Originally written and shared on the Kinema for Filmmakers Substack fiund here:

https://kinemahq.substack.com/p/100-partner-screenings-in-under-two

100+ Partner Screenings in Under Two Months

The Project Dandelion team shares the "Mrs. Robinson" campaign, six of the resources they created, and the strategies that led to their success.

Following its world premiere at the Galway Film Fleadh, Mrs. Robinson was released in Ireland in late August 2024 and finished the year as the best-performing documentary at the Irish box office. The film chronicles the remarkable journey of Ireland's groundbreaking first female President, Mary Robinson, who later became the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights and has become one of the leading global human rights activists in the world.

Now in 2025, this documentary is expanding beyond Ireland, with one key part of that effort being an ambitious impact campaign run by Project Dandelion and supported by Doc Society’s Global Climate Playlist initiative.

The Project Dandelion team had three months to prepare a strategy and execute an impact campaign with the planned launch date of March 8, International Women’s Day. It’s been a month since that launch and more than 100 partners (including organizations and individuals) have already hosted Mrs. Robinson screening events.

I sat down with Emily Moody, Director of Operations at Project Dandelion, to learn how they built this successful campaign. Here's exactly what worked for them—and what you can apply to your own film campaign.

The Strategy: Coordinated and Consistent Messaging

Their goal was to maximize viewership among audiences most likely to take meaningful action after watching the film. By focusing on women leaders—Project Dandelion's core audience—they could tap into an established global network of thousands of change-makers already committed to securing a climate-safe future for all. The team strategically timed their campaign between two significant dates and built momentum within the community.

“The screenings run from March 8, International Women's Day, to April 22, Earth Day. We aimed to reach people that would be inspired and motivated to act by the film, which for us is women leaders.”

The Plan: Right Channels, Right Ask

With a short runway and a limited budget, Project Dandelion needed to be smart about how they developed the campaign, who they targeted, and how they made the ask.

How:

They focused the majority of their activity on social and community newsletters.

1. Project Dandelion identified three audiences for outreach:
   1. Existing organizational partners (300 warm contacts)
   2. Newsletter subscribers (5,000 individuals)
   3. Climate content creators (50 individuals)
2. The team developed a unique and bold campaign that included:
   1. A 0:60 second trailer in several formats to be used across social platforms.
   2. Smart and simple social assets, including static images and a GIF, to give options to post and share.
   3. An easy-to-use campaign toolkit.

What: