Let's talk about climate injustice through film art

An improvised film hackathon is a creative workshop where participants create film clips in a short time based on a given topic - this academic year, the topic is climate injustice. Compared to regular film processes, quick decisions, creativity and teamwork are important in this format. In the workshop, participants will gain an overview of the nature of climate change and its impact on different target groups (people, animals and the environment itself). Participants will write a short script, create a visual story and film their idea within a limited time, while learning both film technique and how to deal with environmental issues in a visual form. The workshop ends with a joint viewing of short films, accompanied by a lot of fun and laughter. Filmmaking gives young people the opportunity to express their ideas and thoughts creatively. 

Addressing climate justice issues in films helps young people not only understand environmental problems, but also develop empathy, critical thinking and creativity, because they often have to embody the characters they have created themselves and look at the problem through someone else's eyes. 

The format of the Climate Justice Film Hackathon developed by the Peipsi Cooperation Center has been tested and implemented in five schools to date. Based on the feedback, most participants rated the event positively. 64% considered it a very good or good experience, while the rest rated it an average experience. 58% of participants also confirmed that they definitely gained new knowledge and inspiration. Teamwork was generally excellent for 85% of respondents, but there were also groups where there were participants who were not interested in the topic and interfered with the work, which happens with any school project that involves the entire class. Overall, the hackathon left a positive impression and participants expressed their desire to delve even deeper into the coverage of both film and environmental issues. 

The project was supported by ESDTEV - Estonian Centre for International Development Cooperation. More information about the project and materials can be found HERE.