To make a short film that explores the impact locally, nationally and globally of the Climate Change Crisis and the inequalities and impact on girls and women. The film will be made entirely by the girls and young women that attend the Young Women’s Film Academy and female identifying professional film maker mentors from industry. Once produced the film will be used as a tool to invite debate, inform policy, raise awareness and educate audiences and the practical actions that individuals and communities can do to tackle this global challenge to safeguard young people’s futures. The project will also include the writing of a schools outreach programme to enable us to take the film to a wider reach of young people in the local area.

What we'll deliver:

• Engage 25 young women to develop the idea
• Recruit a professional mentor crew of female industry experts
• Produce a short film
• Deliver an education outreach programme through film workshops in schools and youth projects

Why it's a great idea:

The girls and young women that we work with have requested to make a film about the impact of Climate Change currently and in the future. They tell us they are anxious about the world they live in and their future. This project will provide an opportunity to explore this topic in a safe environment, hear from specialists in their field and create a film that will share their findings and the story they want to tell, in their own words and style that can create dialogue and potential change. We believe the work that we do has a valuable place in society, as a platform for telling and sharing stories from girls and young women, and their lived experiences that challenge systems of power and oppression. We focus on life chances in relation to mental health, using data and research to underpin our projects. Recent studies from NHS Leeds, England (2023) tell us that; Just over half (54.8%) of young people aged 17 to 25 years reported being worried about the impact of climate change.

Steps to get it done:

• To produce a thought provoking educational and inspiring film
• To create an outreach film workshop programme for schools
• To create a youth steering group to develop the film ideas into production
• To deliver the outreach film workshops in at least 6 local schools

This film project will commence in Spring 2024 with development workshops, a professional film shoot in the summer holidays, post production and premiere of the film in Autumn followed by a schools outreach programme. It will provide the young women (aged 12+) that participate a valuable and FREE opportunity to learn film making skills, gaining an NCFE Level 1 in Film and Media Production. The project will also enable us to offer freelance employment to industry professionals that are recruited to mentor the girls and young women as part of the crew.