Cli-Fi: A new Genre
Cli-Fi has only come into existence in the last 40 years, but in the last 15 years it has really exploded. There are more and more films depicting dire environment and climate scenarios in the future.
From this paper the main thing I found is that keeping believability and relatability in focus is very important, and if you want the film to raise awareness in a positive way, avoid being too dystopian or apocalyptic and provide solutions otherwise it becomes too numbing.
These are some notes based on:
This paper looks at the rise in popularity of Cli-Fi films. Like many papers it considers The Day After Tomorrow as being one of the pivotal films in the genre, being the most successful of any Cli-Fi film. Although it was successful there is much debate about it's ability to convey a clear message, some believing that it shows a liberal positive view of rebalancing the ecosystem in favour of animals and away from humans.
-Surveys found that most people who viewed the film The Day After Tomorrow in America had greater concern about climate and extreme weather events which influenced voting. But less so in the UK.
-Michael Moliter, the scientist who was most closely consulted with on The Day After Tomorrow was absolutely sure that the work he did on the film would do the most he had ever done to promote the impacts of climate change.
-Others believe The Day After Tomorrow turns climate change into fiction making it unrelatable for audiences.
All the research from The Day After Tomorrow led to a creation of a set of climate change communication guidelines. (Not written in context of films)
Here's a summary -
1. You must understand how the audience feels and understands the world. Adjust the messages accordingly. Understand that people are different so will engage differently but everyone wants to be 'good'.
2. Use groups and unification to align a message with people.
3. Show the benefits of making a change and taking action. Avoid a response that the audience will not find plausible for them.
4. Make it relatable. Familiar places or cities. Make the problems able to be fixed to prevent helplessness.
5. Connect Climate change to the audiences priorities and issues.
6. Use images and storytelling rather than numbers and graphs.
7. Know your audiences understanding of science and cater to that level.
8. Accept there is unknowns but focus on the facts.
9. Tread lightly with skeptics and accept doubt, don't get frustrated or impatient.
10. Give easy and plausible goals for people to reach to help fight climate change.
All of the notable Cli-Fi films were categorized into what the have in them. The most popular aspects were: sceintist as the main character (55%), woman as authoritative figure (45%), extreme weather events (40%), Classified as Disaster Films (34%).
-As extreme weather events become more and more common especially in the US, the plausibility of these disaster films become more and more likely so they have started to connect with audiences about the climate topic.
-Very few Cli-Films offered actualy solutions to the problems, leaving the audience feeling lost and confused about a big issue.
-Dystopic and apocalyptic films are generally so far away from the audiences reality that they cannot connect to them. In these films the scientists and the hope that comes with them is normally long gone and the film is about survival rather than climate change solutions. Although these maybe enjoyable to watch they do not communicate the problem in an approachable manner.
-All though there have been many Cli-Fi films many of the most popular ones are not directly supportive of action against climate change and some suggest world the are the result of climate change but do not actually say they are. It is hard to tell what the future holds for the Cli-Fi genre, as themes are still popular but the direct communication with the audience about climate change ans what solutions can be used is dwindling.
From this paper the main thing I found is that keeping believability and relatability in focus is very important, and if you want the film to raise awareness in a positive way, avoid being too dystopian or apocalyptic and provide solutions otherwise it becomes too numbing.
These are some notes based on:
Cli-fi on the screen(s): patterns in the representations of climate change in fictional films by Michael Svoboda
This paper looks at the rise in popularity of Cli-Fi films. Like many papers it considers The Day After Tomorrow as being one of the pivotal films in the genre, being the most successful of any Cli-Fi film. Although it was successful there is much debate about it's ability to convey a clear message, some believing that it shows a liberal positive view of rebalancing the ecosystem in favour of animals and away from humans.
-Surveys found that most people who viewed the film The Day After Tomorrow in America had greater concern about climate and extreme weather events which influenced voting. But less so in the UK.
-Michael Moliter, the scientist who was most closely consulted with on The Day After Tomorrow was absolutely sure that the work he did on the film would do the most he had ever done to promote the impacts of climate change.
-Others believe The Day After Tomorrow turns climate change into fiction making it unrelatable for audiences.
All the research from The Day After Tomorrow led to a creation of a set of climate change communication guidelines. (Not written in context of films)
Here's a summary -
1. You must understand how the audience feels and understands the world. Adjust the messages accordingly. Understand that people are different so will engage differently but everyone wants to be 'good'.
2. Use groups and unification to align a message with people.
3. Show the benefits of making a change and taking action. Avoid a response that the audience will not find plausible for them.
4. Make it relatable. Familiar places or cities. Make the problems able to be fixed to prevent helplessness.
5. Connect Climate change to the audiences priorities and issues.
6. Use images and storytelling rather than numbers and graphs.
7. Know your audiences understanding of science and cater to that level.
8. Accept there is unknowns but focus on the facts.
9. Tread lightly with skeptics and accept doubt, don't get frustrated or impatient.
10. Give easy and plausible goals for people to reach to help fight climate change.
All of the notable Cli-Fi films were categorized into what the have in them. The most popular aspects were: sceintist as the main character (55%), woman as authoritative figure (45%), extreme weather events (40%), Classified as Disaster Films (34%).
-As extreme weather events become more and more common especially in the US, the plausibility of these disaster films become more and more likely so they have started to connect with audiences about the climate topic.
-Very few Cli-Films offered actualy solutions to the problems, leaving the audience feeling lost and confused about a big issue.
-Dystopic and apocalyptic films are generally so far away from the audiences reality that they cannot connect to them. In these films the scientists and the hope that comes with them is normally long gone and the film is about survival rather than climate change solutions. Although these maybe enjoyable to watch they do not communicate the problem in an approachable manner.
-All though there have been many Cli-Fi films many of the most popular ones are not directly supportive of action against climate change and some suggest world the are the result of climate change but do not actually say they are. It is hard to tell what the future holds for the Cli-Fi genre, as themes are still popular but the direct communication with the audience about climate change ans what solutions can be used is dwindling.
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