the young offenders series 2 & 3 · throughout the shoot. this way you can consistently be...
TRANSCRIPT
SUSTAINABLE PRODUCTION: CASE STUDY
THE YOUNG OFFENDERS SERIES 2 & 3 prepared by Sharon Cronin and Sacha Dillon
While shooting the second and third series of The Young
Offenders, we aimed to get certified as an environmentally
sustainable production through BAFTA’s Albert scheme.
Albert is a collaborative BAFTA, indie and broadcaster
backed project that provides the film and television
industries with the necessary expertise and resources to
incorporate sustainable practices into productions. Albert
seeks to ‘enable every part of the screen industry to
eliminate waste and carbon emissions from production and
empower industry creatives to make editorial content that
supports a vision for a sustainable future.’
During production, we decided to hold Eco Week - one
intensive week to educate and engage the cast and crew
with the Albert Scheme.
We constructed the week as a competition to see which
department could be the most eco-friendly. Our aim was
to make the week easy for everyone to participate in
alongside filming. Departments were encouraged to get
creative and find ways to improve and become more
environmentally-friendly.
This document details how we created Eco Week and what
it entailed. It will also demonstrate the various actions that
different departments undertook to be more sustainable
which helped us achieve our 3 star certification from Albert
as a sustainable production.
Who takes part in
Eco Week?
We broke our departments down as follows:
• AD’s
• Art Department / Props / Construction
• Accounts / Edit
• Cast
• Costume
• Camera
• Hair / Makeup
• Electrical
• Sound / Script / Medic
• Transport / Facilities
Make sure that each department has a similar amount of people.
Smaller departments can be combined if necessary.
We decided that because the Production and Locations departments
were implementing many of the environmental policies it would be
unfair for them to take part. Instead they oversaw the competition and
awarded the points.
How does Eco Week work?
The points system is displayed below. Each good activity earns a department points while each negative action removes points.
Keep the points system simple so departments can easily follow the rules.
POSITIVE ACTIONS
TWO POINTS
• Using a keep cup.
• Refilling a water bottle.
• Recycling and composting correctly.
• Reusing waste items.
FIVE POINTS
• Carpooling.
• Walking / cycling to work.
10 POINTS
• Department Initiatives (eg using second hand materials, LED lights, rechargeable batteries).
NEGATIVE ACTIONS
MINUS TWO POINTS
• Using throw away cups.
• Using incorrect bins.
• Littering on location (rubbish and cigarette butts).
• Bringing cars to set unnecessarily.
• Using single-use plastics.
• Coffee runs without keep cups.
• Abandoning rubbish.
Keep track of a department’s points using a leaderboard which is displayed somewhere everyone can see it - we found the best place was the set table / tea and coffee area.
We made our leaderboard with the help of old materials from the production office and art department.
Make sure it is sturdy and not too big so that it can be easily transported between locations.
Who
gives out
points? Our eco week was run through the
production department and we
designated our production trainee,
Sacha Dillon to assign points throughout
the day.
How do you know when to give a
department points or remove
points?
We encouraged people to send photo proof via a designated
WhatsApp group.
This works as an easy way to make sure everyone gets the correct points.
Its also shows cast and crew what other departments are doing to be
more environmentally conscious and acts as a great motivational tool for
the competition.
Similarly, everyone can send photos of opposition departments
engaging in environmentally destructive activity resulting in negative
points!
What’s the
prize? There has to be an incentive. For our Eco Week the prize
for the winning department was a lunch delivery from a
locally owned restaurant of their choice.
We also awarded two spot prizes each day. The first was
presented at lunch to an individual who was making a
particular effort to reduce their carbon footprint.
The second was awarded on wrap for ‘Department of the
Day’. This was usually given to the department that was
leading the competition.
SOCIAL MEDIA We created a hash tag for Eco Week so that cast, crew and the industry could
follow along. Ours was #TYOECOWEEK
Type to enter text
TOP TIPS! Eco Week was hugely successful in engaging the cast and crew in
making the production more environmentally friendly. It empowered
people and showed them the difference they could make through small
but effective changes. Most importantly though it really got everyone on
the set discussing how they could improve their departments in the
future. Crew members who worked on The Young Offenders have also
carried what they learned on Eco Week onto subsequent productions.
Our key tips are:
• Choose the week you hold Eco Week wisely - make sure its not a week
where people are overly busy.
• Give people plenty of notice, circulate an email detailing your plans for Eco Week and then speak to people about it so that everyone knows what the aims are.
• Communication is key - start a group chat where all the cast and crew
can send their ‘proof photos’. This encourages everyone to get
involved, keeps momentum going and is a great way to track the
week.
• Keep momentum going - message people over breakfast about the
day’s prizes so they have something to aim towards. Midweek is when
people can lose interest so offer ‘bonus points’ for achievable
activities.
• Don’t be too hard on people. Eco Week is all about educating people
to contemplate how they can change their actions. While giving out
negative points is part of the week make sure people know how they
can improve.
