The Climate Canary

THREE WOMEN. FOUR DECADES. ONE CONTINENT.

THE CLIMATE CANARY is a 90 minute feature documentary about three remarkable women and their scientific work in Antarctica, due for release in 2024, and we need your help!  

Help us get into the edit suite and finish a rough cut so we can take this film to the world!

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THE STORY 

THE CLIMATE CANARY follows an unusual “family tree”; three remarkable women across four decades have moved from predicting climate change to experiencing climate change. 

Antarctic oceanographer Dr Natalie Robinson, 44, leads a team of ten scientists on an epic world-first research trip to McMurdo Sound. Jacqui Stuart, 31, a biologist and self-confessed algae-geek, is on her first trip to Antarctica. Emeritus Professor Patricia Langhorne, 68, mentors them both from New Zealand, after more than 25 deployments to the Poles. 

Camped out on the sea ice for 5 weeks, Natalie, Jacqui and the team battle brutal weather, gear failure, relentless snow drifts, and fatigue. With equipment and people pushed to their limits in the extreme cold, the team finally capture what they came for - samples of stunning fragile platelet ice crystals and the incredible ecosystem living within it. In a jaw-dropping landscape with seals, penguins and underwater creatures beyond our imagination, our science team thrive.

Weaving the story of Natalie and Jacqui’s expedition with Pat’s fabulous archive footage, they also share their very personal journeys in life. The film asks if meaningful social change is possible and how these women tenaciously hold onto hope. For scientists on the frontline of climate change, their surprisingly refreshing attitudes are both raw and heartening. 

THE CLIMATE CANARY is a character-driven film, combining spectacular wildlife and breath-taking scenery from the ends of the Earth, tackling climate change with agency, wit and, ironically, a whole lot of warmth.

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WHAT WE NEED

We are raising $50,000 to spend the weeks in the edit suite we need to get the film to a full rough cut, so we can take it to the international market place. 

This total will cover our editor, our suite hire, and our basic costs to achieve a full cut from the amazing footage we have captured ourselves and our access to wonderful archives. 

We are delighted to announce that Earth Sea Sky and the wonderful team at this local New Zealand company are matching donations up to $10,000! Like us, Earth Sea Sky are purpose driven, and strive to be the best, not the biggest. We literally lived in their gear while in Antarctica, and they provide the Extreme Cold Weather clothing for Antarctica NZ, RNZAF, RNZN, NIWA and the Australian Antarctica Division. We are very grateful for their support - thank you!

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THE JOURNEY SO FAR

We have a lot of interest globally and some amazing people on board supporting this project!  Check out our crew and supporters list below.

This film is getting exciting attention already - we’ve been part of DocEdge’s DocPitch and Script to Screen’s FilmUp programme, and we were one of 8 films selected to be part of Picture 2.0 with Share The Knowledge and Compton School (Sydney) here in Aotearoa New Zealand.  

This year we were one of 7 films selected to pitch at AIDC (the Australian International Documentary Conference) in the Central Showcase, and we garnered a lot of interest - distributors, agents and broadcasters love the trailer, and then ask to see the rough cut!  We can’t wait to show them - and we need your help to get to that stage.

So far we have raised over $240,000 (cash and in-kind) which has got us to where we are now and we are incredibly grateful for this support. We have filmed in four cities and Antarctica and we are ready to craft the film together.

Supporters so far include:

• Antarctica New Zealand
• NIWA
• The Christchurch Antarctic Office
• The International Antarctic Centre
• This project has been developed with funding from the New Zealand Film Commission. 

HOW YOU CAN HELP

By contributing to our BOOSTED campaign you are helping us get there!  Thank you so much!!

Boosted is an “All or Nothing” campaign - If we don't make our target we don't receive any of the funds. So every donation, no matter what the size, counts.

Donations qualify for a tax credit: NZ income earners qualify for a 33% tax credit on their donations from the IRD with a receipt automatically provided by The Arts Foundation (as The Arts Foundation is a registered charity) for any donation made.

If you are a US income earner and prefer to donate in US dollars - we have an established fiscal sponsorship with The Film Collaborative and can also offer a tax credit in the United States to the extent allowed by US tax law.  

Go to: THE CLIMATE CANARY page on The Film Collaborative's website here.

Or ask us if you need any more information on this.

To help us even further - please share this page with your networks. People can only give their support if they know about our film. Please help us spread the word!

WHO WE ARE

• Producer | Director - Vanessa Wells
• Producer - Polly Fryer
• Executive Producers - Jill Macnab and Tim White
• Impact Producer - Anna Dean
• Editor - Emma Smart
• Writer | Researcher - Rebecca Priestley
• Director of Photography - Adam Jones
• Sound Designer - Chris Sinclair

Our amazing consultants and advisors (thank you - we are so grateful for your support, and delighted to have your involvement!):

• Maya Daisy Hawke - Consulting Editor
• Antony Elworthy - Consulting Animator
• Justin Pemberton - Story Consultant
• Karyn Rachtman - Music Supervisor
• Anthony Powell - Contributing Cinematographer and Archive

In November 2018 Vanessa Wells was in Antarctica for another project and she met Natalie Robinson … “I knew there was a bigger story here - how did this wonderful woman with a beautiful laugh and crazy orange earrings end up working on the sea ice in Antarctica?  And why?”  ... the seed for THE CLIMATE CANARY grew from there.  

Join us on the journey to get this documentary to the big screen!

THANK YOU · NGĀ MIHI NUI !!!

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