New Comedy Short ‘More Flames’ by Climate Spring and Yellow Dot Studios: Introducing #FlipTheScript Talent Initiative with Phoebe Dynevor and Bella Ramsey

London, UK: Monday 29th April 2024 – A new collective of screen industry and climate organizations, including Climate Spring and Academy Award-winning Adam McKay’s Yellow Dot Studios have come together to form a new screen industry campaign to flip the script on the narrative around the climate crisis, from doom to possibility, by today launching a new short film “MORE FLAMES”.

Starring Phoebe Dynevor (Bridgerton), Bella Ramsey (Game of Thrones, The Last of Us), and Amar Chadha-Patel (Slip, Willow), More Flames is written and directed by Jack Cooper Stimpson (Extinction), and produced by Jamie Gamache (Lowkey Films) and Michelle Schechter (Vantage Point) and is a comedy-satire on the struggles of talking about the end of the world.

When the lead actor (Phoebe) of a fictional film project challenges the narrative they are committing to screen, a difficult conversation with their director (Amar) ensues. More Flames aims to inspire the industry to challenge the narratives that dominate content and remind us of the power of onscreen storytelling.

More Flames aims to inspire a conversation around the stories we tell in our film and television culture in a time of climate and nature crisis. The hope is that the film will resonate with a broad range of viewers and act as a mechanism for inspiring talent engagement in a new wave of storytelling and a sense of possibility in addressing the climate crisis. Already the initiative is building a growing support network, including supporters: Green Rider Team, Simon Amstell, Will Attenborough, Tom Burke, Charity Wakefield, Freddie Fox, Bethany Antonia, Mawaan Rizwan, Danusia Samal, Fehinti Balogun, Paapa Essiedu, Sarah Kameela Impey, Amar Chadha-Patel and Ali Dowling with more to be confirmed.

The #FlipTheScript campaign spotlights the screen industry’s power to rewrite the dominant ‘doomsday’ narrative in our culture. We know from research that the fear-based communications that are typically the way the issue is communicated are putting us all into a state of paralysis, further perpetuating the sense of inevitable doom. In order for audiences to feel empowered to act on the climate crisis, they need to be shown the real root causes of the crisis (not about making everyone feel guilty but understanding the powers that are holding us back), and most crucially the route out of the chaos. The new initiative aims to empower the leading screen talent to use their voices and platforms to tell the greatest story of our time – the story of transition away from climate chaos to regeneration.

Writer/director Jack Cooper Stimpson said: “Communicating the climate crisis is an ongoing challenge that the TV and film industries must face. As storytellers, we have a duty to acknowledge these challenging topics and to engage audiences in a meaningful and unpatronizing capacity.

That being said, it can be incredibly difficult to get that messaging right, and more often than not, our workspaces are not conducive to open discussion and collaboration. It’s clear that the film and TV industries have preoccupied themselves with providing audiences with escapism and have found it difficult to represent climate themes on-screen.

I hope that ‘More Flames’ speaks to that struggle and reminds us of the power of imaginative thinking and collaboration. We must ask difficult questions of ourselves and continue to talk about the climate and ecological crisis with empathy, humor, and truthfulness. It has been a pleasure to work with Yellow Dow and Climate Spring on this project and I’m thrilled to have the support of such an exciting cast and crew.”

Lucy Stone, Founder and Executive Director of Climate Spring said: “We are thrilled to be working with the incredible screen talent behind More Flames and to spearhead the associated #FlipTheScript campaign, spotlighting the screen industry’s power to rewrite the dominant ‘doomsday’ climate narrative. The stories we tell matter. They shape how we see ourselves, and what we collectively value, they allow us to walk in someone else’s shoes. This couldn’t be more important for the climate crisis, which requires us to imagine different ways of living. With this initiative we wish to spark a conversation about the role of film and TV storytelling in a time of climate change, and how we can successfully tell climate stories that shine a light on the pathways out of the crisis, and toward new visions of society.”

Staci Roberts-Steele, Managing Director and Producer at Yellow Dot Studios said: “We are extremely excited to partner with Climate Spring and filmmaker Jack Cooper Stimpson on a project addressing the current critical moment in the climate crisis. Yellow Dot is always ready to support the idea of going against the status quo and shaking up narratives in the climate movement. Storytelling is one of the main areas where we can view concepts from fresh angles and we are thrilled to have the opportunity to collaborate with this incredible team.”

Learn more +watch the film: www.climate-spring.org/moreflames

#FlipTheScript