Archive for Green Screen
The Green Screen Declares Paranormal Activity An Eco-friendly Film
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The Green Screen is back with another movie review to determine if it can be classified as an eco-friendly film. Today, we take a closer look at the carbon footprint of producing the film Paranormal Activity. So, is it an eco-friendly film? I say definitively yes.
Why? Well, this horror was filmed with a paltry $15,000 budget. That is unheard of in Hollywood these days. Lower production costs means reduced waste, less energy consumption and fewer fossil fuels burned to make the movie. Directed, produced, written and edited by Oren Peli and filmed in his own house in Rancho Penasquitos, San Diego, Paranormal Activity delivers on the scare factor with a simple premise involving a couple and a demonic presence creeping into their bedroom at night. Peli, an Israeli-born video game designer had no formal training in film. He shot the $15,000 movie in a week in 2006 with an unrecognizable cast, a crew of several San Diego friends and a hand-held video camera. The movie has since made over 100 million dollars at the box office.
Movie sets today generate so much waste in landfills and consume enormous amounts of energy. This little horror gem had 2 primary actors, a few extras, and one location – the director’s home. I’d bet there was no Kraft food services catering meals every day. And the movie delivered, the actor’s made it seem like this was a real couple in a very real and frightening situation.
The Green Screen – Top Chef Airs Eco-friendly Television
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As part of our continuing series reviewing eco-friendly television and film, The Green Screen takes a look at Bravo’s popular reality TV show Top Chef. Yes, even reality TV can be eco-friendly and I wanted to give a shout out to one of my personal favorites.
Top Chef features host and head judge Tom Colicchio as an intimidating yet charismatic mentor. Along with co-host Padma Lakshmi and my other favorite judge, Gail Simmons, Top Chef fascinates you with culinary skill and lures you in with food you can only look at and not taste. The show’s format involves chefs from around the world competing to become Top Chef with an contestant eliminated each episode if their food doesn’t make the grade. And even though you can’t taste the food, it’s clear from Judges feedback that these Chefs are talented.
So how are they eco-friendly? Well, Top Chef contestants often cook with sustainable foods and always shop with reusable bags. Viewers of the show know the format – they cook in a mini-challenge and then head to the elimination challenge where they are given a budget to shop for ingredients. Every time they shop for food, they fill up their groceries in reusable bags. After their food has been prepared, tasted and evaluated, the Chefs head to judges table to determine who will be eliminated. Unlike most reality TV, Top Chef is not a popularity contest, they are assessed based on cooking skills only, not personality. If you haven’t seen it, you really should tune in – it’s reality TV at its finest.
Top Chef takes it a step further since contestants often cook with sustainable foods from a sustainable farm. Read More→
The Green Screen – An Eco-friendly Film and Television Review
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We’re introducing a recurring theme to The Sustainable Scribe called The Green Screen where we will write about our eco-observations in film and television. Sometimes they will be given kudos and other times jeers. Our first entry has both.
I’m going to continue the nod to NBC’s Green Week mentioned yesterday in the Green Gazette with an eco-friendly review of their much-hyped “Green Episodes”. NBC brought “Green is Universal” back for its third straight year starting November 15th, 2009. The jury is still out on whether this whole Green Week thing is a pure of heart effort to spread eco-awareness or a shameless bandwagon, ratings grab. I tuned in tonight to watch the Green Episodes of both The Office and 30 Rock and I still don’t know the answer unfortunately.
The Office
The opening scene had Dwight as Recyclops – an earth loving super hero trying to save the planet through education and awareness. Recyclops gave tips on how to minimize consumption and waste and encouraged recycling. He also called people out on their eco-infractions. Every year he returned angrier at the lack of awareness and activism until he was almost taken over by Polluticom and became an earth enemy. Angry Recyclops returned spraying aerosol, drinking from pop cans with a straw and throwing them away in the garbage and basically causing destruction wherever he went. That was the opening scene. I was hoping for more but that’s where the “green” ended. The very next scene Michael was preparing to go to an awards ceremony and waiting for his gas-guzzling limo (not an eco-friendly choice) to pick him up and that was pretty much the end of the green. I’m a fan of The Office but why bother? Jeers.
30 Rock
