Environment 101 > Green Production
This page about Green Production is sponsored by Reel Green Media green productionGreen Production includes practices and methods that help minimize the environmental impact during production. For filmmakers, the Center of Social Media at American University, refers to this as "sustainable filmmaking."
Have some information about Green Production that you would like to share with us?
Tell us about it! |
Articles about
Green ProductionEntertainment and the Environment By Lauren Selman of Reel Green Media One of the most influential players in the success of this new environmental movement is entertainment and media. From movies to plays, to magazines and webisodes, entertainment and media frame what is happening in the world in a creative way in order to make the message more available. Entertainers by nature are our society's storytellers and have the unique talent of raising social issues, showing the unseen and challenging us to think differently. Believe it or not, as the recession creeps at a petty pace, people are still going out to the movies and catching a play here or there. As the world gets harder to face, entertainment serves as a means for us to escape realty and look at our world a little differently. When it comes to the environment, entertainment serves as an integral vehicle of change and information. Think about it. When the message of global warming went to the silver screen with "An Inconvenient Truth," people began to pay attention. When celebrities started sporting hybrids and dressing in organic threads, more and more people are "going green." Previously environmentalists were a select few who participated in protests and ate things called organic foods, but today the faces of environmentalism are celebrities who have taken a stand to protect the environment like Leonardo DiCaprio, Cameron Diaz, Alicia Silverstone, Bette Midler, Edward Norton, Julia Roberts and George Clooney. Many members of the community serve on the boards of various environmental groups, while others donate and/or host fundraisers for specific organizations. When looking at environmental entertainment, there are two areas to explore—content and production. Environment Content is when the message, script and theme of the story carries environmental importance. Think of this like the environmental documentaries, network television how-to shows and "green" programming. Whereas Environmental Production, the less explored area of this topic, is focused on what does it take to make the content—the energy used, the water consumed, the miles traveled and the overall footprint of a movie, play, commercial or television show. Increasingly, this is beginning to change. Filmmakers, theater owners and big production studios are taking on climate change by adopting environmental practices into their means of production, but more can always be done. If we look at the environment as being the context in which entertainment is created, we can begin to see a larger picture of the environmental impact of filmmaking.
Facts about
Green ProductionHow can the entertainment industry “go green”? Every production, every play, every radio show is different. But what is consistent is that the entertainment industry is made up of a series of subcontractors and is woven into a web of policies, public sectors, and other ancillary industries. The movie industry alone often utilizes hotels, airlines, restaurants, rental cars companies and a multitude of other vendors. When making a movie, a scene may be shot in Rome, then Africa, then in Los Angeles, with the post production in San Francisco, or everything shot on a sound stage with constructed sets. Therefore, it is very difficult to determine there is one way to make a movie or one way to have a green film. For theaters and venue based entertainment producers, it is easier to look at the facility’s efficiency and implement systems that best fit the venue. For example, concerts and plays are typically easier to "green" than a film, because they usually don't move and it is easier to clearly mark waste systems, install refillable water stations, set up carpooling programs and install energy efficient lighting. How can you help entertainment go green? If you are not in production, you can still help entertainment go green. Entertainment is made for you, the audience. Consider what the environmental impact of going to see entertainment is. Can you carpool to the theater or take mass transportation? Can you bring a reuseable bag for popcorn? Can you bring your reuseable cups for your refreshments? Are you a vendor to the entertainment industry? If so, can you provide greener products and services to your clients? How is a green set different? How green you set is depends on a series of variables. From where the production is shot to the budget of the film, the "greenness" of the film depends on how willing the crew and producers are willing to make it. Overall a green set is one that takes consideration of the environment. Eco-conscious crews may do anything from carpooling to set, serving organic and local food at craft services, recycling and composting on set or donating props and sets after wrap. Green Production TipsGreen Theater Goers Broadway Goes Green: http://www.greenbroadway.com/ Green Theater Initiative: http://greentheaters.org/ Theater for a New City: http://www.theaterforthenewcity.net Green on the Silver Screen: Fox Green Guide: http://foxgreenguide.com WB Environmental Initiatives: http://wbenvironmental.warnerbros.com/ Disney: http://corporate.disney.go.com/responsibility/environment.html |
