Issue link: http://digital.copcomm.com/i/1152740
3 6 P E R S P E C T I V E | S E P T E M B E R / O C T O B E R 2 0 1 9 literacy, and the job can seem chaotic within the shorter and shorter preproduction times. In a world where the script can and will change with rapid speed, location requirements shift and actor availability cause problems with scheduling; how does the Art Department come to the table with a process toward modular design, greener materials and vendor databases, and a will and desire to educate collaborators away from the familiar (i.e., chemical-based paints and surface materials still used by some when there are smart alternatives, such as carpet companies who will reclaim the carpet, paint companies who recycle leftover material, and prop rental houses who will take back furniture and scenery, even scenery rental houses who will rent an entire living room, doctor's office or storefront set). Designers by nature are reluctant to reuse scenery from another show unless they can successfully alter it. Some studio lots have "red book" vendors that must be used when working on the lot, which can deter an independent choice for Art Directors and designers when it comes to choosing glass, lumber and other major construction materials, and can prove frustrating if trying to change protocols. But imagine if those vendors selected by the studios were strictly green-minded companies. Art Departments must become versed in selecting materials that are sustainable and low impact from cradle to grave. Take lauan for example. This is an unsustainable, overconsumed wood that causes drastic deforestation and it is often illegally logged. This rainforest-produced wood material is used widely by the film industry and the price is automatically factored into a construction budget because it is and has been the go-to building material due to its stability, ease of painting, staining and treating the surface, and for now, price point and availability. Every five years or so, I look around for new alternatives, and there are more and more each time I look. Strawboard, Ag-Res, Hardboard, Fiberboard and Temperate Hardwood Plywood (nearly identical to lauan) are all out there among other solutions, like convincing your show to deconstruct, reuse and store set materials (which brings its own issues with production paying extra labor and storage fees—that is often a hard sell). The Rainforest Relief website is a great resource for understanding rainforest woods. It only takes a few environmentally dedicated construction coordinators collaborating with Art Directors and producers to start using alternative materials (like bio-composites made from sunflower seed husks, and cariboard which is like MDF, but made from agricultural waste fibers) before the trend will catch on, and until the lumber companies begin to make the alternatives available within a comparable price range. The industry must start utilizing these alternative materials. My colleague Rocio Gimenez recently co-authored an article with me for Production Designers Collective (The full article can be found on the Production Designers Collective website), and was part of a panel about green filmmaking as A A. BUILDING SALVAGE YARDS CAN BE A GREAT RESOURCE FOR BOTH ACQUIRING USED MATERIALS AND RECYCLING BUILT ELEMENTS.