such that they are better prepared for disasters, that is, they can anticipate and correctly respond to climate hazards.
What are the proposal’s costs?
The proposals costs are likely to be minimal assuming the generic script could be written on a volunteer basis and the film itself could be produced by students as a low budget project. Assistance could be provided to assist the local film makers with the quality of their film.
The cost of the film will depend on whether or not actors etc are prepared to work pro-bono many would be as global warming is an issue that even highly paid celebrities care about i.e. Leonardo Dicapprio. The film the "Blair Witch Project" was made for $60,000 US (Wikipedia, 2017) and was a major hit, the average Hindi movie is made for US $2 Million (Rediff Movies, 2010).
I anticipate the costs for the film at
-$50,000 for the generic script and support for local film producers i.e. specific training, being available to answer specific questions, stock footage for extreme weather, explanatory spin off documentaries.
-$100,000 budget for local adaptations, marketing etc (marketing could be achieved most effectively if local stars promoted the films).
-A further $100,000 dollars if a demonstration 6 episode series is made.
The series could be released on social media, Youtube etc to cut costs.
Time line
The film could be made and distributed within the short term
-6 months to write the script and supporting material, supporting documentaries
-12 months to film the local 6 episode series and supporting documentaries
-2 month marketing campaign on social media, TV etc
-6 months to film spin off documentaries specials etc.
The local film makers could be set up with mentors in the local film industry (or overseas) and Climate NGOs to provide ongoing direction, monitoring and support to ensure the project was completed on time and on budget. Direction could be provided to ensure adequate footage was captured for the editing process.
Further assistance could be provided in production to ensure experienced editors either (local or overseas) were available to ensure the quality of the final product.
Related proposals
None that i am aware of
References
Wikipedia 2017, Blair Witch Project, available:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Blair_Witch_Project
Rediff Movies 2010, Marathi films fail to click 2010, available:http://movies.rediff.com/report/2010/aug/27/marathi-films-fail-to-click.htm
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