Sustainability certifications for film and TV productions: which standard does your production need?

What is a screen industry sustainability certification?

Conversations about sustainability certification for film shoots often blur together ideas that aren't the same. It helps to separate the steps:

• Applying sustainability measures: what the production actually does to reduce its impact.
• Working to a standard: following the criteria, checklist or methodology set by a specific scheme.
• Documenting the measures: gathering the data and evidence that show what was done.
• Submitting the project for assessment or verification: the responsible body reviews that documentation.
• Obtaining, where applicable, a seal, certification or recognition.

Certification, seal, standard and methodology don't always mean exactly the same thing. Some schemes certify, others recognise good practice, and others provide calculation tools or guidance. Each one works differently.

Which certification or standard does a shoot need?

It depends on the project. Factors that can determine it include:

• Platform or production company: it may have its own sustainability requirements.
• Financing or funding: some public bodies and screen agencies set environmental requirements.
• Territory: certain programmes or schemes are tied to a region or a funding call.
• The production's own goals: a project may voluntarily choose to work to a standard.
• The intended certification or recognition: the standard sets which measures, data and evidence need preparing.

So there's no single certification that fits every shoot. The first step is to confirm with each party involved what is expected of the production.

Key screen industry sustainability standards and schemes

Green Film

Green Film is a certification scheme for film and TV productions that assesses the sustainability measures a project puts in place, and it is used across several European territories. We cover how it works in our guide to Green Film certification.

BAFTA albert

albert is BAFTA's screen industry sustainability initiative. It brings together a carbon calculator, a certification process and training for industry professionals. Read more in our guide to BAFTA albert.

EMA Green Seal

The Environmental Media Association awards the Green Seal to productions that apply sustainable practices. Its approach puts strong emphasis on documenting what was done in each area. See our guide to the EMA Green Seal.

Green Production Guide

The Green Production Guide (opens in a new tab) is a resource created by studios and industry professionals, offering guidance, a vendor directory and tools to plan sustainable practices and calculate emissions. It isn't a seal in itself, but a methodology and a set of tools.

Each scheme's criteria are published and updated by the body responsible for it, so always check its current official sources.

What documentation does a production need?

Requirements vary from scheme to scheme, but it's usually important to organise information and evidence from day one covering:

• The sustainability plan and the measures implemented.
• Transport and travel.
• Accommodation.
• Energy and fuel.
• Materials and waste.
• Water and catering.
• Supplier documentation.
• Photos and other evidence.
• The data needed for the carbon footprint, where applicable.

Not every standard asks for exactly the same documents. What matters is planning how they'll be collected from the start, so nobody has to chase them later.

Tracking during the shoot

One of the most common mistakes is trying to rebuild all the documentation once production has wrapped. By then invoices, photos or logs are missing, and some data can no longer be recovered.

Measures should be tracked throughout the project, with data and evidence gathered as they're generated. On set, that task usually falls to the EcoPA, who applies the measures day to day and logs the information so it's complete at wrap. It's the foundation of any sustainable film production.

Carbon footprint and certification

Some standards, platforms or processes may require the project's emissions to be measured, and the tool or methodology depends on the case. There's no single calculator that's valid for everyone.

Well-known options include the albert Carbon Calculator, the Media Carbon Calculator and PEAR, alongside the documentation associated with EMA where relevant. Each tool belongs to its own scheme or methodology, and its current requirements should always be checked. We explain more in our guide to the carbon footprint of a film or TV production.

How can La Tribu Verde help?

We support productions throughout the process:

• Identifying the applicable requirements.
• Drafting the sustainability plan and defining the measures.
• Tracking progress during production.
• Collecting and organising data.
• Calculating the carbon footprint.
• Preparing evidence and documentation.
• Supporting the production through assessment, verification or certification.

La Tribu Verde doesn't award seals or certifications: final validation or recognition always rests with the body responsible for each scheme. Find out how we work in our screen sustainability certification service.

MERA: one production, different requirements

MERA lets you centralise a production's data, documents, measures and evidence in a single environment and organise that information according to the relevant standard or methodology.

That way the production keeps one consistent way of collecting information, even if the data later has to be prepared for different checklists, templates or calculators. MERA is an independent tool: it isn't an official tool of Green Film, BAFTA albert or EMA, and it doesn't certify or verify productions.

How to prepare a production for certification

• Identify the applicable requirements before the shoot.
• Set targets and measures.
• Assign responsibilities.
• Decide which data and evidence will need collecting.
• Track progress during production.
• Calculate the carbon footprint where applicable.
• Review the documentation.
• Prepare the submission or assessment in line with the relevant scheme.