The State Department is planning to spend $90,000 for a film festival about climate change in India.
The U.S. Consulate in Mumbai issued a grant opportunity this month announcing its plans to fund a film training workshop to make movies about "Green Heroes" in the country.
"Climate change is one of the greatest challenges facing the world today," the State Department said in the grant announcement. "We have seen that many Indians are taking action to stop climate change and protect the environment in their neighborhoods and communities, but often their stories go untold."
"This program will identify and showcase some of these unsung Green Heroes and enable up-and-coming storytellers to share these Green Heroes’ stories with broader audiences," the State Department continued. "By training the next generation of documentary filmmakers to tell these environmental stories, we hope this generates broader support for initiatives to mitigate climate change and protect the environment."
The grant will offer up to $90,000 to a non-profit or non-governmental organization to put on workshops that teach Indian students and activists how to make movies about the environment.
The project will start with two-day training workshops to go over storyboards, script writing, filming, editing, and post-production, and will conclude with a finale film festival in Mumbai.
The film festival will generate 150 short films about climate change, and students will get a certificate of completion for participating.
"Every participant at a workshop–over 150 in total–will be required to submit a film for a ‘Green Heroes Film Fest’ either as an individual or as part of a group," the State Department said. "The workshops will be conducted by respected U.S. or Indian video journalists or filmmakers, as agreed by the Consulate and partner."
The top films will be screened at the festival during "Earth Month" in April 2017, and taxpayers will pay for travel and prizes for the finalists.
"All finished films will be the property of the United States government for further usage/dissemination," the State Department said.