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Working Films is seeking submissions for a new film and organizing initiative that will showcase stories of just transition and climate resilience.

Individuals and community-based organizations across the United States are working to build sustainable local economies, eliminate dependence on dirty energy, and create resilient communities in the face of climate change and economic inequality. Powerful stories are needed to amplify successes within the just transition and climate resilience movements, demonstrate a clear vision for a sustainable future, and unite people from various backgrounds and geographies to learn from each other's efforts and increase their collective impact.

Just Transition is the long term work of eliminating fossil fuel dependence and building sustainable communities in which economic and social systems are transformed to be equitable and humane. We are seeking documentary media projects that illustrate the principles of just transition and/or that highlight community based efforts that put these principles into action. We are particularly interested in success stories that can serve as example for organizers who are in the beginning stages of this kind of work who may not identify as part of the larger movement. This means that participating projects may touch on a wide range of topics - from food sovereignty, to cooperative economics, to democratizing clean energy, just to name a few. Apply here to be considered for the Just Transition Media Project. We will be compiling a cohort of media projects that will be used in locations around the country. We will consider short, feature length, virtual reality and multi-platform film projects. Screening rights fees will be paid. An emphasis will be placed films that feature personal stories, as well as media made by and about people of color. We will consider works-in-progress if it’s at a strong stage, is reasonably audience-ready, and is short. If you have a work-in- progress, we suggest offering one selection, rather than a full rough cut. Our team and partner organizations will participate in the review process to assess the quality of the filmmaking and storytelling, relevance of issues highlighted, and the extent to which the story presents a catalyst and vision for organizing. We will also pay an honorarium to participating media makers and report out on the use and impact of the media within the project. We anticipate selecting media in early 2017.  

  Working Films is seeking submissions for a new film and organizing initiative that will showcase stories from the frontlines of the battle against oil and gas infrastructure.   From pipelines to compressor stations, groups and individuals across the country are working to stop oil and gas infrastructure. Powerful stories are needed to amplify successes and unite people from various locations to learn from each other's efforts and increase their collective impact.   We are looking for films that:

• Showcase organizing and direct action strategies;
• Demonstrate health and environmental impacts from fossil fuel infrastructure;
• Draw connections between sites to show big picture of infrastructure, and/or feature resistance, solutions, and alternative energy sources.

We will compile the films and tour them in states where organizers are working to stop new infrastructure projects and protect their communities. Submit your film here by August 19th to be considered for the project. We will consider short, feature length, and multi-platform film projects. Screening rights fees will be paid. An emphasis will be placed on films that feature personal stories, as well as media made by and about people of color. We will consider works-in- progress if it’s at a strong stage, is reasonably audience-ready, and is short. If you have a work-in-progress, we suggest offering one selection, rather than a full rough cut. Please do not apply if your film is not available for public use. This project builds on Working Films previous projects including Fracking Stories, Shore Stories and Coal Ash stories, which used collections of short films to resource organizers and activists in target states.

Robeson County, NC is home to the Lumbee Tribe, the largest non-reservation tribe in the country. It’s also the proposed endpoint of a new natural gas pipeline, a dangerous coal ash impoundment, and a proposed chicken processing plant slated to be built at the intersection of three important wetland areas. A new organization, EcoRobeson, was established after an Environmental Summit was held in Pembroke in late 2015. The group, comprised of Lumbee tribal members and concerned residents in the area, is working to resist these destructive plans and re-imagine a future for the region that is both economically just and ecologically sustainable. Working Films and Storyline partnered with EcoRobeson to bring the Water Warriors photo exhibit to the Lumbee Powwow, the Dance of the Spring Moon. Water Warriors documents the native Mi'kmaq Nation in New Brunswick Canada, who resisted attempts by a Texas energy company to drill for natural gas on their land. Our partners at EcoRobeson were eager to use Water Warriors to demonstrate that resistance is possible, even in the face of seemingly insurmountable opposition. The Lumbee Spring Powwow is a gathering where people from Robeson County and other tribes from around the country gather for a traditional native dancing competition. The powwow included traditional Native American food, arts, crafts, singing, music and dance, along with the centerpiece dance and drum competitions.  Over 100 youth, young families, and elders viewed the photos and listened to audio recordings of the captions, learning more about the dangers of fracking and the organizing tactics that can be used to resist it. A few visitors mentioned hearing about the struggle in New Brunswick and said that the Water Warriors’ exhibit better illustrated what they’d seen in the news. Our partners at EcoRobeson, who presented the exhibit, wanted to educate their neighbors about environmental issues in their community and increase their base of active supporters. We encouraged participants to join EcoRobeson and sign a petition opposing the construction of the natural gas pipeline. The pipeline is slated to be built on an elders land that could be taken by eminent domain. The group’s next step will be to hold a public hearing on the proposed plan. All of those who signed up will be invited to participate in the hearing and other upcoming events. EcoRobeson organizers were impressed by the impact Water Warriors had, and are eager to bring bring it back to the Lumbee Homecoming in Summer 2016. We are in conversation about starting an ongoing film series in Robeson County featuring environmental justice themed films.

