With the awareness that film production directly and indirectly releases a large amount of carbon emissions into the environment, there have been calls for the film industry to reduce these release of pollutants. These initiatives come in the form of engaging eco-consultants, restructuring waste management and providing greener sustainable alternatives for film operations.

Sony Pictures Entertainment, a film production company, has implemented a green initiative that targets zero waste and cutting its carbon emissions. For example, the initiative recommends that all shows contract with a green caterer, eliminate disposable water (‘Sony Pictures: A Greener World’, n.d.). Furthermore, the studio is advancing their digital workflows such that the alternative to shoot digitally has avoided 20 million feet of film annually, which equivocates to 294 tons of carbon emissions (‘Sony Pictures: A Greener World’, n.d.). As such, this highlights how large film production companies can come up with various green initiatives to combat the existing challenges that derive from the environmental impacts of film production.

Nonetheless, it is important to acknowledge that there are limitations to these initiatives that might compromise the quality of the films produced. For one, shooting on a digital camera cannot capture the same depth that a film camera can achieve, which may impact the cinematography of the film. As such, transitioning into greener alternatives for film production may not be smooth-sailing due to the conflicting interests between sustainability and quality. This highlights just one of the many challenges that film companies might have to transition into greener production.

References

‘Sony Pictures: A Greener World’ (n.d.), Sony Pictures. Available at: https://www.sonypictures.com/corp/pdfs/SonyPicturesAGreenerWorld.pdf?misc=link.