Mireille Juchau, Blake Ayshford, Matthew Dabner, Damien Power and Alana Valentine are among the writers of eight projects which will be developed under the Cli-Fi (climate fiction) initiative by the ABC, Create NSW and Jungle Entertainment.

Jungle Entertainment has appointed Shay Spencer as development manager, drama, as it looks to expand its slate.

Blake Ayshford, Matthew Dabner, Damien Power and Alana Valentine are among the writers of eight projects which will be developed under the Cli-Fi (climate fiction) initiative by the ABC, Create NSW and Jungle Entertainment.

The 8 Cli-Fi projects span a variety of themes including mysteries, drama, thrillers and comedies.

The initiative kicked off with a forum at AFTRS last year which brought together national and international climate scientists and some of Australia’s leading screen creatives. The speakers included John Collee (Happy Feet, Walking with Dinosaurs, Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World) and US climate scientist Professor Michael E. Mann.

Jungle chief operating officer Chloe Rickard said: “Investigating the topic of climate science from a position of fictional drama has been an extremely revealing way to get people thinking laterally about such a critical issue. We are extremely excited by the breadth of talented writers and range of genres we’ve been able to unite under our Cli-Fi theme.”

The Cli-Fi projects are:

• Captain Barry – Space Explorer

Writers: Bjorn Stewart and Kodie Bedford

Anthology series (seven projects):

• Equilibrium

Writer: Matthew Dabner

• Exit the Dragon

Writer: Damien Power

• Lepers

Writer: Dr Anita Campbell

• Look for the Helpers

Writers: Anya Beyersdorf and Natasha Pincus

• Offset

Writer: Alana Valentine

• The Doomsday Machine or Haley’s Choice

Writers: Bryan Cockerill and Robert Adams

• The World Without Us

Writers: Blake Ayshford and Mireille Juchau

NOTE: Create NSW, ABC TV and production company Jungle Entertainment have also announced eight new screen projects selected for development under the banner of Cli-Fi, the emerging genre that deals with climate change and global warming.

The eight projects span a variety of themes including mysteries, drama, thrillers and comedies, with leading NSW writers finding inventive narratives to tell compelling climate stories.