In a bid to bring public attention to the global climate crisis, a group of filmmakers have taken an unusual approach; recruiting OnlyFans stars.
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group → bring → stars
This year alone has seen countries around the world gripped by devastating wildfires amid extreme temperatures of 40C and above.
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countries → see → 40C
But environmental campaigners face an increasingly difficult question; how do you make people pay attention to the climate crisis if traditional messaging is no longer cutting through?
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messaging → face → crisis
For director Megan Prescott and writers Jessica Riches and Bree Essrig, the answer is unorthodox but simple — make learning about climate change sexy.
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learning → make → change
Released by the non-profit Yellow Dot Studios — owned by Adam McKay, creator of The Big Short and Don’t Look Up, their project Headline Newds pays top-ranking OnlyFans stars to don lingerie while explaining the climate crisis through innuendos.
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project → release → innuendos
Prescott, who also stars in the series’ pilot episode, describes the move as a response to general apathy around the environment: “People don’t want to be lectured or be bored listening to climate science.
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People → star → science
“So it feels like a no-brainer to use content creators that people are already obsessed with, and already paying so much attention to, to talk about really important issues.
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people → feel → issues
“And yes, it’s an unlikely joining of worlds, but this has gotten people to pay attention to climate change in a way that they have never done before.”
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they → ’ → that
In Prescott’s episode, The Sun Is Daddy, she breaks down the benefits of solar-powered energy while slowly taking off her clothes.
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she → break → clothes
Unsafe Words, another episode, sees Essrig clad in thigh-high leather boots as she explains the American government’s lack of climate action.
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she → see → action
Riches, the writer behind the project, believes that far from mere titillation, sex can not only sell but inform.
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sex → believe → titillation
“Psychologically, we shut down when we’re facing threats to our existence,” she says.
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she → shut → existence
“Because this is such an unexpected messenger, in such an unexpected space — presenting climate science like this gives us the ability to bypass our brain’s defence mechanisms, so that the information might actually stick, instead of being shut out.”
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information → present → mechanisms
Riches is aware of potential backlash given the seriousness of the subject matter, but says criticism is misdirected.
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criticism → give → matter
“I understand why [some viewers] are upset and angry, because why do we have to have beautiful women in no clothes talking about this to try and draw attention?” she says.
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she → understand → attention
“But we live in a very different world to the one that’s been presented to us, and climate is just one of the symptoms of this structural inequality.
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climate → live → inequality
“We’re at a point now where we have to do anything we can — the situation with the climate is dire.
“Through using sexuality, people pay attention in a way that they just don’t through traditional messaging.
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they → ’re → messaging
“A lot of people probably wouldn’t think this, but all of the sex workers in this series really do care about the environment.
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all → think → environment
We had so many people approach us to be a part of this project.”
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people → have → project
As Headline Newds prepares for the release of its second series next month, set to include adult film star Lily Phillips, Riches is optimistic about its impact.
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Riches → prepare → impact
Citing the project’s high engagement figures, she told The Independent: “You don’t usually get to reinvent the wheel when it comes to comms efforts that have been going on for decades, but this does.
“
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this → cite → decades
It’s a real call for those in the climate-awareness industry to be more daring, to take more risks, and I do think it will change the general impact-creating community.”
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it → ’ → community
The Aporia
