Something is moving on the sustainability front in the world of audiovisuals. The first, scattered experiences are finally starting to come together as a network, thanks also to the intuition of Nevina Satta of the Sardegna Film Commission: the dialogue, as it took place at Sustainable Creative Industries in Cagliari, involves Italian consultants, foreign experts, certified suppliers, film commissions, trade associations and, for want of a better term, creatives.
Naturally the AGPCI [Producers Guild of Italy] is part of this dialogue, and is attempting to launch a structured practice from within.
As usual in these cases, some premises are necessary: just like all over-used terms, the word sustainability is losing the specific features that characterize it, and every good intention, even if it has no practical effects, tends to fall under its wing – whereas its real meaning is that we must not compromise the right of future generations to live according to their needs, in the same way that we try to satisfy our own today; and it should necessarily be accompanied by the scientific fact that to continue using fossil fuels means to compromise the climate, harvests and our own ability to support ourselves.
Clearly it will take a lot of work to be able to rapidly change our sources of energy, our methods of transport, our buildings, and thus to be able to breathe a sigh of relief. At the same time, the commitment to sustainability is also enthusiasm and creativity, discovering new paths of development, as well as legitimate satisfaction even for the small steps we are able to make.
The AGPCI has taken one step which it has called, with appropriate modesty ABG, i.e. AGPCI Becoming Green, with which our association is beginning its journey towards sustainability. In fact, on the AGPCI website it is now possible to consult and download the necessary practices for reducing your environmental impact, at each stage and in each department of a production, courtesy of our partnership with the Producers Guild of America.
We presented this initiative at our National Meeting in Pescara, where the subject was highlighted in the speeches (sustainably Skyped) by Nevina Satta, Els Rentjes (Dutch cinema’s head of sustainability, a new, extremely interesting figure created by the Dutch Film Fund) and Gianluca Della Campa (Legambiente, consultant on the Edison Green Movie protocol).
Above all, in Pescara we launched what we could call the ABG label: it is true that structured protocols already exist and the invitation is undoubtedly to follow them, but for people who are just starting their journey and want to take their first steps without feeling entangled by a whole load of new strings (a sensation that is only minimally justified but subjectively highly comprehensible), our association offers a concrete symbol which can also be used in relations with sponsors and the public – the ABG label – AGPCI Becoming Green, an instrument of communication that can be used right from the pre-production phase.
It works like this: we offer a kind of accompaniment to producers who are starting work on a movie in the next few months – a meeting before pre-production begins in order to get to know the practices and evaluate the ones that can be followed right from the start; a consultation on the set in order to rationalize their efforts; and a final meeting to understand what has been achieved and what improvements can be made. All of this with a view to holding a meeting with all the members in November in order to share our experiences.
How many movies will take up the challenge this year? Since we want to be positive, we say that just managing to launch this challenge is already a result. Knowing that future generations, somewhere, are watching us.
Andrea Giannattasio, Pietro Reggiani – ABG (AGPCI Becoming Green)
