Though we’re always hearing Hollywood A-list celebrities talk about the environment and the importance of fighting climate change, including personal changes they’ve made in their lives to reduce their impact on the environment, Cory R. Cole of Brielle, NJ, is actively taking a shot right at the heart of the industry. This includes examining a range of options available for filmmakers to reduce their environmental impact during the production and filming process. 

Because many films are produced in some of our world’s most beautiful and historic locations, preserving these locations and the surrounding environment for future generations needs to become just as important to the filmmaking industry as it is to the A-list star, director or producer creating the film.

Due to the waste that often runs rampant on film sets, these changes can make a solid impact both while filming is underway and during pre- and post-production processes, says Cole. This is possible through a range of changes to both how films are produced as well as how sets are designed, costumes are created and a range of other film-related assets are managed. 

From tablet-based scripts instantly updated with changes from writers (which can save significant amounts of paper every year) and costume design focused on cuts that reduce waste to partnering with local soup kitchens to reduce food spoilage and disposal during shooting, Mr. Cole is challenging the industry to do more to reduce its environmental impact across the board.

Who is Brielle, NJ resident Cory R. Cole? Cole is a production designer with over 15 years of experience in the film industry. Cole’s firsthand experience on a Hollywood set gives him a solid insider’s viewpoint regarding the waste that often runs rampant during filming. 

With humanity’s interest making a strong pivot toward creating sustainable communities, reducing environmental impact and turning climate change around, Cole argues that Hollywood needs to not only take notice of these changes, but take a proactive lead in the fight against warming and steer studios and the industry toward more sustainable practices .

For this reason, Cole is taking up a new banner, encouraging new planning, production and filming options that reduce each production’s individual environmental impact significantly. Instead of simply making personal changes that translate into viral sound bites, Cole challenges the industry to make impactful, meaningful changes to how it operates as a whole. This includes providing opportunities for filmmakers to change how they do business, from initial impressions of the storyline to post-production processes that can be drastically improved to reduce the industry’s overall environmental impact.

Also known as art direction, production design provides a range of options to reduce the industry’s environmental impact. 

In the past, when materials were less expensive, it was not unusual to simply dispose of excess materials rather than developing more exact production processes that would reduce waste. This was true across the board, whether in set design, costume design, support services or the many other aspects of film production. 

However, in today’s environmentally-focused world, Cole argues, these practices need to fade away, much like such past filmmaking processes such as black and white, cellulose film and other practices that have disappeared due to advancements in technology, public pressure and high expense levels.

These examples provide just a glimpse of areas where waste could be reduced in the film industry. Cory R. Cole of Brielle, NJ, is marching forward with a challenge for other professionals in the film industry, particularly when it comes to economizing the use of materials on sets, in costumes and across support staff support to help improve production sustainability. 

From costume designers altering creations to maximize fabric use to developing partnerships with local soup kitchens to avoid food waste, Cole argues for many simple but effective strategies that can make a big difference in the overall environmental impact of filming and production.

Cole goes beyond simply reducing waste when challenging Hollywood to make substantial changes and reduce its larger environmental impact. He also fervently advocates and supports the current push for digital transformation in all industries, ostensibly to create a leaner, more agile enterprise in response to market pressures. 

Some of these technologies are used on a daily basis, such as marketing analytics, online ordering, the Internet of Things, social media communications, pervasive mobile network connectivity and much more. Given the rapid rise of digital technology, there are currently a wide range of options available to help reduce Hollywood’s impact on the environment – as well as to make major steps toward stemming and even reversing global warming trends.

As an example, many of today’s filmmakers shoot scenes on location, a reality that can often result to expensive and environmentally-damaging effects on the local environment. This is due to a number of factors, including transportation, impact on the surroundings and the logistics of getting everything on site for shooting. Using green screen technology, CGI graphics and similar technology, it’s much easier for today’s filmmakers to avoid this level of damage by shooting locally, as well as to using technology to bring sets to life on production lots rather than on-location shooting. This is but one example of how technology can help drastically reduce waste and environmental damage on a daily basis in the film industry.

Cory R. Cole of Brielle, NJ, is constantly looking at new ways filmmakers and producers can lower their impact on the environment. From computer-aided cut lists for set production to using more environmentally-friendly products in creating realistic environments for performers to work in, there are many methods available to improve sustainability and take positive steps toward a better global future.

 If Hollywood decision-makers publicly and functionally commit to taking up this same banner, the industry’s impact on the environment and the effort to slow climate change can take a solid turn for the better.