Password: Arizona
Conservation Partners
Equipment Partners
Showcasing the natural wonders of Arizona at a scale never seen before.
This series is being built as a long-term effort to document, interpret, and share the living systems of Arizona at a level of depth and cinematic quality rarely achieved at the regional scale. It is grounded in the belief that powerful storytelling shapes how people see the land, and ultimately, how they choose to care for it.
Arizona is one of the most ecologically diverse regions in North America. Desert basins, sky islands, rivers, forests, and borderlands intersect to support an extraordinary range of life. Yet much of this richness remains unseen, underrepresented, and disconnected from the daily lives of the people who live here.
This project exists to change that.
The future of Arizona’s landscapes depends on connection
Across the state, ecosystems are facing increasing pressure from drought, development, fragmentation, and a rapidly changing climate. At the same time, public awareness and understanding of these systems often lags behind the reality on the ground.
People protect what they understand, and they invest in what they feel connected to.
This series is designed to bridge that gap by bringing audiences into direct, emotional, and visual connection with Arizona’s natural world. Not as an abstract concept, but as a living, breathing system that is still very much intact and worth protecting.
A landmark wildlife series for Arizona
This Arizona wildlife series is being developed alongside Arizona PBS as a cinematic natural history project that will bring the state’s landscapes and wildlife into homes, classrooms, and communities.
It is designed to operate on multiple levels at once: as compelling public television, as an educational resource, and as a long-term storytelling platform that can extend beyond broadcast into screenings, outreach, and community engagement.
The goal is not simply to showcase wildlife, but to reveal the deeper systems that connect species, landscapes, and people across Arizona.
Get to know Arizona like never before
This project is being developed as an 8-part series, with each episode exploring a different region, biome, or ecological system across Arizona. From desert basins to high-elevation forests, from rivers and canyons to the borderlands and sky islands, the series is designed to reveal the full spectrum of life that exists across the state.
Each episode will stand on its own as a cinematic story, while contributing to a larger portrait of Arizona as one of the most ecologically diverse landscapes in North America. The goal is not to catalog these places, but to bring them to life through intimate wildlife behavior, immersive cinematography, and storytelling that reflects the character of each landscape. This structure allows the series to move across the state with purpose, building a layered and cohesive understanding of how these systems connect.
This will be Arizona like you’ve never seen it before, in all of its splendor and beauty.
More than a series, a platform for impact across Arizona
This project is designed to extend far beyond the screen. From the beginning, the goal has been to create a body of work that not only tells meaningful stories, but actively contributes to the people and organizations working to protect Arizona’s natural world. Through partnerships, outreach, and a long-term commitment to the communities connected to this work, the series is being built as a catalyst for support, awareness, and collaboration across the state.
This includes:
- supporting and elevating local conservation organizations
- building trust and relationships with stakeholders across regions
- creating opportunities for public screenings and community engagement
- contributing to educational access through public media pathways
- approaching filmmaking in a way that gives back to the landscapes and people involved
This is a non-extractive approach to storytelling. The goal is not simply to capture images and move on, but to leave something meaningful behind. When done well, storytelling can help direct attention, resources, and support toward the places and efforts that need it most. This series is being built with that responsibility in mind.
Built in Arizona. Powered by Arizona talent.
This series is being built with an intentional commitment to work with filmmakers, writers, and crew based in Arizona whenever and wherever possible.
Arizona is home to an incredible community of creatives, many of whom have spent years developing the skills, experience, and field knowledge required to tell meaningful stories about this landscape. Yet too often, large-scale productions look outside the state for talent.
This project is an opportunity to do the opposite.
By prioritizing an Arizona-first approach, this series not only strengthens the authenticity of the storytelling, it directly supports the state’s creative economy and helps elevate the voices of those who know these places best.
It also allows for a more grounded and efficient production model. Working with local crews reduces costs, increases flexibility in the field, and enables a deeper, more sustained connection to the landscapes and communities being filmed.
