SUSTAINABILITY SCREEN NEW DEAL
LIGHTS,CAMERA, ENVIRONMENTAL ACT I ON WORDS Katie Kasperson
albert’s Screen New Deal details crucial steps towards a sustainable filmmaking future
I n 2020, albert – BAFTA’s sustainability branch – released the Screen New Deal, a 61-page guide to a greener film industry. The initiative outlines five key ways that productions can achieve this vision, from using and reusing environmentally friendly materials to repurposing sets, in the hopes of seeing fundamental change across the industry. It wasn’t until recently – the past few decades in truth – that sustainability became a major concern. Individuals are of course urged to be climate-conscious, but that places the onus on the wrong party; according to albert’s report, an
average day of filming ‘equates to more than one person’s annual carbon footprint’. Organisations, namely studios and production companies, must take responsibility and lead the way. albert claims the average tentpole feature impacts our ecosystems in ways we fail to recognise; carbon emissions from transportation, accommodation and energy utilities alone equal 2840 tonnes. In other words, instead of making one film, one person could complete 11 one-way trips to the moon, fill up on petrol 11,478 times and consume 168 years’ worth of plastic water bottles.
When translated into these simple terms, the issue is clear: the film industry needs an environmental overhaul.
STEP BY STEP The Screen New Deal offers a roadmap towards more sustainable practices, which are split into five categories: production materials, energy and water, studio buildings and facilities, studio sites and locations, and production planning. The guide offers action items and specific examples to help put each suggestion into practice.
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