• Not everyone wants to be part of Eco Week - some departments or individuals will not be interested.
• Make sure your prizes are environmentally friendly - we had succulents, plants, bamboo toothbrushes and reusable makeup cloths.
DURING
THE
SHOOT
Production
Department
Sustainability was not just encouraged during Eco
Week. In order to encourage an eco-friendly ethos
throughout the production we felt it was important to
begin with how the Production Department
operated.
Throughout the shoot a paperless policy was
implemented when it came to crew contracts, time
sheets, mileage forms and petty cash forms. As
much as possible was done electronically using
digital signatures and we consulted our legal
representatives early on to ensure that the digitally
signed crew contracts would be legally binding. We
had an opt-in policy for printed scripts, callsheets,
and schedules. This dramatically reduced the
amount we spent on paper and ink. It also
decreased the amount we had to pay on recycling
and shredding.
In the kitchen there was Ecover washing up liquid
and dishwasher tablets used to reduce pollution. To
cut our emissions we also tried to arrange as many
Skype meetings as possible to avoid travelling.
The production department installed a comprehensive recycling and
composting system in the production office. There was extensive signage
to encourage and educate people on proper recycling and composting.
There was also a list of what items are recyclable in Ireland to help
eliminate ‘wishcycling’.
Introducing a recycling system also saved the production money when it
came to our waste collection bill. Panda Greenstar, who were our waste
collection company, charged €15 for an 1100L recycling bin whereas an
1100L general waste bin cost €30 per collection.
CATERING We used compostable cutlery and plates for our meals however if
possible using proper plates and cutlery and having a dishwashing
system in place is best.
The trays which the evening sandwiches came in were returned to
the catering company who reused them and any leftover
sandwiches were donated to Simon and Penney Dinners to reduce
our food waste.
With regards to the set table all the snacks were palm oil free and
vegan.
REUSABLE COFFEE
CUPS AND WATER
BOTTLES
The production also supplied reusable coffee cups and water bottles to
each crew member, meaning we had no plastic water bottles on set and
very little coffee cups.
We also encouraged our cast and crew dailies and our background extras
to bring their own reusable cups and bottles.
This helped eliminated the use of disposable plastics and also cut down
hugely on our waste.
LOCATIONS
DEPARTMENT It is impossible to run a green set without the support of
the Locations Department.
Our Locations team were very dedicated to ensuring
that there was a proper bin system in place.
We used the Glon three bin system which encompassed
recycling, composting and general waste.
COSTUME
DEPARTMENT Eco Week provided an opportunity for departments to
tell us about what they were doing to be more climate
conscious and got them more involved in the
certification process for Albert.
Our Costume Department had some great initiatives in
place.
They used Ecover washing detergent to avoid putting
harmful chemicals into the water system.
They air-dried all the costumes and avoided using
tumble dryers unless absolutely necessary.
Compostable clothes and shoe bags were used rather
than plastic ones. They also used biodegradable baby
wipes.
They sourced a huge amount of costumes second hand.
This reduced our carbon footprint as well as saving the
production money.
They used fabric offcuts to make accessories and reused
old sides to make labels for hangers.
ELECTRICAL
DEPARTMENT The Electrical Department had many green practices in
place which earned them numerous points during Eco
Week.
They used LED lights which led to a three fold decrease
in our energy consumption! This also dramatically
reduced our dependence on generators.
The Electrical Department repaired all their own
equipment which reduced our WEEE waste.
They also recycled all their batteries and bulbs and
reused all their gels.
ART & PROPS
DEPARTMENTS
The Production Designer reused the set build from their
previous job which saved the production money and
encouraged a more circular economy. The set build was
then taken onto the Lighting Designer’s next job.
The Props Department sourced second hand props when
possible and donated any usable props to charities on wrap.
They also used VOC and water based paints where possible.
CERTIFICATION After submitting all of our evidence to Albert and calculating our
carbon footprint we were certified as a sustainable production
with a three star rating!
Accommodation was our biggest contributor to our carbon
footprint. After this disposal, office energy use and transport were
our next biggest contributors. We could have mitigated these by
hiring more local crew, reducing our waste, using a renewable
energy provider for the office electricity and avoiding flights for
cast and directors. These are all measures which we can
implement on future productions.
However, rather than just calculating a production’s carbon
footprint on wrap it is much more effective to keep track of it
throughout the shoot. This way you can consistently be working
on lowering your production’s carbon emissions.
Now that the Irish version of the carbon calculator has been
launched our hope is that more productions will start
implementing sustainable measures and use the calculator as a
way to track their efforts.
Running a more environmentally friendly production does not
have to be a mammoth task. Hopefully this case study has
demonstrated that with simple behaviour changes and planning
the carbon footprint of a production can be reduced. With
more support and willingness from everyone working in the
industry we can continue to reduce the impact of filmmaking on
the environment and strive towards a carbon neutral screen
sector.