After successful tours of Shore Stories in NC, SC, GA, and VA we're making the compilation DVD available for communities in other states who want to celebrate the protection of the Atlantic and strengthen opposition to Seismic testing. Request a DVD and Host a Free Community Screening of Shore Stories. The films highlight the grassroots resistance that led to the exclusion of the Atlantic from the latest proposal for drilling leases, and includes stories from past oil and gas exploration – including the BP Deepwater Horizon disaster. Shore Stories also features films about seismic testing for offshore oil and gas deposits – which is still a possibility in the region. Our screening guide and publicity materials make it easy to host your own event. You could show the films to a few friends in your living room or as part of a regular meeting of an organization, club, or student group. All the better if you can do it before June 16th so that you can use the screening to collect public comments thanking the Bureau of Ocean Energy management for protecting the Atlantic and telling them you oppose seismic testing. If you have questions please don't hesitate to contact us and if you're ready to go ahead and get started, just request the DVD with this simple form.

Just before the second anniversary of the Dan River coal ash spill, the NC Department of Environmental Quality (DEQ) held public hearings on basin closures across the state. At the center of the public comment period, and a series of hearings across the state, was determining the priority for closure among the 14 Duke Energy owned coal ash sites. The final rankings will determine both the closure clean-up process and a closure deadline. To inform residents and involve them in the DEQ public comment period, Working Films organized six Coal Ash Stories events in towns and cities where the hearings will be held: Shelby, Goldsboro, Salisbury, Charlotte, Winston Salem, and Walnut Cove. We teamed up with Appalachian Voices, Clean Water for North Carolina and NC Warn to plan the tour. We also partnered with community based partners in each location, including Broad Riverkeeper, French Broad Riverkeeper, Down East Coal Ash Coalition, Yadkin Riverkeeper, Central Piedmont Sierra Club, Catawba Riverkeeper, Temple Emanuel Environmental Movement, and Residents for Coal Ash Cleanup. [caption id="attachment_4253" align="alignnone" width="723"] Katie Hicks, with Clean Water For North Carolina introduces the films in Shelby. Photo credit: Casey White.[/caption] The events provided a catalyst for audiences to write comments and receive information about the upcoming hearings. The screenings were also an opportunity to talk with neighbors, issue experts, and advocates about how to get involved in ongoing efforts to protect their communities. The tour happened at a critical time for citizens to speak out for a transparent, swift, and protective plan to safely store coal ash and ensure safe drinking water for neighbors of coal ash sites. This was the first and only opportunity for direct public input on the fate of Duke’s NC coal ash basins. [caption id="attachment_4254" align="alignnone" width="691"] Packed house for the Charlotte screening! Photo credit: Britten Cleveland.[/caption] Britten Cleveland, organizer with Central Piedmont Sierra Club, one of the local hosts of the Charlotte screenings, said, "The event was great! It was such an amazing show of teamwork. We had dozens of people take action, or commit to taking action (attend hearings and phone bank).” For more info on the tour, check out this great coverage from the Shelby screening, which features quotes from concerned community members.    

