The Sustainability & Film Relationship

Sustainability is important to every industry, especially film, as each production (with an average $70 million budget) produces a carbon footprint of 3,370 metric tons. With increasing global awareness and accountability of companies’ impacts on climate change, reducing waste and carbon footprint takes precedence. Different TV productions have a varying impact on the environment, as shown in Figure 1. Certain factors can affect how much a production will emit, such as the number of cameras used to shoot an episode and having multiple filming locations. As these factors often increase with a larger production budget, so does the average carbon emission. This trend is presented in Figure 2. Both graphs exemplify that TV and film productions create an abundance of carbon emissions, significantly affecting the atmosphere. However, carbon emissions are not the only aspect of sustainability the film industry must focus on. Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) provided by the United Nations (UN) show that practicing sustainability involves much more than climate change. While the film industry is making many strides towards greener productions, there are many issues that have yet to be addressed. Such issues include livable wages (SDG 8), gender equality (SDG 5), and responsible production and consumption (SDG 12). These are a few of the most prevalent ways that the film industry can follow the path of sustainability per the UN guidelines.

Climate Action: COP26

COP26 (2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference) is a pivotal conference that took place between October 31 and November 12, 2021 in Glasgow, United Kingdom. During this conference, 200 nations gathered to talk about the Paris Climate Agreement (PCA) with a focus on climate financing and creating new and more ambitious sustainability goals. COP26 addressed that in order to meet the original PCA (2015), carbon emissions will have to be cut down at least 45% by 2030 to stay below the +1.5C goal. The outcome of this conference is a new deal called the Glasgow Climate Pact, which addresses the changes that must occur in order to avoid a climate disaster. Many countries made new goals to make the switch from fossil fuels to alternative energy, as well as 100 world leaders agreeing to end deforestation by 2030. Other goals the new climate pact addressed was restoring and conserving habitats (ex. Amazon Rainforest), as well as collaboration between countries and their resources. 

Although great goals and ideas came out of COP26, many smaller countries, who are already being affected by climate change, do not think there is enough being done. Countries who are more at risk want greater changes to happen on a much faster timeline than countries who are less at risk to climate change. Two of the largest coal-using countries, India and China, argued for a change from “moving away from coal” to “using less coal”. This change in language was expected by many, thus it was unsurprising. Many developing countries feel that accountability is the most important part of the climate act because there have been many unmet promises in past climate pacts. In fact, deforestation has been increasing, despite plans created in 2014 to end it. Again, this emphasizes the importance of accountability and how large countries and industries must be proactive in making climate change their priority. 

Numerous great ideas and challenges came out of COP26, showing that countries need to revise their own climate goals and reinvest in alternative practices that are hurting the environment (ex. deforestation). Every country must realize that in order to avoid what scientists are predicting, they will need to pool together resources and change their own goals on climate action. The film industry is no exception and will have to make greater strides towards sustainability in the next decade.

Productions: Large vs Indie Studios

Addressing differences between large and independent studios plays a large role in the path to sustainability for the film industry. Large film studios have a much greater impact on the environment, yet also have the resources to be more sustainable and set a precedent for smaller studios in the future. For example, large production studios are able to hire eco-managers or sustainability coordinators to help implement sustainable practices. On the other hand, independent films tend to be more sustainable for many reasons – the most influential is production size. Independent productions usually have a smaller budget films produced by studios such as Disney or Sony, meaning that they have less money and resources throughout the process. Emilie O’Brien, an eco-manager, states that most of the time, having a sustainable production relies on who is producing the film. Every film is able to practice sustainability with minimal change, but it all depends on who is in charge. Emilie is the co-founder of Earth Angel, and helps productions by monitoring and assisting in sustainable efforts on film productions.

Pioneers in Greening the Industry

Green Production Guide

One of the most prominent organizations addressing sustainability in the United States’ film industry is the Green Production Guide (GPG), created by the Producers Guild of America Foundation (PGA) and the Sustainable Production Alliance (SPA) in 2010. They are a toolkit to help reduce the carbon impact of the film industry (including TV and streaming), which focuses on the SDGs about responsible production/consumption (#12) and climate action (#13). The GPG is also partnered with major studios such as Disney, Amazon, Viacom, and Netflix, who have made active changes to become more sustainable. One of the most recent sustainable productions that the GPG was a part of is Disney’s Call of the Wild (2020). However, GPG recognizes that there is still work to be done for the film industry to be sustainable and acknowledge the impact film has on the environment , as the are actively working to change societal norms within the industry. 

