Production is responsible for a substantial proportion of the total carbon footprint of the marketing and communications process. As our clients and partners seek to reduce the environmental impact of their work and move towards a net zero goal, we are pioneering a new sustainable approach to the content creation life cycle, called Sustainably Made, by Hogarth.

By changing how we make work, we are significantly reducing the impact of our activity on the environment while creating work that drives stronger responses. Sustainably Made isn’t a product – it’s a mindset which influences everything we do and exemplifies the values we bring to the work we create for our clients.

In a typical year, we’d normally fly to around 1,500 locations all over the world, transporting talent, crew, sets and equipment in search of the perfect environment to shoot hours of footage, much of which is never used.

A single hour of film typically generates five tons of CO2; as an industry, it’s thought that we generate around a million tons a year.

While developing innovative production solutions is central to Hogarth’s business, the pandemic has changed everything. We’ve had to find new ways of making work that delivers high-performing creative content solutions within a new set of rules; in doing so, we have proved what is possible and where the future of production lies.

Sustainably Made reimagines production with new creative possibilities. It explores how technology can inform creative, optimise shoots by anticipating future content requirements, and reduce duplication and waste. It positively impacts the end-to-end creative process while delivering more sustainable solutions for the industry.

With virtual studios and live-set technology as a driving force, it is possible to produce outstanding work for clients all within a studio environment, removing the need for location shoots and also maximising the utilisation of the content we capture.

Being able to shoot different talent against multiple sets using a green-screen environment allows clients to see the results in real time from wherever they are in the world. This also means that feedback can be actioned immediately, minimising further changes during post-production.  In the past year, over 90% of our shoots have been remotely attended by clients, agencies and even directors.

Using innovative CGI and 360-degree laser and camera technology to capture and recreate environments digitally also provides unlimited possibilities for bespoke content configurations, especially when dealing with complex location specifications or sets that will be used multiple times.

The new technology behind virtual sets and CGI creates important long-term opportunities for clients to build tailored environments for local markets, allowing them to easily swap between talent, language, environment and product variants. The fact that these environments are reusable is a huge benefit to our clients – and the planet.

We can also extend the life cycle of assets by using AI-powered tagging throughout the production process, which enables us to search, identify and monitor all content captured – so we can deliver personalised campaigns on an ongoing basis.

By recycling, repurposing and reusing existing footage, we can create an almost infinite number of assets that can be combined with real-time market data and insights to ensure optimum performance from targeted media spend. This focus and drive for efficiency and results reduces the number of ‘new’ materials needed, therefore lowering the environmental impact of production.

Hogarth is committed to reaching net zero by 2030. To help our clients with their own targets, we have launched Hogarth’s Sustainability Index, including key insights and performance data focused on driving positive change.

By working together, we can help clients to identify the best ways to reduce and mitigate the environmental impact of their campaigns. Our ability to incorporate fully costed carbon offsets into every production budget means that all work can be Sustainably Made and truly net zero.

We firmly believe that the future of production will be powered by AI, virtual environments and studios which can be transformed into whole new worlds – and it will be sustainable for clients, agencies and the environment. To find out more about how we are reimagining content creation and how Sustainably Made, by Hogarth can help you achieve net zero.