How do cinemas go GREEN?

Birgit Heidsiek, Green Cinema Officer of the German Federal Film Board (FFA)
‚The Green Economy is also increasingly an important topic in the cinema industry. Due to the use of digital projectors and the air-conditioning systems they require, electricity consumption has skyrocketed in many houses. But energy efficiency is not only an internal cost factor. In the course of the social discourse on climate change, renewable energies are gaining importance in the strongly media-driven cinema industry.‚ 

Cinemas can actively contribute to climate protection by using resources sparingly. Sustainability in the cinema business can be achieved through various measures:

• Energy-efficient measures in the building and cinema operations
• Use of renewable energies
• Sustainable concession offer
• Avoidance of plastic and waste separation

The areas of energy efficiency, green electricity, concession and waste management are also the fields of action for sustainable measures in the cinema, on which the Green Cinema label is based.

Climate protection in the cinema
Resource management, environmental and climate protection are topics that are also gaining relevance for the cinema industry. In this online webinar, Birgit Heidsiek, FFA Commissioner for Green Cinema and author of the Green Cinema Handbook, presented practical measures and approaches that can be implemented in the fields of action energy efficiency, green electricity, concession and waste management. Whether saving energy, producing one’s own electricity or using alternative products – the premise is always that ecology cannot function without economy.

There are many possible solutions: modern ventilation systems with high efficiency, ground or groundwater pumps for heat and cold generation, electricity generation with photovoltaic systems from one’s own roof or energy-efficient electrical appliances – in view of rising prices for electricity, oil and gas, sustainable use of resources makes both economic and ecological sense.

Environmental and climate protection is also a topic at the concession counter. Many moviegoers are fed up with products that contain palm oil and are packaged in plastic. When it comes to snacks at the cinema, sustainable sourcing is also the order of the day, such as fair-trade chocolate, climate-neutrally produced ice cream or wine from organic farming.

Consuming drinks and snacks is associated with waste: Popcorn leftovers and paper on the floor, discarded cups and bottles left behind in the auditorium after the screening. A marketing concept with a focus on sustainability can be used to appeal to moviegoers to take more self-responsibility in waste management.

The process of waste prevention starts with the purchase of products and ends with their proper disposal into different waste streams. Cardboard products may feel more environmentally friendly, but they cannot always be recycled. The most environmentally friendly waste is that which is not produced in the first place. Reducing waste is also reflected in lower fees and is therefore good for the cash box and the climate.

The Green Cinema Handbook & Green Cinema Website 
The Green Cinema Handbook by Birgit Heidsiek, published by the FFA, is available online. Further information can also be found on the Green Cinema website.

Further links:

• Let’s ask Birgit Heidsiek
• LAFC | Evergreen Transfer
• LAFC | Evergreen Prisma
• Green Cinema
• The Green Cinema Handbook
• Green Film Shooting