Other aspects of the Green Production Guide include their Green Film School Alliance (GFSA). The GFSA is a collaboration between film schools across the country to integrate sustainable practices in film at an educational level. GFSA recently launched a program called PEACHy, which is a collection of sustainable practices for every department on a production to follow in order to be considered sustainable. Having an area that focuses on education of sustainable practices follows another SDG about quality education and life-long learning. Education is another way organizations can work towards sustainability in the film industry.

There are similar companies based in and outside of the US that have similar missions to the GPG, but approach the subject in different ways. Some focus on providing eco-managers and other focus on the overall energy consumption patterns of the entertainment industry. Two notable organizations that also engage in this work are Sustainable Production Forum and Green Filmmaking.

Earth Angel

As previously mentioned, Earth Angel is an organization that focuses on changing industry with practical and inventive new solutions to implement on production sites. Most people who work on production sets see their environmental impact once filming is over, but audiences do not realize this waste exists. Earth Angel provides a variety of services that help all aspects of a production including sound stages, production vendors, film offices, and productions themselves. They focus on four key areas (strategy, staff, stuff, stats) and base their services off of the needs of their client. Some services include an eco-production assistant, consulting, proper waste management, and eco-footprint tracking. Since 2013, Earth Angel has helped reduce emissions in the industry by 21.1%, donated 129,201 pounds of materials, and save clients over $1.2 million. 

Green Film Shooting

Based in Germany, the Green Film Shooting focuses on the energy and resource consumption of all media outlets in Europe. Energy consumption is a much larger goal for them because it also means cost efficiency. Their website is also a forum where industry professionals can share ideas of how to combat energy consumption in media. Since Green Film Shooting addresses the whole media industry, it is important to note that this includes IT management, cinemas, commercials, and broadcast technology. While different from Earth Angels and the GPG, these sectors are still important, as they directly relate to the film industry. 

Green Screen 

Green Screen is another organization based out of the EU focused on helping create sustainable practices within the European film industry. Many of these organizations have similar goals, what differentiates them is mainly location and policies in place in their specific regions. Green Screen is partnered with eight different filming regions throughout the continent, some include Belgium, Romania, France, and Sweden. Since this organization is a part of the European Union, there are certain policies in place (not specific to entertainment) that Green Screen is working towards with their different partners around the continent.

Sustainably-Made Films & TV Shows

Addressing the harm that the film industry puts on the environment is an important step in changing norms and producing more environmentally conscious films and TV shows. The following list shows and films have been labeled sustainable productions, and are accompanied with an explanation as to how they achieved recognition of sustainability. While this is a non-exhaustive list, it shows similarities and differences between studios and how they approach environmental issues on set.

Call of the Wild (Disney, 2020)

One of the largest motivators of producing this sustainable film was the book this film was based on. These initiatives to manage materials and waste properly ended up saving roughly 82% of materials from being thrown into a landfill, which helped their overall carbon footprint as well. One key figure on set was the sustainability manager, Adrienne Pfieffer. During the beginning stages of production, Adrienne would meet with each department to discuss efforts to reduce waste and set goals for the filming process. Though her role on set is to help a production, many crew members would propose more ideas that the production could implement to reduce waste even further. This harkens back to the ideology of Emilie O’Brien about the role sustainability managers have on set and how they are resources to crew members. 

The key areas during filming that made the most difference were the small changes around the set. Reusable water bottles were widely available throughout production. Avoiding single-use plastics saved the production $33,000. Another small change is proper food waste management. Leftovers were donated, saving 1,515 pounds of food from being thrown into a landfill. Production sites are often destroyed once filming is done, which is extremely wasteful. During this film, Disney made their Call of the Wild sets permanent for future use to avoid this. Lastly, since their many filming locations were considered long-term, the crew was able to use solar energy and electric powered vehicles throughout the production. 

