Final Pixels Michael McKenna lays out the seven ways to reduce the impact of TV and film production on the environment
By Contributor
Published: June 28, 2022
Final Pixel's Michael McKenna lays out the seven ways to reduce the impact of TV and film production on the environment
target=_blank title=Share on LinkedIn class=share-linkedin>
The innovation of using virtual production techniques could make a significant impact in the race to net zero across broadcasters and production companies, with recent studies suggesting over a 90 per cent reduction in CO2 emissions.
However, I see it that VP needs to be considered as just one component of a suite of tools we can deploy to clean up our act on production.
For context, some of the numbers are staggering -
In 2019, one hour's worth of TV content produced 13 tonnes of carbon dioxide- with drama being the biggest culprit.
While this reduced dramatically in 2020 due to lockdowns and restrictions on air travel, its clear from the albert 2020 report that people transport is consistently the highest emitter of carbon per hour of TV.
This article sums up where we are on this journey, and how using virtual production is not only likely to be a greener choice, but also acts as a vanguard to place the responsibility and discussions around sustainable production central to the project in hand.
7 ways to reduce your impact on the environment: Complete a sustainability plan for your company, and champion it Work to develop your overall company plan with a forward thinking and supportive team of environmental experts, like the consultants at Creative Zero or with Green Shoot. This will help cement the actions you want to take to become part of day to day life.
To help inform the plan, I really recommend getting training it's the first step for production and editorial teams on the journey and offered free of charge by albert.
We at Final Pixel have recently launched our own sustainability plan for this year.
Use virtual production to reduce travel costs It's clear the TV industry has a lot to do, but the data is emerging that's beginning to show just how powerful choosing to use virtual production can be.
The use of LED walls and game engine technology to create in-camera VFX was pioneered on The Mandalorian, and has exploded as an industry since. Aside from the well documented benefits for both creatives and producers, it in increasingly being seen as a logical choice for companies looking to reduce emissions.
Anecdotal reports from a large international TV production business suggest if VP had been used to avoid travel or negated the need for a large scale set build, then the savings are potentially huge. A soon to be released snapshot analysis of an actual recent shoot, which replaced the need for an overseas second unit, showed a staggering reduction of over 95 per cent CO2 emissions.
Furthermore, a recent study overseen by Jeff Beverly of Commonwealth-McCann showed that for car shoots, the CO2 saving would also have been in the region of a huge 85%-90%. This could also be revolutionary for car manufacturers and advertising agencies seeking to reach net zero goals and lead the way in sustainability.
Measure measure measure Use a calculator! Everyone should be using albert by now to track emissions on TV productions.
There are many other forms of calculator available, some even come within a typical budgeting/scheduling template to make the whole process simpler for producers. A key point to note is that the calculators are not wholly consistent, so forging a path to a standard in calculating emissions makes a lot of sense to me.
A key factor in this calculator on our LED wall shoots is the power draw of the volume itself. What is exciting, is that we are hearing of more and more clever technology and software that can be deployed on virtual production shoots to actively manage the power draw - for example using AI to automatically dim the screen when it decides its not being used in anger. Technology that can be applied to all lighting sources in the studio - just because they are plugged in, doesn't mean they need to burn 100 per cent the whole time!
Use virtual production to replace real world set builds with virtual environments With virtual production using LED walls you can create any location in 3D. This is projected real-time onto the LED wall the parallax effect allows allows us to look around corners' when the camera moves.
Michael McKenna At Final Pixel, our Virtual Art Department typically starts work 6-8 weeks ahead of a shoot. As a fully remote team we do not have the infrastructure emissions associated with commercial property and are able to be flexible when we need to scale up and down at short notice.
Importantly, building and filming on a virtual environment also brings what I call a recurring sustainability dividend' every time the virtual set is re-used - eg for a returning series or say for pickup shots. Once built, the energy which went into making it is complete and it can simply be pulled off the shelf for future productions. Cumulatively over time this could build to be a huge carbon reduction.
If you do need to use physical sets - make sure they are green sets.
Have a green steward on set. This one is easy - hire a Green Steward on your next shoot.
The Green Steward will help ensure people are following best practices on set and act as a point of co-ordination, eg using reusable water bottles and saving plastic from recycling and landfill! They also manage the calculators.
You can read more about Green Stewards here.
Use real-time and virtual production to reduce the time in post On shoots with a high degree of VFX - requiring compositing and lots of fancy rendering - you can reduce the impact of render farms and the additional emissions an elong
Europe Stories
05/01/2027
Worlds first 802.15.4ab-UWB chip verified by Calterah and Rohde & Schwarz to be ...
01/06/2026
January 6 2026, 05:30 (PST) Dolby Sets the New Standard for Premium Entertainment at CES 2026
Throughout the week, Dolby brings to life the latest innovatio...
02/05/2026
Dalet, a leading technology and service provider for media-rich organizations, t...
01/05/2026
January 5 2026, 18:30 (PST) NBCUniversal's Peacock to Be First Streamer to ...
01/04/2026
January 4 2026, 18:00 (PST) DOLBY AND DOUYIN EMPOWER THE NEXT GENERATON OF CREATORS WITH DOLBY VISION
Douyin Users Can Now Create And Share Videos With Stun...
06/03/2026
Ten years after its release, South African hip-hop artist Kwesta's DaKAR II is still making waves. With 51.8 million streams on Spotify, the album continues...
06/03/2026
06 Mar 2026
VEON and JazzWorld Advance Pakistan's Digital Financial Future ...
06/03/2026
Friday 6 March 2026
Teaser revealed for Saturday Night Live UKTurn on cookies to view this content. Go to Privacy options and select Accept All'.
