'2040' opens the 7th Into Film Festival

The 7th annual Into Film Festival kicked off today with a series of informative and inspiring screenings of climate change documentary 2040 across the UK, with many boasting a live satellite-linked Q&A with the film's director Damon Gameau. Watch highlights from the event in the video above, and you can watch the Q&A in full further down this page.

Seeking to alleviate "eco-anxiety" among young people and reshape the narrative surrounding climate change from something negative to a more constructive and positive one. Gameau's 2040 looks at the many innovative and often astounding means of addressing the damage to our environment that are available to us right now, with the aim of demonstrating that the world his daughter inherits in the year 2040 can be a healthy one.

With director Gameau (who also made That Sugar Film) and UNICEF's Head of Youth Engagement Jessica Bool joining us at the prestigious BFI Southbank in London, the post-film Q&A - hosted by Radio 1's Rhianna Dhillon and our own young reporter Noah - was satellite linked to cinemas across Northern Ireland, Scotland, Wales and England.

"One of the main reasons for making the film was to appeal to a young generation that are going to be inheriting a future that is not looking as good as it should", explained director Damon Gameau. "The film is trying to remind and inform them that there are really wonderful people doing great things and there are solutions that exist, and if we can upscale them really quickly then they can have a great future."

With the climate emergency at the forefront of many young people's minds at present, the audience ranging from 5-19 years of age were all equally enraptured by the film, and proceeded to pose their own insightful questions to the director. Meanwhile, celebrating the 30th anniversary of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child, UNICEF's Jessica was on hand to provide further enfranchisement for the next generation.

2040 Q&A with Damon Gameau

Indeed, in the five months since releasing 2040 in Gameau's native Australia, the 2040 Regeneration community have helped raise over £440,000 in capital for RedGrid to build the internet of energy and £250,000 to launch Australia's first regenerative seaweed farm. They have also inspired hundreds of people to volunteer with action partners like the Climate Foundation, helped Australian farmers transition to regenerative agriculture and engaged over 300 schools across Australia.

Further to that, 2040 has screened for several councils in Australia where they went on to discuss what they hope 2040 might look like for their towns. Why not do the same in assembly - what do you want your school to look like in 2040? 

Fascinatingly, Damon also mentioned that Denmark have created their first ever youth council on environmental issues to sit in Parliament, so here's hoping that the UK adopts the same strategy soon. Someone that would certainly be welcoming that is young Scottish activist Holly Gillibrand, who offered a rousing and inspiring speech at the Glasgow launch event.

The Into Film Festival is the world's largest youth film festival in the world, and helps educators bring learning to life for 5-19 year-olds across the UK by inspiring young people to watch, understand and make film in new and creative ways. There are thousands of screenings, across hundreds of venues taking place across the UK throughout November - and many still have free tickets available!

Remember - each film comes with its own curriculum-linked educational resource, and our Festival review writing competition encourages literacy helps bring your Festival experience back into the classroom.