Scottish Activist Documentary: Don't Be Alarmed to Launch Crowdfunder
The Scottish activist documentary Don't Be Alarmed is launching a crowdfunding campaign this month, seeking to raise money to cover post-production and delivery costs. The documentary follows the efforts of the activist group This is Rigged (Tír).
This film will show the journey of the group between 2022-2025, and their creative strategies to redistribute food to those in need, shut down oil exports, and disrupt global sporting events.
An example of their activism is the “Grangemouth 5” occupying the pipework at Grangemouth Oil Refinery in July 2023. The five were arrested and charged, one member being given a custodial sentence of 16 months in prison. From their social media, their member, Sam, said this before sentencing: “I was scared about protesting at Grangemouth Refinery. I was more terrified about what fossil-fuelled climate collapse will do for my son.”
Tír take action against and scrutinises the lack of work being done by the government to help the climate and improve the cost of living. In May of 2025, four This is Rigged activists were fined a total of £1,200 for staging a picnic in a Sainsburys in Edinburgh. This was done in protest of the high costs of everyday food items and necessities in the supermarket.
A total of £38 worth of food was taken by the group during the picnic protest. Xander, one of the campaigners, was quoted on the group’s Instagram saying: “This verdict is proof of nothing but the justice system’s fetish for defending corporate profiteers at the fatal expense of the people of Scotland”.
If these incidents alone are anything to go on, we can be assured to see some bold and inspiring activism from Tír in this upcoming documentary. The climate and cost of living emergencies are intertwined in that they are impacting everyone now and will only get worse if not challenged.
In the UK, resistance is a crime. Non-violent activism is a punishable offence and has landed people, simply holding a placard, in prison. Don’t Be Alarmed is an up close and personal viewpoint of this resistance. Let us all hope that one day mothers can afford baby milk, and it will simply be a historic account of a warped moment in time.
The Crowdfunder will begin this month and run for 6 weeks. It is supported by Creative Scotland's Crowdmatch scheme, meaning that every contribution up to £250 will be matched.
The documentary is directed by Christopher T McGill, a Grierson-nominated Scottish filmmaker, and produced by Franziska Bloder Aguayo, a Glasgow-based producer with a decade of freelance experience in TV and film.
To get updates on release dates and the Crowdfunder launch, follow @thisis.rigged and @dontbealarmed_film on Instagram.