This is a chance to demonstrate what Arizona-based filmmakers and crews are capable of at the highest level of wildlife storytelling, and to build a production model that reflects both the talent and the values of this state.
Made Possible by Arizonans
This project is not just being created for Arizona. It is being built because of people who care deeply about what happens here, to its landscapes, its wildlife, and the future of its natural heritage.
Support for this series comes from individuals who see the value in telling these stories at the highest level, not just for the sake of the film, but for what that storytelling can unlock across the state.
This kind of project requires collaboration between partners, creatives, and supporters who are aligned in a shared goal: to create something that has lasting value for Arizona.
Your investment directly supports:
- time in the field to capture rare and meaningful wildlife behavior
- production across Arizona’s diverse landscapes
- the editorial and finishing process required for a high-quality series
- educational access and community engagement
- long-term outreach through screenings, partnerships, and statewide engagement
But the true value of this work goes beyond production.
This series is designed to contribute to a larger shift, helping elevate awareness, strengthen public connection to the land, and direct attention and support toward the people and organizations working to protect it.
Through storytelling, outreach, and partnerships, the goal is to create tangible outcomes: increased visibility for conservation efforts, stronger collaboration across stakeholders, and greater public engagement with Arizona’s natural world.
This is not simply funding a film. It is investing in a project that aims to leave a lasting impact on how Arizona’s landscapes and wildlife are understood, valued, and supported for years to come.
Help bring this series to life
This series is being created for Arizona, but it will be made possible by those who choose to invest in what Arizona’s natural world can become.
For donors, families, and foundations who care about the future of this state, this is an opportunity to do more than fund a film. It is a chance to help create a lasting body of work that can deepen public connection, strengthen conservation efforts, elevate local organizations, and expand support for the landscapes and wildlife that define Arizona.
If you want your giving to contribute to something visible, meaningful, and built for long-term impact, we invite you to join us.
Your support will help bring this series to life, and help ensure that its impact extends far beyond the screen through education, public engagement, statewide screenings, and stronger momentum for conservation across Arizona.
This is a chance to be part of something larger than a production. It is a chance to help shape how Arizona’s natural world is seen, valued, and supported for years to come.
The future of Arizona’s wild stories depends on you
There is still extraordinary beauty, resilience, and complexity across Arizona’s landscapes. There are still stories here that can shift perspective and remind people what is worth protecting.
This series is an effort to tell those stories with care, cinematic ambition, and a commitment to lasting impact.
If this vision resonates, we invite you to help build it.
Use your Donor-Advised Fund to support this work
Many individuals and families already have charitable funds set aside in Donor-Advised Funds (DAFs), resources specifically intended to support meaningful work like this.
If you have a DAF, this is a straightforward and effective way to contribute to the development and impact of this series.
Your grant can help move this project forward now, supporting field production, storytelling, and the broader effort to elevate Arizona’s natural world through public engagement and conservation-focused impact.
Currently, only a small percentage of philanthropic funding is directed toward environmental and conservation efforts (around 2% globally, and even less than that in Arizona). Projects like this represent an opportunity to help shift that balance, ensuring that Arizona’s landscapes and wildlife receive the attention and support they deserve.
In many cases, you can recommend a grant directly through our online donation portal using our giving platform, Give Lively, where Donor-Advised Funds may appear as a payment option alongside credit card or bank transfer.
How to Recommend a Grant
- Use the Donate option on our website and select your Donor-Advised Fund provider if available (in the payment options)
- Or search for Reel Earth Films (nonprofit organization) through your DAF provider
- Submit a grant recommendation and designate your gift to support this Arizona wildlife series
Not all Donor-Advised Funds are integrated into the online portal. If you do not see your provider listed, you can still recommend a grant directly through your DAF account.
If you’d like assistance or documentation, please feel free to reach out using the contact information below.
Learn more. Get involved.
To learn more about this series, or to get involved as we move through production, please reach out to our Executive Director, Alan Lacy.
Alan Lacy
Executive Director, Reel Earth Films
alan ( a t ) reelearthfilms.org
