Green Filmmaking is a Budding Independent Movement

In 2014, the Environmental Media Association awarded the Green Seal to The Amazing Spider-Man 2 for outstanding efforts in sustainable filmmaking. The Sony Pictures blockbuster production had committed to a carbon-neutral shoot which, according to the studio, made it the “greenest” film in its history.

The cast and crew followed a green initiative that included major waste reduction, food donations, and nature restoration at certain shooting locations. These policies were executed under the supervision of Eco Manager Emellie O’Brien, who even went as far as to award a crew member every week for exceptional commitment to a sustainable production. Environmentally, the film was vastly ahead of its time. Six years later, it still is.

Hollywood is notoriously slow to adapt to cultural changes. As Rosanna Arquette put it in a guest blog on The Wrap, if the #MeToo movement is any indication, it takes thousands of voices, protests, and exposés to even begin to make meaningful progress. The film industry’s overarching reaction to climate change has not mirrored the progressivism of its biggest names and, at least at the level of major studios, does not appear to be moving in the right direction any time soon.

With only occasional exceptions like Spider-Man 2, not aided by a dismal box office performance, many studios’ environmental promises have rung hollow. Universal Studios has pledged commitment to more sustainable productions and was at first commended for their efforts on the 2018 feature Jurassic World: Fallen Kingdom. The film’s reliance on product placement from companies like Dr Pepper, Doritos, and Dairy Queen, however, reveals that the higher-ups give little thought to the many pollutants of their commercial partners.

Incremental shifts in large-scale productions are made only when financially convenient for the studios involved. For example, LED lights, while more efficient and sustainable, happen to be extremely compact and cost-effective, leading to their eclipse of Halogen lamps.

At a high level, studio executives “just need to get the thing shot,” says Patrick Gallo, an actor, editor, and independent filmmaker based in New York, “Their pressures are so different. They’re not the ones that are going to birth the great movement of green filmmaking.” So, who is? If Hollywood’s most powerful can’t seem to make a difference, where can we expect the industry to make strides?

Patrick Gallo began his career in film more than 25 years ago as a self-proclaimed “Guerrilla-style filmmaker.” “We didn’t have any green so the production became green if you know what I mean,” he said in a phone interview, describing one of his early, ultra low budget narrative shorts. With no resources to hire a full crew, Gallo and his associates would double up on production roles, some actors taking over lighting design or sound recording when they weren’t in front of the camera.

Gallo’s early productions had next to no carbon footprint out of necessity. “The challenge becomes addictive in itself,” Gallo added, expressing his excitement about the present possibilities of smartphone filmmaking.

As an editor, Gallo sees potential to slim down post-production, too. “I think most of {post-production} can be remote. We’re advanced enough in this industry where we don’t all need to be huddled in a rented studio space taking up room somewhere. Clients don’t need to walk into a fancy office to see a cut, and that alone could change a lot of things.”

Not all productions can cut corners, though, and for independent filmmakers, staying environmental can actually start to rack up expenses. Tay Thai is a documentary producer working in Los Angeles and finds that implementing sustainable practices into a shoot is “more of a personal choice than it is with production. It starts with yourself.”

Thai conducts the majority of her work in the field and faces decisions as a producer about what resources and materials should be present on set. In her more recent projects, she’s discovered a wealth of applications that can help take the place of more traditional pen-and-paper busywork. There are digital clappers, storyboards, shot designers, all compatible with most smart devices.

In an average documentary set, though, one of the largest sources of waste comes from plastic water bottles. “It’s a lot easier to drop $5 on a case of water bottles than it is to make the one-time investment on a $60 water bottle that will last you for a while,” Thai commented in a phone interview.

However, according to Thai, a waste-free set can present a particular advantage when shooting documentaries. Subjects are more receptive to courteous crews that respect the location of the shoot.

For independent narrative filmmakers, budgets rarely account for sustainability practices. The grant program SHIFT has opted to incentivize greener productions by awarding three or four grants to narrative shorts committed to shooting on environmentally friendly sets. Manager Grace Amodeo has “been hearing rumblings around the industry” about moving towards sustainability for some time, and hopes other grants will encourage more carbon-neutral productions in the future.

Amodeo brought on Good Planet to assist in this year’s productions. The organization specializes in sustainable filmmaking, and stations coordinators on set to ensure composting, donations of unused food and costumes, and avoidance of single-use plastics are strictly followed.

“Their hope is that it becomes normal,” Amodeo said of the group, “that budgeting out for sustainability becomes kind of a normal thing. I don’t think we’re there yet.” According to Amodeo, the crew was receptive to the new routine and made it a point to ask the appointed coordinator multiple questions about proper recycling and composting procedures.

Optimistically, Amodeo shared, “Having just come off this set, I think my biggest takeaway is ‘Wow, this isn’t as hard as I thought it would be.’”

Mazin Akar, an actor whose directorial debut “Valens” is set for release this fall, had a similarly positive experience integrating sustainable practices into his shoot. His team shot the Sci-Fi docu-drama in Lebanon, a country without an established film industry, and no environmental incentives in place.

Akar faced a dilemma of how fervently to pursue a green production. “It was left to me and my team to say ‘Look if we’re gonna really make a difference here, let’s set a good example,’” Akar said in a phone interview.

Ultimately, Akar emphasized the importance of minimizing waste from catering, a department that he believes will experience the most change in a more sustainable era. He coordinated homemade meals and used reusable dishes where possible, encouraged crew members to bring reusable water bottles, and made water jugs available on set.

Akar reports that he received overwhelmingly positive feedback from his crew, who felt that productions like “Valens” were the “whole reason we got into this business, to begin with.”

As Akar sees it, however, the film industry is experiencing something of a wake-up call. “This pandemic, if anything, has been a clear sign that things need to change,” he said, “but I think by putting everybody on lockdown and putting a pause to industry for a second, it’s been able to grant everybody that POV that this really equals a hell of a break for Mother Nature.”

On-set conduct isn’t the only thing shifting toward environmentalism. The technology is, inevitably, evolving.

LED lighting dominates all manner of film sets, but Halogens still persist as dramatic hard-lights. The ARRI Orbiter LED light could very well change that, with a revolutionary upcoming model promising an “open face, soft light, and...an output similar to that of the corresponding HMI systems,” which are significantly less energy efficient.

Equipment distributors like Rule Camera Boston are joining the green movement. Brian Malcolm, one of the company’s managers, stated, “On purpose, we’re very focused on LED technology.”

Rule helps incoming filmmakers put together packages of lenses, lighting, and other equipment for their projects, specifically tailored toward digital film cameras. The rentals are held in reusable cases that last between five and ten years and are free of any single-use plastic. The shop has even found ways to repurpose the foam packing that comes with incoming shipments by padding their own rental kits.

Over the years, Malcolm has noticed significant improvements in the packaging materials of the cameras they receive, and wider recycling opportunities. Anton Bauer, one of the largest battery manufacturers in the industry, offers up to 25% off new batteries for trade-ins.

Disney will not likely be committing to carbon neutrality anytime this decade, and the next Warner Bros. film may very well feature a Nestlé advertisement, but on the independent level, things are beginning to take shape for the environmental filmmaking movement.

The Massachusetts Film Office recently published its Green Resource Guide as a reference form for filmmakers. NYC Film Green provides New York filmmakers with sweeping environmental incentives.

As Grace Amodeo said, “Maybe it’s just that, that now that I’ve become aware of {sustainable filmmaking} I’m kind of seeing it everywhere.” Any significant shift toward a greener industry will start from the bottom up, and there are already countless individuals working tirelessly to see that vision through.