Sustainability Document

Myths & fallacies surroundingsustainable productions

Common myths about Sustainable Production

Introduction

The Media and Entertainment industry in India produces a staggering 200,000 hours of content annually. This includes over 1,700 films, 3,000 hours of premium OTT content, and 20,000 songs. (ME report by E&Y 2024)

The impact of this production scale is inevitable on overall carbon contribution. As an influencer of culture, this is a unique opportunity for the M&E industry to lead and e ect change by incorporating sustainable production processes, green infrastructure, and a culture of sustainable behaviour.

Industry folk are often overwhelmed by what seems to be a challenging shift. India GreenSet, Green Spark Group and Aavashyak have created this handbook to dispel myths and fallacies around sustainable production. We hope it provokes conversations and leads to actionable steps toward a clean, green industry trend.

cannotSustainability happen till the studio mandates it.

Myth 1

This is not true. Many practices can be incorporated right now; we have products and services right now in the market to enable sustainable production.

If there is a perceived cost barrier, then choose the practices that do not have an upfront

In our experience, all studios and production companies will advocate for sustainability when asked, but this may not trickle down to the production or the Head of Department.

We cannot a ord inaction when there are simple, low or no-cost solutions that can be employed in production today. (Eg: planning for reuse of all materials as a default, donating food and other materials if there's excess, taking steps to reduce the use of single-use plastics)

Myth 2

We are seeing that many Sustainability Coordinators hired on productions mostly focus on waste and are not adequately trained or empowered to implement the full scope of sustainable production. Though waste management is a key piece, it does not cover all of sustainability. Sustainable production works best when the entire crew is engaged, and the production leadership is invested in making the production sustainable. The coordinator can help with this systematic vision, but they alone will not make the production sustainable, especially if they only focus on waste.

Production needs to hire a Sustainability Coordinator to be e ective

We recycle, therefore we are sustainable

Myth 3

This is not true. When incorporating a circular economy approach to production, recycling is one of the last options for waste. Many productions focus on recycling at the "output" part of the production system. The focus really should be on the "input" side of the production system. What materials are we bringing into the system, how are they used, and how will they remain in the system after production is finished with them? We love this quote from a colleague:

We cannot recycle our way out of climate change.

It does take time to gather and input data into a carbon calculator, but for those productions that plan for it and know what they'll be tracking, this doesn't require another full-time position. A round of training equips productions to use a carbon calculator like Albert independently once they understand what is needed for the calculation.

We'll need to hire another body to calculate our carbon footprint

Sustainability

is the last item on everyone’s agenda

Myth 5

This statement normalises inaction. Frequently, people have systems in place in their homes and use them faithfully but are discouraged when they set up the production o ce and find those systems don’t exist or are inaccessible. The disconnect between work life, home life, and values can be demoralising, and it may seem that crew do not care. In reality, many do care. They simply have not been given the agency to think and act with sustainability in mind. Training helps to provide them with this agency and support people as they shift their mindsets and workflow.

Some may believe that sustainability is more relevant to industries like manufacturing or agriculture and less applicable to the media sector. However, for the M&E industry to thrive into the future, sustainability must be part of the thinking and action. People are at the heart of the sustainable transition and how they work will determine the level of planning, energy consumption, procurement methods and materials consumed and then what is done with that material.

Currently, media production involves significant resource consumption, like electricity for equipment, plastic for packaging, props and sets, and paper for scripts, call sheets, etc. Implementing energy-e cient equipment, reducing paper usage, and optimising resource consumption are all relevant sustainability measures for media companies.

Sustainability has no relevance to Media Production myth

Our audience is not interested

Myth 7

There's a misconception that audiences are not interested in sustainability-related content or initiatives. A Global Network survey conducted by Yale Centre for Business and Environment indicates that an increasing number of consumers, especially younger generations, prioritise sustainability and expect the brands they engage with to demonstrate environmental and social responsibility.

Some may believe that individual actions or initiatives within the media industry will have a limited impact in addressing global sustainability challenges. Leadership often comes from one person and can then influence a movement. Here’s a fun video that highlights the di erence one person can make!

Click to see the video

What di erence can one person or company make?

Sustainable production costs more

We have found that while certain practices may cost more upfront (e.g. a premium on hybrid or EVs, electric generators), overall, productions consistently save money. When planning with sustainability in mind, every decision can be made with a "sustainability lens" and this allows for sustainable practices to be integrated into production instead of seen as an extra or "bolt-on" practice or cost. All that is required is a willingness to make it part of the routine.

Myth 9

This is one of the most common questions we hear about sustainable production. And for good reason! It’s important to keep projects on budget, and to ensure that money goes on screen rather than ending up as waste or emissions. But the answer varies by production and region, which makes pinning down an absolute cost for sustainability impossible. Thinking about existing practices and shifting them to default to sustainable options will help integrate sustainability into existing decisions and budgets.

Addressing Myth 9

How much will Sustainability cost?

Tips for Sustainability Budgeting

Budgeting needs to be done holistically with a sustainability lens.

Instead of adding sustainability expenses as extra line items, shift existing descriptions of line items so they include sustainable practices. Think through the system of production. You are in control of the budget, so you decide whether to spend it on wasteful, high-emissions practices or cleaner, green alternatives.

• Example: Renting a mobile battery power station usually costs more than renting a generator. However, when the additional costs of running the generator (fuel, labour) are included, batteries become cost-neutral, and sometimes net positive.

We don’t yet pay for the real costs of energy usage.

Fuel is increasingly expensive, and the associated greenhouse gas emissions are more costly than what gets paid at the pump. Some productions choose to o set unavoidable carbon emissions.

• Example: When productions o set their emissions, fuel use contributes to around 50% of the emissions and therefore the cost of o sets. By reducing fuel consumption with alternative power, productions can cut emissions and save on fuel and emissions costs.

Waste and materials are two sides of the same decision-making process.

Everything that is bought for production eventually has to be disposed of by production.

• Example: Sourcing reusable or secondhand material can be cheaper than purchasing new. When these materials are reused or donated after production, there are little or no disposal fees for them.

• Example: Buying in bulk is a quick win for cost savings! Replacing single-use water bottles or co ee pods with bulk refills shows immediate savings.

1 https://assets.ey.com/content/dam/ey-sites/ey-com/en_in/topics/media-and-entertainment/2024/ey-in-india-s-media-e ntertainment-sector-is-innovating-for-the-future-03-2024-v1.pdf)

2 Yale School of Management. (2022). ‘Global Network Survey Finds Students More Urgently Focused on Sustainability.’ Retrieved from https://som.yale.edu/story/2022/global-network-survey-finds-students-more-urgently-focused-sustainability