Wednesday 9 June from 2.30 - 5.30 (Paris time)
1.30 pm - 4.30 pm (London time)

The European Audiovisual Observatory and the UK, which holds the Observatory Presidency for 2021, have announced an international conference to be held on Wednesday 9 June, focused on how to accelerate environmental sustainability across the film, TV and streaming platforms sector.

The conference, Boosting sustainable film through international collaboration, takes place on Wednesday 9 June from 14.30 - 17.30 (Paris time) 1.30 pm - 4.30 pm (London time). Link to join the conference. Programme.

It will bring together industry professionals, producers, film funds, broadcasters and streaming platforms to discuss and share ideas around how international collaboration can strengthen individual national green efforts.

The Strasbourg-based Observatory, which is part of the Council of Europe, will provide an overview of the various types of sustainable film initiatives across Europe aiming to identify the most promising areas of international co-operation. The various stakeholders will then drill down into these themes in interviews and panel discussions. The conference is open and free to access for industry professionals and press.

The international film industry has been introducing “green” practices for greater sustainability in film production for many years now. But what about international collaboration in these sustainability initiatives? And can individual national green efforts be strengthened by reaching out across national borders? The aim of this international conference is to promote and inspire meaningful international collaboration by identifying problems that can be addressed through international co-operation and by discussing concrete ideas about the form such cooperation could take.

The online event will be hosted by Tricia Duffy, Chair of the BAFTA albert Directorate, and moderated by Adrian Wootton, CEO of Film London. Speakers will include Tim Wagendorp from the Flemish Audiovisual Fund (VAF), Lucia Recalde from the European Commission and Julie-Jeanne Regnault from the European Film Agencies (EFAD), with more speakers to be announced in advance of the conference. The programme was devised with the support of the British Film Institute (BFI). 

The Observatory’s UK Presidency is held by the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS), represented by Amit Thapar, Head of Film and High-End TV Policy at the DCMS. Explaining the UK’s choice of subject for this year’s traditional Observatory Presidency conference, Thapar stated, “we are very pleased to be collaborating with the Observatory on this conference. It’s important that the industry, and all its respective partners, are as engaged and open as possible in working together to address the climate crisis. We remain wholly committed to exchanging ideas and information and working closely with our European partners on the important issues of the day, including sustainable film and television production. We feel that the UK’s European Audiovisual Observatory Presidency, including this conference, will provide a valuable forum to further discussion on this important topic.”

Susanne Nikoltchev, Executive Director of the Observatory, stated her enthusiasm for working with the UK Presidency in 2021 as the UK is “a major force in film and content production and export in Europe and beyond”. Sustainability represents a new topic for the Observatory’s work and Nikoltchev looked forward to “learning about needs for cross border co-operation on sustainability initiatives and potential ways to strengthen international collaboration in this key area for the audiovisual industry.”