PARIS — Fictional films and TV have immense
power to shift attitudes on political issues, yet they remain little-used in
debates over climate change.
اضافة اعلان
Analyzing a database of 37,453 film and TV scripts
from 2016 to 2020, researchers at the
University of Southern California (USC)
found that just 1,046 — 2.8 percent — included any keywords related to climate,
and only 0.6 percent mentioned “climate change” specifically.
A similar British study by Albert, a sustainability
NGO, found that “cake” was mentioned 10 times more than “climate change” in TV
subtitles in 2020.
“The vast majority of films and shows we watch exist
in a different reality, where climate change does not exist. This allows
viewers to live in a fantasy,” said Anna Jane Joyner, founder of Good Energy, a
consultancy that helps scriptwriters address the issue.
Scriptwriters have been keen to address climate
change, Joyner said, but felt others would not be interested, or that they
would be branded as hypocrites.
“Many writers feel guilty about their own lifestyle
— that unless you’re a perfect climate citizen, you can’t authentically write
about it,” said Joyner. “But we need less shaming.”
It helps that public concern is rising.
The number of Americans viewing climate change as a
major threat jumped from 37 to 55 percent between 2017 and 2021, despite
right-wing denials.
In Britain, it
jumped from 37 to 65 percent.
‘Para-social relationships’
TV has helped shift
political attitudes over the years, especially around race, from the first
inter-racial kiss on “Star Trek” in the 1960s.
“People tend to view entertainment as frivolous...
and writers who care about climate change might think that audiences will not
be receptive,” said Erica Rosenthal of USC. “But that is false.”
Her work has shown how viewers form “para-social
relationships” with characters on-screen, exposing them to new ideas and
people.
“Even if climate change only comes up in passing in
a show that we love, it subconsciously validates that this concern is normal,”
said Joyner. “You need that sense of connection before you get to a place of
agency.”
However, some mentions are more useful than others,
she added.
Two common tropes are the apocalypse — which is
demoralizing — and characters that badger others about their
SUV or plastic
straws. “Nobody likes a scold,” said Joyner.
Simple gestures can help: characters expressing
concern about the climate; using public transport; or minimizing food waste.
“We see plenty of stories on extreme weather, but
they are rarely, if ever, linked to climate change... That would be easy,”
added Rosenthal.
Conquering nature
Hollywood has long explored
humanity’s relationship with nature, dating back to the grand vistas of early
Westerns.
“Initially, Westerns were about conquering the land,
but very quickly we see that domesticating nature should not mean destroying
it,” said Veronique Le Bris, who compiled “100 Great Films for the Planet” in
France.
Horror over nuclear weapons spurred change after
World War II, she added.
As early as 1958, celebrated director Nicholas Ray
made “Wind Across the Everglades” about animal conservation.
There have been many examples since, from “Erin
Brokovich” to “Wall-E” to “Don’t Look Up”.
But the current focus on global climate change is
tricky for filmmakers, Le Bris said, perhaps because we are all complicit at
some level.
“But nobody is perfect when it comes to
climate,”
she said.
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