The fund will provide early-stage development cash for production companies and creators, with a particular interest in partnerships between experienced producers and writing talent from historically marginalised backgrounds. The two companies have said the aim is to support stories that go beyond testimonial narratives, presenting displaced and migrant people with agency and shifting the narrative away from victimhood and passive representation.
We’re looking for projects across genres, sci-fi, romance, thrillers, comedies that imagine new futures shaped by climate and movement.
The fund will prioritise scripted, genre-based storytelling, from romantic comedies to science fiction, thrillers, comedy, and fantasy. The fund will also support projects that explore the lived experience of second-generation individuals, such as the children of refugees or migrants.
“People who bring lived experience of displacement to the table do not only have ‘heart-breaking’ tales to tell,” Ornella Mutoni of Counterpoints Arts said in a statement. “With this in mind, we want to support the development of a spectrum of stories at the intersection of refugee and migrant experiences and climate, reflecting the full complexities of modern life.”
This is the first collaboration between the two organisations, and interested companies and creators should get in touch with Climate Spring at enquiries@climate-spring.org.
IMAGE: Matar, by Hassan Akkad, a film made using Counterpoints Arts PopChange consultancy