As we at Conservation Optimism are gearing up for the 2025 Good Natured Conservation Optimism Film Festival, we’re excited to spotlight one of our youngest featured filmmakers, Finn Middleton, and his entry for this year’s festival: “The Onny’s Story: A Fight for the Future.” Read on for a short interview about Finn’s journey, his sources of inspiration, and reasons for hope as a young person using his creative voice for nature.
Official poster for “The Onny’s Story: A Fight for the Future,” selected for the 2025 Good Natured Film Festival and nominated for Best Documentary at the Sustain Film Festival. (Courtesy of Finn Middleton)
In 2020, at just 12 years old, budding filmmaker Finn Middleton made his debut with a playful short film comparing English and Australian sharks, which was screened at the 2020 Good Natured Conservation Optimism Film Festival.
Now, five years later, Finn returns to the festival with a powerful new voice and a burning passion for conservation. His latest triumphant short documentary, “The Onny’s Story: A Fight for the Future,” tells the story of a grassroots campaign to stop a controversial pipeline development in the River Onny, Shropshire.
The film has already made a remarkable impact — earning Finn a Distinction in his Media Production course at Hereford College of Arts, securing a Best Documentary nomination at the Sustain Film Festival, and now being officially selected for the 2025 Good Natured Film Festival.
“I’ve always loved wildlife and storytelling, but this film feels different,” says Finn. “The River Onny is part of where I grew up, and I wanted to show how important it is to protect rivers like this for future generations, and the wildlife in it .”
Finn’s journey from a 12-year-old with a camera to a 17-year-old filmmaker with a recognised voice in conservation storytelling highlights the power of young people to shape the environmental conversation.
“The Onny’s Story: A Fight for the Future” will screen at the Good Natured Conservation Optimism Film Festival on October 25th at the Oxford University Museum of Natural History, alongside films from across the globe that highlight resilience, sustainability, and hope.
Could you tell us what sparked your interest in conservation? When did you realize you could pursue conservation through filmmaking?
I love the ocean, and I have for 16 years. Growing up on the coast of Ireland, I spent every spare moment around the water – swimming, searching the beach for objects, or learning through books, films, and TV shows – The Octonauts being one of my favourites. This early passion grew into a genuine interest in the ocean: how it works, how we depend on it, and how we can protect it. During Lockdown, I was inspired to turn my passion into something meaningful. With support from my parents, I began creating weekly YouTube films focused on the sea, exploring wildlife, conservation groups and amazing animals.
What do you find special about the medium of filmmaking when it comes to telling stories of conservation? What’s your favorite part of the process?
I find that filmmaking is one of the best ways to convey your thoughts and emotions about a topic, as it allows you to visualise anything you think of and share it with an audience, either through a screening or online. Having the freedom to present, capture and create anything you like and creating something that can really captivate people’s attention is something really important – especially if it’s about conservation and protecting the environment.
My favourite part of making “The Onny’s Story” was filming my title sequence as well as some other of the clearest shots of the river down by Leintwardine. The fish there was in the hundreds and just surrounded me when I got into the water with the GoPro, as well as the water being some of the most pure and crystal clear water I’ve ever seen in the UK. I was lucky to capture that footage when I could because a few weeks later, the river had completely dried up in the section that I filmed in due to the heat!
Finn, age 12, in his debut short film about English vs Australian sharks, which
screened at the Good Natured Film Festival in 2020. (Courtesy of Finn Middleton)
Finn filming on location at the River Onny, Shropshire, during production of his documentary. (Courtesy of Finn Middleton)
Have your feelings for the River Onny changed since making your short film, compared to when you would visit it growing up?
My feelings towards the river have turned into what was a just normal thought about some geological formation that carried water to and fro, to now a genuine respect to the river that carries and supports the wildlife that thrive off of it. Even when its been degraded through pollution I’ve always managed to see wild salmon and trout in the water, as well as kingfishers and herons around the banks and in the air- they were always too quick for me to get my camera and film them though!
As a young person, what makes you hopeful about the future?
As a young person, I look up to others around me doing amazing things, and it inspired me to start creating videos and hopefully to inspire others to start helping out and having the passion I do to help and protect the oceans, as well as the planet.
My biggest inspirations are people like Ocean Ramsey – Who has shined a light on great white sharks and free dives with them regularly, exposing the truth behind their portrayal in the media. Another big one which has inspired me has been David Attenborough, ever since I’ve watched his documentaries I’ve loved the way he presents and entertains, all the while informing people about whats happening from the deepest of jungles to the vast oceans.
What’s next for you? Any upcoming projects or new interests you want to share?
I think once I finish college, I’m going to travel the world and scuba dive in the most amazing parts of the ocean, filming while I’m there, and once I’m done, I will create short films for each of the areas I dived in and talk about how they’re so special compared to anywhere else in the world, possibly having a conservationist speaker in each film signifying why its important to protect this part of the world. E.g. A film about tiger sharks in South Africa with someone who works at the South Africa Shark Conservancy being a speaker.
Finn will also join us as a Q&A panelist at the 2025 Good Natured Film Festival on October 25th, at the Oxford University Museum of Natural History.
Tickets to the event are available here. For those who can’t make it in person, the entire event — including the short films, Q&A session, and award ceremony — will also be livestreamed directly on our Youtube channel, starting from 6:30pm GMT +1. We hope to see you there!
