Lower-carbon shoots: what a studio day saves against location

By James Jones, founder of Granary Digital · Updated 5 November 2026

A studio day saves carbon where a location shoot spends most of its carbon, which is moving people and kit and powering a unit away from the mains. It does not save carbon by default. If your crew lives in London and the studio is two hours away, the studio can lose. This page shows where the emissions sit, what changes on a studio day, and how to count your own numbers so you are comparing like with like.

Where a production's carbon goes

BAFTA albert's Accelerate 2025 report draws on voluntary calculator data from over 2,500 film and television productions, which together reported almost 175,000 tonnes of CO2 equivalent in 2024. Screen Global Production's coverage of the report gives the split:

• Travel and transport is the largest category, at 65 per cent of the measured footprint. Road transport is 20 per cent of the total, and air travel accounts for almost a third of a production's footprint.
• Energy is second at 21 per cent, driven by non-renewable mains power and diesel generators. In 2024, productions burned three million litres of fuel in generators on location.

I could not find a published figure that separates studio shoots from location shoots, so I will not give you one. What the split tells you is where to look: journeys first, then power.

What a studio day changes

The barn's own side of the sum: about two hours from London by road, off-peak; 15 minutes by taxi from Chichester or Havant station; 15 on-site parking spaces and an EV charger; ground-level load-in; fibre internet; and house lighting and grip included with the hire. There are no windows anywhere in the building, so a shoot does not stop for weather or for the light changing. I would not claim the lighting is low power. The house rig runs tungsten alongside LED, and tungsten and LED: why our rig still runs both explains the reasons.

Count it yourself: activity first, factors second

Carbon is arithmetic on activity data. Collect the activity first, because that part is yours to know. Then use a factor.

1. List every journey. People, mode of travel, and distance each way. Count vans and cars, not just people.
2. List energy. Generator fuel in litres from the hire invoice, and electricity in kilowatt hours where you can get it.
3. Count nights away. Hotel nights for every person.
4. Apply emission factors. The UK government publishes annual conversion factors for exactly this. The 2025 set was published on 10 June 2025, and you take the factor for each mode and fuel from the spreadsheet.
5. Or use albert. The production carbon calculator takes the same inputs and compares your production with the rest of the industry. BAFTA says it suits productions large or small.

A worked example, with example inputs

These numbers are made up to show the method. Swap in your own.

Ten people go to a one-day shoot. They travel in five cars with two people in each. The kit travels in one van.

The near studio beats the location. The distant studio loses on vehicle-kilometres by a wide margin, even with no van and no generator. Multiply each row by your factor and the same story comes out in kilograms. If the long journey is by train for fewer people, the sum changes again, which is why you run it for your own crew.

What a studio day does not fix

A studio takes out journeys and generators. It does not take out the set, the props, the catering or the edit. A fully built set still uses timber, paint and screws, and a hot lamp still draws power. The honest comparison is between two whole plans, with the same shot list, the same number of people and the same deliverables. If the studio plan quietly drops half the shots, you are comparing different films.

Reuse is the lever that is easiest to overlook. Standard flats, plinths and furniture can go back into use on the next job, and the barn's carpenter sells a standing range of them. Ask any supplier what happens to the set at the end.

Collect the data while you shoot

Calculators ask for actuals, and actuals are hard to rebuild a month later. Keep four records from the first prep day:

• The call sheet, which tells you who was where and when.
• Mileage or a fuel receipt for each vehicle, and the generator invoice if there is one.
• Hotel nights, by person.
• Any electricity reading you can get from the venue.

Five minutes at the wrap with the production manager saves a morning of guessing at the end.

Ways to make the studio plan better

• Book crew who live near. A crew based close to the studio shortens the biggest line. Our film crew work here regularly, which keeps the travelling group to the people who need to be in the room.
• Share vehicles and use the charger. Parking is on site and an EV charger is there for arrivals.
• Cut the trip altogether where you can. A remote guest or a director can join over the line instead of travelling. We run directed ADR and remote interviews using Source-Connect Pro, with fibre internet on site.
• Shoot more in one trip. One produced day can cover a lot of ground: plan a year of content in a day shows how a single visit can serve many deliverables instead of many visits.
• Build on the stage. Set building happens on site, which means no lorry carrying a set from a workshop. The set is standing before your crew arrives.

Questions to ask any studio or location

• How is the building powered, and can you see the tariff?
• How far do most crews travel, and what is the nearest station?
• What happens to the set afterwards? Reuse and recycling are worth asking about in writing.
• Is there a generator on site, and who supplies the fuel?
• What can be done remotely? Fibre internet means a client can review frames without travelling.

If a commissioner is asking for albert certification, see what broadcasters ask for and the studio. A carbon calculation you have run for both plans is the evidence that makes a lower-carbon choice easier to defend.

Sources

• Screen Global Production, BAFTA albert Accelerate 2025 report reveals travel as biggest carbon contributor, read 5 November 2026
• BAFTA albert, Accelerate 2025 report, read 5 November 2026
• BAFTA, BAFTA albert launches revamped production carbon calculator and certification toolkit, read 5 November 2026
• Department for Energy Security and Net Zero, Greenhouse gas reporting: conversion factors 2025, read 5 November 2026

The picture at the top of this page is an illustration, not a photograph of a client or a real job.