Climate Spring Documentary Pitch Opens for Submissions

Sheffield DocFest and Climate Spring have partnered for the Climate Spring Documentary Pitch, which is now accepting submissions through May 19.

Four creatives will be selected to pitch their climate-related documentary idea at Sheffield DocFest 2025, and one winner will receive £10,000 in development funding and support from Climate Spring.

Sheffield DocFest and Climate Spring are looking for returnable docuseries, box sets, formats or singles, but not feature documentaries. They are looking for ideas that fall into one of two categories: Justice and Change. The Justice category covers who is responsible for the crisis and how ordinary people can creative justice against the odds. The Change category covers what responding to the climate crisis means and what the journey toward a better future will look like.

Applicants will need to submit an up-to-date CV and a one-page text version of their documentary idea. They can also support their idea with an image or poster.

Four finalists will be selected, and they will pitch their ideas live at the Sheffield DocFest. They will be judged by experts in the TV and climate narrative spaces, including commissioners, producers and funders.

“We’re thrilled to bring this new pitch competition to Sheffield DocFest—a festival that champions bold, creative storytelling,” said Josh Cockcroft, director of Climate Spring. “This competition is about finding those standout ideas that don’t just document a crisis but show how we navigate through it—how we build justice, resilience and agency. We’re calling on brilliant creatives to show audiences what the journey to a regenerative future really looks like.”

David Leach, Climate Spring’s head of unscripted, said, “For me, having been a producer for almost 20 years, Sheffield DocFest is the place to go in our industry to do business and catch up with the documentary community. It is a creative space where talented filmmakers, commissioners, funders and upcoming directors can connect and make amazing things happen. The Climate Crisis needs creative minds to engage and help show the way forward. Documentaries have done so much to highlight the problem. Our challenge now is to show the solution.”

“We’re incredibly excited to be able to work with Climate Spring to support filmmakers tell the essential stories that need to be shared around the Climate Crisis,” added Mimi Poskitt, managing director of Sheffield DocFest. “Climate Spring’s expertise will enable some of our best filmmakers to bring these urgent issues to light.”