Privacy...
06/03/2026
Discover how the F1 sound team turned a real Grand Prix into a cinematic experience.
Director Joseph Kosinski and his team worked directly with the Formula On...
06/03/2026
Arvato Systems Joins Initiative D21 e. V.
Shaping digital transformation together
Collaboration in Germanys largest network for the digital society
Membersh...
06/03/2026
The Trustworthy Accountability Group (TAG) is a global initiative dedicated to c...
06/03/2026
We are deeply saddened to hear the very sad news of the death of our friend and colleague, John McHugh. John was an exceptionally talented creative leader who s...
06/03/2026
First exclusive look at RT 's promo as Ireland prepare to take on Czechia
Every Moment, Every Generation
https://youtu.be/2ijo96EadLU
36 years after Geor...
05/03/2026
A little over a year ago, Spotify introduced the quarterly Creator Milestone Awa...
05/03/2026
Rohde & Schwarz enables rapid validation of next-gen Wi-Fi 8 networking platform...
05/03/2026
Rohde & Schwarz acquires Software Radio Systems (SRS), specialists in software d...
05/03/2026
5. March 2026 Radmila Stoltz
In March, Reimagining DAM 2026 will welcome an extraordinary group of industry leaders who are defining the next era of Digital...
05/03/2026
Celebrating 21 Years of the RT Choice Music Prize
RT Choice Music Prize
In association with IMRO and IRMA
RT Choice Music Prize Irish Album of the Year 2...
05/03/2026
Thursday 5 March 2026
Sky News secures ninth News Channel of the Year award as ...
05/03/2026
Thursday 5 March 2026
Sky Sports launches first ever nationwide creator competi...
05/03/2026
SAN JOSE, Calif. - March 5, 2026 - At the 2026 NAB Show, Harmonic (NASDAQ: HLIT)...
05/03/2026
Comscore and Yahoo DSP Partner to Advance CTV Political Advertising with Proximi...
04/03/2026
For many fans, a song's backstory can be just as compelling as the final pro...
04/03/2026
In 2006, Spotify was founded on the belief that technology could bring artists a...
04/03/2026
Spotify is back on the ground for the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo, and we&#...
04/03/2026
Spotify had an energizing week in Sydney, Australia, filled with powerful conver...
04/03/2026
Earlier this year, we launched Directed By, a documentary-style series that pull...
04/03/2026
KT and Rohde & Schwarz to showcase AI-enhanced radio transmission performance In a joint 6G AI proof-of-concept demonstration, the CMX500 one-box tester from ...
04/03/2026
Luxembourg, 3 March 2026 - SES S.A. has today published its 2025 Annual Report, following the announcement of the company's full year financial results for ...
04/03/2026
Luxembourg, March 3, 2026 - SES, a leading space solutions company, along with I...
04/03/2026
04 Mar 2026
VEON Partners with GSMA Innovation Fund to Accelerate Digital Innov...
04/03/2026
04 Mar 2026
VEON's Beeline Uzbekistan and Rakuten Symphony Partner for Open...
04/03/2026
Wednesday 4 March 2026
Sky Sports unveils plans for 2026 Formula 1 coverage
Sky Sports is preparing for one of the most highly anticipated F1 seasons in recen...
03/03/2026
For many, finding time or headspace to pick up a book can feel out of reach, but...
03/03/2026
Rohde & Schwarz and Realtek demonstrate first test solution for Bluetooth LE Hi...
03/03/2026
eds3_5_jq(document).ready(function($) { $(#eds_sliderM519).chameleonSlider_2_1({ content_source:......
03/03/2026
Luxembourg, 2 March 2026 -- SES S.A. fully consolidates Intelsat from 17 July 2025 and announces financial results for the year ended 31 December 2025
FY25 Pe...
03/03/2026
RT is proud to support a rich and diverse programme of arts and cultural events taking place across Ireland throughout March 2026. This month brings a remarkab...
03/03/2026
03 Mar 2026
VEON and MeetKai Expand Collaboration to Explore Sovereign AI Infra...
03/03/2026
Tuesday 3 March 2026
Sky releases official trailer for The Miniature Wife, a Sk...
03/03/2026
Tuesday 3 March 2026
Ryan Reynolds and Rob Mac land first ever live commentary ...
03/03/2026
Tuesday 3 March 2026
The Dyers' Caravan Park reopens for a second season after a hit launch on Sky
The Dyers' Caravan Park
JPEG (510KB)
Sky books a ...
03/03/2026
Harmonic's cOS Virtualized Broadband Platform Simplifies Network Operations, Lowers Hardware Dependency and Enables Seamless DOCSIS and Fiber Growth SAN JO...
03/03/2026
Comscore to Announce Fourth Quarter and Full Year 2025 Financial ResultsRESTON, VA, March 3, 2026 Comscore, Inc. (Nasdaq: SCOR), a trusted partner for plannin...
03/03/2026
Self-taught on iMovie, Hanagami transitioned to Final Cut Pro in 2009, discovering that professional tools could give him full creative control over how his wor...
03/03/2026
RT Media Sales has announced Spry Finance has renewed it's sponsorship of M...
02/03/2026
Rohde & Schwarz demonstrates FR1-FR3 carrier aggregation, advancing 6G readiness Rohde & Schwarz and Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. have reached another pivotal ...
02/03/2026
aconnic AG (ISIN: DE000A0LBKW6), Munich, and Arqit Quantum Inc. (Nasdaq: ARQQ, A...
02/03/2026
Luxembourg, February 26, 2026 - SES and Africa Mobile Network (AMN) have expande...
Final Pixels Michael McKenna lays out the seven ways to reduce the impact of TV and film production on the environment
