Environmental sustainability in the italian audiovisual industries

This study investigates the evolving field of environmental sustainability in audiovisual production, exploring newly introduced practices commonly referred to as “sustainable production,” “green shooting,” and “low-impact filmmaking,” among other associated terms, all of which entail the promotion and implementation of “eco-friendly audiovisual and cinematographic production, in terms of sustainability, the use of resources and the preservation of natural spaces”. A central focus of the study is the emerging role of sustainability professionals in the audiovisual sector—variously known as Sustainability Managers or Consultants, Green Managers or Stewards—whose responsibilities span from pre-production through post-production. Operating at the level of department heads, Sustainability Managers integrate sustainability protocols across all aspects of production and beyond, including script development and strategic communication through "planet placement" content, while influencing areas such as festival management, content development, and, to an extent, distribution. By extension, the study also looks at how this line of work intersects with the work of committed public institutions related to environmental policy in the development of ecological minimum standards and cultural subsidies, such as regional Film Commissions and cultural funds related to the audiovisual sector, and observes the introduction of new stakeholders in audiovisual production, such as audit, certification, ecolabelling and verification bodies alongside initiatives invested both in formal, quality-assured sustainable production training and the exchange of knowledge, information and best practices, occurring across sustainability initiatives and networks. Finally, the study situates these developments within the Italian context, highlighting how national reforms, EU regulations, and post-COVID recovery funding have accelerated sustainability measures in the country's audiovisual sector, through financial incentives for green productions, environmental guidelines for exhibitors, and investments in energy-efficient cultural infrastructure—all unfolding across a dynamic media landscape marked by demand value for original audiovisual content, the growth of streaming platforms and the SVOD market and government backing via tax credits.