Workshop on sustainability management in film production

At the workshop sustainability management in film production which was organized by the Film Commission Hamburg Schleswig-Holstein, production managers and line producers, producers and directors could deepen their experiences that they already made by producing sustainable  film projects. The workshop was headed by experts such as the corporate social responsibility adviser Nicola Knoch and the freelance sustainability adviser Philip Gassmann from Munich.

The German feature film Buddy that received a Green Shooting card from the Filmförderung Hamburg Schleswig- Holstein was shown as an example what kind of measures can be taken in order to produce a film in a sustainable way  This includes to hire sustainability advisers already during the pre-production, the communication on the set, the enthusiasm of the team for this subject as well as the sensitization of all crafts by a trained “Green Supervisor”.

It is important that there is a focus on certain areas such as waste management, carbon emissions as well as catering already during the preparatory phase. Nicola Knoch suggests to close cooperations with light equipment companies and transport companies in order to evaluate new technologies and communicate them to the the film industry.

Philipp Gassmann pointed out the advantages tof the LED light technology in film production. The participants of the workshop participant agree on the fact, that the additional costs should become part of the calculations for the commissioning broadcast stations.

“I am delighted that all the different workshop participants such as directors, producers, production managers or line producers see the issue of sustainable production as a positive chance for the film industry“, states Michael Geidel from the Green Film Initiative. „ At this workshop they  discussed and exchanged important practical approaches and tips for their work.“

In the second half of the workshops the various steps of sustainable production were compiled for different examples such as a TV movie, a documentary and a feature film.The three  groups had to define their working fields and set priorities. If a production requires a lot of travelling, it imakes sense to keep the team small, to rent  local equipment and to use public transportation.

For the production of a TV movie the  group decided to communicate digitally in the production office and to use as little paper as possible. Further measures include  bio-hotels for the crew members  as well as catering with regional and seasonal products.  In order to organize the sustainable production, they created the position of an assistant unit manager „This kind of exchange between the participants encouraged us that this is an important issue which can be implemented“, sums up Geidel. „This is an important issue besides all the practical knowledge we gained at the workshop.“