Bolzano – “Joe der Film” is not only the first South Tyrolean comedy film to be produced by South Tyroleans, but also one of the first South Tyrolean film projects to receive the “Green Shooting” certificate.
IDM Südtirol has been supporting film projects that pay attention to sustainability and CO2 emissions for ten years. In 2021, the “Green Shooting” certificate was introduced for sustainable filming in South Tyrol. The production of “Joe the Film” already committed itself to certain parameters in the funding application to the IDM Film Funding in order to make the shooting in the country as sustainable as possible. The producer of “Joe der Film”, Markus Frings, has recently held this certificate in his hands, since during the 24 days of shooting in May, particular attention was paid to sustainability and the conservation of resources.
The “Green Consultant” Georg Zeller was assigned to the production team to support them in the planning and implementation of the measures and to document the fulfillment of the requirements for the IDM and the Ökoinstitut. “Due to the passion that the Joe crew showed, it was easy to profitably implement the proposed sustainability parameters, such as transport organization, accommodation, catering and energy saving measures,” says Zeller. Even before shooting started, sustainable options were discussed and carpools formed. Accommodation in hotels, which cause CO2 equivalents due to high energy consumption, was almost completely avoided. “The crew always went home for the night, except for a few times. The diesel generator that is otherwise usual in film productions was dispensed with, the electricity was drawn from sockets – this was mostly green electricity,” says Zeller happily.
When it came to the catering, location manager Robert Ausserer paid attention to local and seasonal food: “Some of the main meals were taken in inns in the immediate vicinity of the set or prepared by a South Tyrolean catering service directly on the set. Meat dishes were only offered once or twice, there was always a vegetarian and a vegan alternative – as well as several veggy days. The products were sourced locally,” says Ausserer. During the days of shooting, plastic dishes, plastic bottles and aluminum coffee tabs were not used. “We prepared the coffee ourselves on the set with a mocha machine and then rinsed the porcelain cups,” says director Thomas Hochkofler. “It was very important to us to meet the criteria and leave as small a footprint as possible,” says Hochkofler.
Everything other than normal
While large film productions involve many arrivals by plane, the actors arriving with a personal driver or staying in luxury hotels, the “Joe the Film” crew was modest. “The entire team showed complete readiness for sustainable production, implemented the specified measures with a strong will and showed a great sense of responsibility,” said Zeller. Production met the catalog of measures drawn up by IDM with 104 out of 117 possible points.
“The shooting of ‘Joe the Movie’ was a showcase project in terms of reducing CO2 emissions. Production can be proud of itself,” says Zeller happily. In the final report, the “Green Consultant” recorded other measures that were applied on the set for the sake of sustainability: the washing of the costumes was reduced, the garbage was separated, the script was not printed out, the purchases were made in the nearby supermarket, the costumes were borrowed from the store , snacks obtained from local producers (Mila yoghurt, Loacker biscuits, Merano mineral water from returnable bottles), built few set designs and used electric or Euro 6 vehicles.
“We attached great importance to green production, knowing full well that we can make a contribution to the environment and posterity. I’m glad we did so well and can now hold the ‘Green Shooting’ certificate in our hands,” says producer Markus Frings.
A green film in the cinema
After the green shooting was completed successfully and without any problems at the end of May, the rough cut is now in post-production and is waiting for music, sound and special effects. From October, “Joe the Film” can be seen throughout South Tyrol. Tickets for the road tour have been available online for a few weeks. “We have already sold more than 2000 tickets. Two performances, one in Brixen and one in Bruneck, are already sold out – this crowd has completely exceeded our expectations,” says Lukas Lobis, who not only appears in the film as an actor, but is also responsible for marketing.
Plenty of tickets are still available on the homepage www.joederfilm.com. Anyone who would like to hear some of the background stories from the shooting of the film can subscribe to the social media channels of “Joe the Film” and get their laughing muscles in the mood for autumn in advance. Further information about the tour and the film can be found at www.joederfilm.it.
From: mk
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