Amazing Spider-Man 2 (Sony, 2014)

The Amazing Spider-Man 2 was awarded the Green Seal by the Environmental Media Association, an organization that analyzes film submissions based on their sustainability practices on set. This award shows the public that the film industry can implement environmentally safe practices during the production process. As more films that receive this award are analyzed, it is clear that they share a commonality in the small changes they make. The Amazing Spider-Man 2 had a sustainability manager on set to support a sustainable production processes. One thing that made this film stand out was that their sustainability practices were documented on Twitter (@EcoSpidey) for audiences and fans to see.

End-of-filming sustainable accomplishments included redirecting 52% of materials, that would have otherwise ended up in a landfill, for reuse. The production made effort to save materials for future productions or for donation, adding up to 49.7 tons of materials. On set, there was a mandatory switch from single use plastic to reusable water bottles for everyone. Lastly, they donated 5,862 meals to local shelters during filming to prevent food waste. Overall, sustainability saved the film’s budget around $400,000. These numbers show that planning for sustainability is not costly and is, in fact, quite easy when done properly.

Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom (Universal, 2018)

Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom was filmed in two different locations: the UK and Hawaii. Travel can add up to almost a quarter of total emissions of the average film production, which is why having two locations can be such a costly decision if sustainability is not being considered. However, this did not deter the production team from making those small changes to offset the carbon footprint from traveling. 

First, all vehicles on set were hybrid in order to cut costs on fuel consumption (another area that greatly raises emissions). Another way the crew was environmentally conscious was using LED lighting during 75% of filming. And previously mentioned, reusable water bottles and food management were two other ways the crew was able to practice sustainability. Food was donated to shelters in the UK and to local schools in Hawaii, saving up 145 kilos of food that otherwise would have been wasted. So far, there are trends throughout these three productions that show proper management and planning are key to environmentally friendly productions.

The Woman in the Window (Twentieth Century Fox, 2019)

Twentieth Century Fox partnered with Earth Angel for the production of The Woman in the Window to be sustainable. The organization helped create incentives to recycle and create less waste. With 86% of waste redirected from landfills, this film was the greenest production in the company’s history. During the filming process, the crew recycled anything they possibly could, which led to saving 13 lbs of electronic waste and donating 86,000 pounds of materials by the end of production. Overall, 73% of waste was redirected from landfills and 17,000 lbs of food was donated to shelters. The film also practiced the use of hybrid vehicles and avoiding single-use plastic water bottles.

The Mandalorian (Disney, 2019)

The Mandalorian worked to be sustainable in a different way than most films nowadays. Instead of waste management and reusable water bottles, the crew used technology to avoid creating a large carbon footprint. By using virtual backdrops that fit the Star Wars universe, the crew was able to save money and time by not having to travel to all of the locations that Star Wars productions have used in the past. Although unforeseeable, it was immensely helpful during Covid-19, as traveling became nearly impossible. Since no sets were built and traveling was not part of the production cost, its footprint was about 30 tons less than a production of similar size. Virtual productions are a technology that still needs to be explored (ex. Jungle Book and Lion King), as not many studios have used them before. Covid-19 may change this due to regulations that limit how many people can be on set at a time, making virtual stages more convenient.

What works

After analyzing the previous productions, there are clear trends throughout their processes that helped them be sustainable. Partnering with different green organizations such as Earth Angel and The Green Production Guide has helped studios learn and implement sustainable practices with greater ease into their film sets. One constant between all of the productions is proper planning. By slowing down and focusing on proper management of materials, studios are able to save money (ex. Amazing Spider-Man 2) and materials from going to landfills. Many of the changes stated above seem minute in the grand scheme of an entire film production, but it shows that these small changes make a large difference in their carbon footprints and emissions. 
The most important component of a sustainable production is the crew being committed to changing their habits and working towards the same goal. Emilie O’Brien states that it can be difficult to have people change their habits, but if an eco-manager is on set, it shows that they are wanting to change. Additionally, since larger studios are creating the most waste, it is important that they acknowledge their impact and work to change their practices. One example of this are “Sustainability Statements,” which are usually found on most companies’ websites. Some tend to be more ambitious than others (Netflix vs Sony), which relates to the accountability issue raised at COP26. Many world leaders who attended COP26 believe that change will not happen until it is actually seen, which can also be said of large film studios in the industry.

