YOU’VE GOT A BIG STORY

DOCUMENTARIES ARE POWERFUL

A signature documentary’s shelf life is timeless. In fact, it’s often more powerful off social media because it can do much more for organization when not used on social media. It’s featured at a variety of events and conferences. Maybe your local film festivals. It lives and breathes as a signature destination film about your organization and what it does. It is often leveraged for use in fundraising campaigns, pitches to funders, or donor and volunteer campaigns. It can even serve as a powerful recruiting tool because it inspires the graduates and experienced professionals who view it.

Best of all, a professional documentary about what you do takes viewers along for the intimate journey and the storytelling behind your work in the field and why it matters. It inspires. It makes people care.

When you tell your conservation story in a documentary format you spark a connection. Documentaries help make us human. It is through storytelling that we learn lessons and shift perspectives. Stories help humans learn what is right and what is wrong. Documentaries about conservation can change minds.

PEOPLE SEARCH FOR DOCUMENTARIES

People search the planet’s second most used search engine, YouTube, for documentaries related to their interests. Finding a documentary that’s closer to home has a big impact and spreads more word of mouth.

Millennials watch documentaries more than any other age group and many are inspired to change their lives after viewing them, according to the results of a 2019 survey.

Conducted by the documentary streaming service MagellanTV, the survey shows that more than half of millennials — ages 25 to 34 — who watch documentaries were inspired to change their lives in some way.

In addition, 34% of millennials say watching documentaries is better for their mental and emotional health than news, reality television, or fictional dramas. This latter claim is supported by a recent study conducted by the University of California Berkeley that found nature documentaries reduce stress and improve mental health.

YOU’RE NOT TOO SMALL

Even small organizations can make impactful conservation documentaries, often with a unique authenticity and intimate perspective that larger productions may struggle to capture. By focusing on localized stories and showcasing the real people and natural wonders directly impacted by conservation efforts, smaller teams can create powerful, relatable content that resonates deeply with audiences. By using an independent filmmaker specializing in conservation, documentaries are accessible and the ability to produce high-quality visuals on modest budgets, even small teams can highlight critical environmental issues in a compelling way. This grassroots approach can inspire action by making viewers feel connected to the cause, demonstrating that positive change is possible and within reach for everyone, regardless of scale.

GRANTS AVAILABLE

ELEVATE YOUR ORGANIZATION

Yes, a documentary is a big investment. But often grants help cover the cost. We’ll work together to identify your story theme and deliverables for a documentary, estimate project costs, so that you can begin the process of a seeking a grant or sponsors. Documentaries can range between $5000 to $50,000+ depending on the length of your documentary, the amount of time needed in the field to capture your stories, and how much work is needed to produce the film.

True story: One organization that I worked with used grants to cover the cost of filmmaking and production work for a feature length 70-minute conservation documentary. The organization has so far grossed more than $10K through special screening events, and revenue via a streaming service.