Location Managers Guild International

Summer 2018

The Location Managers Guild International (LMGI) is the largest organization of Location Managers and Location Scouts in the motion picture, television, commercial and print production industries. Their membership plays a vital role in the creativ

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LMGI COMPASS | Summer 2018 • 55 ment, communication, resource development and collabora- tion, and education. "As a nonprofit government-funded agency, we felt that it was essential to show leadership in reinvigorating the Reel Green program, to empower and inspire productions to implement sustainable practices," said Bernard. "It has been an evolution and now it's time for everyone in the film industry to come to- gether and be part of this effort. We really believe that sustain- able production is important and the new norm," she added. Other resources exist to amplify sustainable production in the Vancouver area and beyond. The Sustainable Production Forum, held at the Vancouver International Film Festival, pro- vides a platform to debate provocative topics, and ultimately, helps advance sustainability in the motion picture and televi- sion industries. "We just completed our second year at the fest and highlighted the breadth of sustainable production," says Zena Harris, the creative director of the forum and presi- dent of Green Spark Group. "There were guests from Canada, France, Italy, the United Kingdom and the United States who shared their experiences with their sustainable production programs that collectively reach a lot of filmmakers. This forum reinforces that it takes a collective effort, not only on a given production, but globally as well," she said. Another new resource is the Sustainable Lockup, a collabora- tive space run by local companies Keep It Green Recycling and Green Spark Group. The lockup houses a material reuse centre, and sells compostable products to make it easy for productions to reduce garbage. The companies also run a food-donation program at the lockup, in collaboration with local nonprofits. Keep It Green Recycling simplifies recycling for the film indus- try and seeks guidance from its clients to find creative solu- tions. "We wanted a lockup, like other departments have," says owner Kelsey Evans. "It is a space that allows for knowl- edge sharing and collaboration, which are essential to mak- ing things happen quickly." When it comes to sustainable initiatives, cooperation be- tween industry groups is key. Likewise, sustainable produc- tion can't happen without the help of every crew member and department. Here, the Location Department can make a big difference. Matt Palmer, LMGI Board member, currently works as a loca- tion manager for The X-Files in Vancouver, where the produc- tion team actively works to reduce waste on location. "I've been lucky in my career to work in some pretty awesome places, from mountains to pristine ranches," says Palmer. "We always work toward reducing our impact on a location as much as possible, and when we leave, it should be like we were never there. It's even better when we can leave im- provements behind." The Location Department is the public face of production. Its focus is to preserve the immediate environment that the production is working in. "The choices we make, from which Prep PA to assign, to how large of a prep kit we send, to how we interact and inform neighboring residents or businesses (and so many others), all make an overarching impression about our industry and its validity," says Kendrie Upton, a former location manager, who is now the Executive Director of the Directors Guild of Canada BC Branch. "It's profession- alism," Upton continues, "we're communicating how much, or how little, we value people's belongings ... every choice should be considered through that lens." It can be difficult to widen that focus and bring sustainable practices to the entire production. For location managers, For all departments, sustainability begins in pre-production. When planning is done in advance, the team has time to seek out green vendors, use reusable or recyclable materials, and make arrangements for sustainable solutions. Planning in advance helps, but there are also small changes that crews can make today, mid-production, that could still make a big difference.

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