remaining work to be done

During the COP26 conference, many leaders stated that collaboration is key to fighting climate change. Larger countries emit much more greenhouse gases than smaller countries, causing smaller countries to demand reparations for the harm that larger countries have caused at their expense. This inequity can be compared to the carbon emissions of large film studios and those of independent studios. Since climate change is a subject of vital importance, the best way to make the greatest changes is by working together. The same can be said about studios’ resources. Most studios have recently been partnering with green organizations to work on reducing their carbon footprint, but they should also be looking into partnering with each other for their resources. This is outside of the norm in the entertainment industry, which tends to be fast-paced and extremely competitive with goals create as much content as possible. For example, Disney created permanent sets during their production of Call of the Wild that can be used for future productions, but they did not explicitly state if it could only be used for Disney productions or not. Collaboration between studios will be the next big step towards sustainability for the film industry to address.

The Paris Climate Agreements and the COP26 conferences help shine a light on what needs to be addressed immediately for the world to continue on. But hile climate action is one of the most important aspects of sustainability at the moment, there are many other aspects of the SDGs that need to be met in order to create a sustainable world. In order for the film industry to follow the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) by 2030, problems relating to wage and gender inequality pose a large barrier to true sustainability in the film industry and the world in general. 

IATSE

Recently, the IATSE union local to Los Angeles held a strike regarding wages. Livable wages are an important aspect of having a sustainable world, and the film industry must address it immediately. This strike emulates how low pay wages affect industry professionals who have to have multiple jobs in order to make a living. Workers who have come forward saying they rely on family and friends for income because of how low their wages are in comparison to the cost of living. In a survey of 1,000 IATSE members, 79% said they were making below fifty thousand a year, which is considered rent-burdened in the state of California. The goal of the strike is to give higher wages for industry workers and to have longer turn-around between jobs. Turnaround refers to the amount of time between the end and beginning of a shift and the time between the workweek and weekend. For this particular IATSE strike, the goal is to have a 10-hour turnaround for day to day and 54-hour turnarounds between work week and weekend. Wages are set to rise by 62% for the lowest paid workers by 2024, which will raise the quality of living for many industry professionals in the Los Angeles area.  

Gender Equality

Gender equality is another important SDG to address in the film industry. Covid-19 has hindered gender equality in all industries, as every 1 in 4 women have stepped down to take care of their family, as opposed to 1 in 5 men who have done the same during the pandemic. In the film industry, only 14% of films were considered to have a cast that was gender-balanced as of 2019. Netflix in particular has released reports about investing in education for underrepresented groups in film such as women and BIPOC. This dives into not only the SDG about gender equality but also the SDG about quality education and life-long learning for all. This shows that there are plenty of ways the film industry should address sustainability other than climate action.

Film’s sustainable future

There are many different ways that the film industry can work towards sustainability. Climate action is the most important of these issues, especially with new goals being released via the COP26 conference and other goals including the UN’s 2030 goal for SDGs. One key subject from the COP26 conference that should transfer to the film industry is collaboration. While great strides toward creating sustainably-made films during production have been made, collaboration of resources between studios can further this path towards waste reduction in the industry. Large film studios have the funds and labor to be more sustainable and therefore set a precedent for other studios to follow. There are also many resources through green organizations for studios to use to further their knowledge. 

Currently, there are many great examples of green productions and more will follow in the future. Even with the pandemic, studios have been able to create sustainable productions via technology (ex. The Mandalorian) and proper planning. Covid-19 has shown that plan properly leads to increased use of sustainable practices, even if it began mainly a response to planning a production in order to follow Covid-19 safety protocols. There have been many pros and cons to the pandemic, but for the film industry, it has helped normalize sustainable practices on set. The future of the industry relies on holding studios accountable for their actions and carbon footprints, similar to the COP26 idea of large countries being accountable for their actions on climate change. Hopefully the next few years will show greater advancements in these ideals and practices of sustainability in Hollywood and worldwide.