A NATIONAL CONFERENCE CALL ON 5/16 WILL CONVENE SOLAR INDUSTRY LEADERS TO REFLECT AND PROJECT A VISION FOR A CLEAN ENERGY FUTURE   Directed by Shalini Kantayya and executive produced by Leonardo DiCaprio, Adrien Grenier, and Mark Ruffalo, Catching The Sun is a new documentary film that follows this story and celebrates the potential of solar to lead us all to a clean energy future.   WATCH CATCHING THE SUN and join us for an intimate conversation with filmmaker Shalini Kantayya, the Solar Energy Industry Association (SEIA) President and CEO Rhone Resch, and President of General Capital, Jigar Shah. We'll talk about the film and the future of solar power in the wake of the passage of the solar Investment Tax Credit and the solar community’s successful #MillionSolarStrong campaign.   DATE: Monday, May 16, 2016 TIME: 5pm EST WATCH: catchingthesun.tv REGISTER TO JOIN THE CALL: https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/5792679528794832898 Submit your questions live, and in advance to catchingthesunmovie@gmail.com   The conference call will feature: Rhone Resch is the President and CEO of the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA), the national trade organization for America’s solar energy industry. During his 12-year tenure at SEIA, solar has experienced record-breaking growth, becoming one of the fastest-growing industries in the United States with more than 8,000 companies and more than 209,000 employees. As the head of SEIA – and the person responsible for all federal and state advocacy on behalf of the $16.3 billion U.S. solar energy industry – Rhone helped to create the 30 percent solar investment tax credit, the 1603 Treasury Program, and scores of other forward-looking federal and state policies that have put solar on its massive growth trajectory. Jigar Shah is the President and Co-Founder of Generate Capital. Jigar was the founder and CEO of SunEdison (NASDAQ: SUNE), where he pioneered “no money down solar” and unlocked a multi-billion-dollar solar market, creating the largest solar services company worldwide. He is the author ofCreating Climate Wealth: Unlocking the Impact Economy. After SunEdison, Jigar served as the founding CEO of the Carbon War Room, a global non-profit founded by Sir Richard Branson and Virgin Unite to help entrepreneurs address climate change. Jigar’s vision is that business model innovation will have an outsized impact on bringing about the next productivity revolution – resource efficiency. Jigar is committed to helping entrepreneurs and large companies alike implement resource efficiency solutions using “no money down” project finance models. Shalini Kantayya finished in the top 10 out of 12,000 filmmakers on Fox’s ON THE LOT, a show by Steven Spielberg in search of Hollywood’s next great director. Her sci-fi film, a DROP of LIFE, was broadcast on national television in the U.S. and India, and used to advocate for water rights in forty villages across Africa. A William J. Fulbright Scholar, Shalini has received recognition from the Sundance Documentary Program, IFP Spotlight on Documentary, Firelight Media Lab, New York Women in Film and Television, and the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation. She is a Sundance Fellow, a TED Fellow, and a finalist for the ABC Disney | DGA Directing Fellowship. Her debut feature, Catching the Sun, premiered at the Los Angeles Film Festival. Join us and spread the word Post to social media with the hastags #sundoc and #millionsolarstrong Sample posts: Solar Stars shine on #Sundoc 5/16 - national conference call w @RhoneResch @jigarshah @Shalinikantayya http://bit.ly/1TLvrsZ Celebrate #MillionSolarStrong - join the #Sundoc national conference call https://attendee.gotowebinar.com/register/5792679528794832898

Meet Adam. He’s an organizer with SOCM, a grassroots group that empowers Tennesseans to fight for environmental, economic and social justice. He’s one of more than 200 advocates Working Films has supported this year through our film campaigns in target states. As 2015 comes to a close we’re asking you to donate so we can support even more activists next year. Adam works in Kingston, the site of the largest coal ash spill in history. Earlier this year the same company responsible for the catastrophe wanted to expand the storage facility there – adding more toxic waste. Community members and organizers like Adam were outraged. The Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation (TDEC) and the company were trying to silence dissent by bypassing opportunities for public comment. That’s where Working Films came in. We worked with SOCM to bring a compilation of short films called Coal Ash Stories to Tennessee. Kingston was the first stop of a five city tour across the state. Adam said, “It was the most people we’ve seen in a room to talk about these issues since the spill in 2008.” The turnout and voices of concerned residents made a difference to the TDEC representatives that attended the screening. The event resulted in commitments from TDEC to ensure public input is a part of the process going forward. Adam and other organizers tell us that our film campaigns are bringing their organizations into deeper working relationships with each other, helping them gain new members and supporters, and providing a platform for audiences to take meaningful action. Now we’re asking for your support so that we can resource more organizers in states across the U.S. in 2016. Please donate today! Happy New Year from the Working Films team!

The series will launch in North Carolina, which lifted a moratorium on fracking last year. Events will take place across the state from mid-May to mid-June in Asheville, Durham, Fayetteville, Pembroke, Raleigh, Reidsville, Salisbury, Wadesboro, Wilmington, Pittsboro, and Winston Salem. A full schedule is listed below. [caption id="attachment_3469" align="aligncenter" width="447"] Film still from Dr. Theo Colborn, one of the 6 shorts in Fracking Stories shows a drilling site less than 150 feet from an elementary school.[/caption]