A number of independent productions have attained BAFTA albert+ certification, leading the way across the TV industry in creating sustainable productions. Established in 2011, albert is a think-tank for film and TV, working to raise the profile of sustainability by creating a forum for debate and championing sustainable production techniques to the wider industry.
Kirstie Allsopp and Phil Spencer’s production company Raise the Roof Productions has attained albert+ certification for its Channel 4 commissioned show, Love It or List It.
Working closely with the albert team, the production put in place a number of practices including a coordinated travel plan including a reduction in the use of cars, use of hotels with sustainability credentials, use of local crews, the non-use of polystyrene and plastic, and the use of Skype rather than travelling to meetings, which ensured it reduced its carbon footprint.
Desi Rascals by Buccaneer Media, the first production on Sky Living to achieve albert+ certification, saved 16 tonnes of Co2, with 13 tonnes saved on travel alone.
For Sky 1, A League of Their Own, produced by CPL Productions and starring James Corden, achieved certification by using Google Map Engine planning for all travel, low energy lighting, the prop and staging company working to ISO 14001 and the overall production had opt-in printing.
The Graham Norton Show (pictured), produced by So Television for BBC One, gained its rating by using low energy lighting, using the same set for 17 series, planning travel more strategically and reducing printing by 50 per cent.
“It is so encouraging that this first tranche of productions have achieved albert+ certification,” said Aaron Matthews, industry sustainability manager albert+. “Through a range of innovative practices employed in decreasing carbon footprint, they have demonstrated that making changes in production practices can have a major sustainability impact on a production company leading to a number of environmental and indeed, monetary benefits.”
In other news, Hat Trick Production has joined albert as a consortium member.
Chaired by BAFTA’s chief operating officer, Kevin Price, the consortium includes the UK’s largest production companies and broadcasters: all3media, BBC, Channel 4, Endemol, IMG, ITV, Kudos, NBCUniversal International Television, Sky, Shed Media, Twofour, UKTV and now, Hat Trick Productions.
http://www.bafta.org/initiatives/sustainability/albert
Image: press association