A new Guardian documentary, The Climate and the Cross, explores a battle among US evangelicals over whether climate change is real and a call to protect the Earth – the work of God, and therefore to be welcomed – or does not exist.

Evangelicals have traditionally been the bedrock of conservative politics in the US, including on climate change. But a heated debate is taking place across the country, with some Christians protesting in the name of protecting the Earth. One group has built a chapel in the way of a pipeline, and a radical pastor has encouraged his congregation to put themselves in the way of diggers. Meanwhile, a firm supporter of Donald Trump crisscrosses the country promoting solar power.

But there is still the traditional resistance: a climate scientist who denies that the world is warming, and a preacher in Florida who sees the fact he was flooded as a positive sign of a divine presence.

Play Video 23:02 The Climate and the Cross

The film-makers, Chloe White and Will Davies, make documentaries, animated content, educational, promotional and fundraising films. Their previous documentary for the Guardian, Quiet Videos, was about the makers of ASMR videos that are said to give viewers “head orgasms”. It toured international film festivals to much acclaim.

Our documentary recommendations



At the cinema: Bertha Dochouse is showing the wonderful Even When I Fall, about survivors of trafficking in Nepal who redevelop their skills as circus artists and begin to build a future against all the odds. Read more about these circus performers in this Guardian article.

We also highly recommend Westwood: Punk, Icon, Activist, which blends archive, reconstruction and insightful interviews with Vivienne Westwood’s fascinating network of collaborators, guiding us on her journey from a childhood in postwar Derbyshire to the catwalks of Paris and Milan. It is being released across the UK.

One of the most thought-provoking documentaries of recent years, The Island and the Whales, is belatedly being released in the UK. Showing in all corners of the country, it’s about residents of the Faroe Islands, who have traditionally hunted whales and seabirds. Today this tradition faces a grave threat: not controversy surrounding whaling, but dangers posed by the whales themselves, which are becoming toxic, contaminated by pollution. A challenging film for both animal rights advocates and supporters of hunting, it’s a one-off.

It’s well worth checking out the East End film festival programme, which always features documentary treats that other festivals may have missed. We’re particularly excited about I Am Another You, in which the rising Chinese documentary-maker Nanfu Wang travels wide-eyed through Florida. She and Dylan, a charismatic young drifter, embark on a journey that spans years, but there is a reality just beneath the surface of this dream world that Nanfu must gradually confront, leaving her questioning the nature of freedom and film-making, and the limitations of both.

Finally, if you’re attending the HotDocs festival in Toronto, please come to the world premiere of our new documentary Black Sheep, a deeply moving and immersive first-person account of racism in the UK and the violence of fitting in.

On demand: We highly recommend Being Blacker, Molly Dineen’s new documentary that tells the story of the renowned reggae record shop owner and music producer Blacker Dread, his extended family, friends and the wider Brixton community. Made with Dineen’s characteristic intimacy, the film focuses on a tumultuous time in Blacker’s life: the death of his mother and the prospect of his first prison sentence.

You can also read my latest Observer column about the problems with recent documentaries about refugees and how some new films are addressing those problems by laying bare the role of the filmmaker observing refugee journeys.

Make a documentary for us

We just launched a new funding opportunity with the Sundance Institute and MacArthur Foundation, who will support up to five film-making teams with a native or Indigenous creative in a key position with a $25,000 grant to make a new non-fiction short film. The shorts will have the opportunity to launch on the Guardian’s documentary platform. You can apply here.

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