To illustrate the devastation wildfires have on California’s beautiful landscape, and the conditions that have led to this now year-round wildfire season, youth-led and youth-organized global climate movement Fridays for Future U.S. and creative agency FRED & FARID Los Angeles have launched a haunting new film “I Love You, California,” inspired by California’s state song.
Last year California wildfires burned over 2.2 million acres. Historically, wildfire season in the state is between May and October, when the dry summer is at its highest and the winds threaten to expand fire damage. According to the campaign, wildfire season is no longer a simple three-month period in the middle of the year, citing climate change experts who say that California is now experiencing record-breaking wildfires all year round.
The campaign notes that at present, the Mosquito Fire in Northern California has already burned 76,290 acres and is at 39% containment.
The regional anthem of California, adopted in 1951, celebrates the beauty of California’s diverse natural landscape, from the redwood forests to the exports of honey, fruit, and wine. Nowadays the lyrics take on new meaning as the state’s abundant natural offerings are under serious threat.
The haunting cover of the state song is sung by FRED & FARID Los Angeles Junior Art Director Kiyomi Morrison, a second-generation California native.
“Growing up in California, it’s impossible not to see the devastating effects of the fires on everything around you. I’ve seen whole communities lose their childhood homes, and the air becoming so polluted one can’t even walk outside. The mountains I used to visit as a kid have turned black in a matter of months. As just one of the terrible realities of climate change, I hope this can bring more awareness to the current path we’re heading down,” said Kiyomi.
“For us youth, the majority of our lives will be lived in the hellscape our so-called leaders and the corporations that fund them are responsible for creating. We are experiencing the consequences of systems built on power and greed, and people are dying because those in power have decided money is worth more than human life,” said said Katharina Maier, national coordinator of Fridays for Future U.S.
“How many more lives must be lost, heat records broken, acres burnt down, homes washed away? The climate crisis is no longer an abstract future or a news article about a far-off country. It’s here, it’s now. We have to act. Everywhere you look, youth are acting for systemic change, but we can’t do it alone; we need those from every generation who understand the urgency of the climate crisis to join us to address its root causes in concrete ways.”
According to the campaign, “Just in 2021, California wildfires burned over 2.2 million acres of land, the carbon emissions equivalent of over 16 million gas powered vehicles driven in one year. ”
Credits
Title: “I love you, California”
Client: Fridays For Future U.S.
National Coordinator: Katharina Maier
Agency: FRED & FARID Los Angeles
Chief creative officers: Fred & Farid
Creative Directors: Chelsea Steiger, Nicolas Berthier
Creatives: Kiyomi Morrison, Ciana Alessi
Voice: Kiyomi Morrison
Agency Supervisor: Jules Chaffiotte
Executive Producer: Amanda Van Caneghem
Audio Mix: Sam Casas, Lime Studios
Here is the original version of the song:
