Creators for the Planet, a global year-round engagement programme set up by Sony Pictures and the United Nations Foundation, developed in collaboration with Creo. Creators for the Planet aims to mobilise and inspire people to Act Now through photography and film. Part of Creators for the Planet, The Sustainability Prize programme invites photographers and filmmakers passionate about communicating key themes linked to the Sustainable Development Goals, including environment, accessibility, diversity, equity and inclusion.
From depictions of communities coming together to combat local issues to pioneering technologies, the submissions are to address these themes related to the Sustainable Development Goals. Set up to amplify the smaller stories exploring these social and environmental issues, the initiative spotlights one series from the Sony World Photography Awards Professional competition and one short film from the Sony Future Filmmaker Awards.
Sustainability Prize, Sony Future Filmmaker Awards
The Sustainability Prize in the Sony Future Filmmaker Awards champions short films communicating a positive future for the planet. The winner will receive $5,000, Sony digital imaging equipment and promotion across the Sony Future Filmmaker Awards channels and websites. The work of the winner will also get the chance to be honored at a showcase hosted by the United Nations Foundation and Sony Pictures.
Solmund MacPherson (Canada) won in 2024 for Wildmen of the Greater Toronto Area. The film follows a group of Toronto citizens fed up with the rising cost of living who are renouncing their personhood en masse to legally become animals, forming a society of "Wildmen" in the city's vast ravine network.
Sustainability Prize, Sony World Photography Awards
Now in its 18th year, the Sony World Photography Awards champion photographers worldwide telling the stories of our time through this diverse medium that encompasses a variety of genres, from portraiture to still life.
The Sustainability Prize, first introduced in 2022, is a key initiative within the awards and provides a platform for promoting a positive future through creative storytelling via the medium of photography. The winner receives a $5,000 cash prize, Sony digital imaging equipment and promotion on the World Photography Organisation channels and websites. The work of the winner will get the chance to be honored at a showcase hosted by the United Nations Foundation and Sony Pictures. Find out more about the Sony World Photography Awards.
Kathleen Orlinsky (United States) was the 2024 Sustainability Prize winner for her series America’s First Wilderness. Orlinsky’s series looks at the landscape, wildlife and people of the Gila Wilderness of southeastern New Mexico. View the full series.
