The 10:10 project was begun in 2009 by British documentary filmmaker Franny Armstrong to challenge people to cut carbon emissions 10 percent in 2010 as a way of fighting global climate change. The organization has since grown to include chapters or supporters in 152 countries.
The "No Pressure" short was filmed by Richard Curtis, a movie director known primarily for the romantic comedies "Bridget Jones' Diary" and "Notting Hill," among other projects.
Following the release of "No Pressure," however, the 10:10 campaign began to face pressure from the public – even from fellow environmentalists, reports the London Telegraph – to stop the video.
The film, though posted and available on sites like YouTube, has since been pulled from the organization's website and replaced with the following message:
Sorry.
Today we put up a mini-movie about 10:10 and climate change called "No Pressure."
With climate change becoming increasingly threatening, and decreasingly talked about in the media, we wanted to find a way to bring this critical issue back into the headlines whilst making people laugh. We were therefore delighted when Britain's leading comedy writer, Richard Curtis – writer of "Blackadder," "Four Weddings," "Notting Hill" and many others – agreed to write a short film for the 10:10 campaign. Many people found the resulting film extremely funny, but unfortunately some didn't, and we sincerely apologize to anybody we have offended.
As a result of these concerns we've taken it off our website. We won't be making any attempt to censor or remove other versions currently in circulation on the Internet.
We'd like to thank the 50+ film professionals and 40+ actors and extras and who gave their time and equipment to the film for free. We greatly value your contributions and the tremendous enthusiasm and professionalism you brought to the project.
At 10:10 we're all about trying new and creative ways of getting people to take action on climate change. Unfortunately in this instance we missed the mark. Oh well, we live and learn.
