Most Film and TV Makers Want Climate Stories, but Money Often Stands in the Way
Seven in ten film and TV professionals surveyed want to include climate-related storytelling in their work. More than half say something is stopping them, according to Deadline, which reported the results on 11 November 2026.
The survey was released while the UN Climate Change Conference, known as COP 31, is under way. Futerra Solutions Union commissioned the research, and Ipsos managed it on behalf of the ECCA Film & Television Alliance. ECCA is convened by UN Climate Change to help the screen industry play its part in climate action.
The questionnaire was available in 15 languages, and it drew responses from 78 countries. The survey put extra focus on India, Bangladesh, Brazil, Nigeria, the UK and the US. Most respondents were writers, directors or producers, the people who shape stories day to day.
Enthusiasm was not spread evenly. Commissioners, the executives who decide which projects get funded and made, showed less overall enthusiasm for climate storytelling than other respondents.
Among the people surveyed, 74% said film and TV can help raise awareness of climate issues. That belief sits alongside the practical problems. The survey results point to money as the hardest obstacle. Financial barriers to climate storytelling are notably hard to overcome in Africa and South America, the results indicate.
To address this, the report recommends better funding and distribution for independent producers who include climate themes. Independent producers are small production companies that work outside the big studios, often on tight budgets. Distribution is the route a finished show takes to reach audiences, through cinemas, broadcasters or streaming services.
What does this mean for viewers? Nothing changes on screen yet. A survey records what people intend and what they face. It does not decide what gets made. Whether more climate-themed projects reach a screen will depend on the funding decisions that follow.
The results arrive as governments and industry groups meet at COP 31. For the crews and writers who answered, the question is simple. Can a story they believe in get the money to be finished, and then find an audience?
