World’s first ‘climate positive’ feature movie

Motion Blur Films has made a bold statement about its commitment to climate action by taking actions to avoid greenhouse gas emissions and then offsetting double the number of unavoidable emissions associated with the production of its latest movie, “Amundsen”. Motion Blur joined the UN’s Climate Neutral Now initiative, which means that “Amundsen” will not only be “climate neutral”, but “climate positive”. This outcome was achieved through one of the main sponsors of the movie, the Norwegian content and telecom company Get, who purchased UN-certified credits via the Norwegian company CHOOOSE.
The climate positive message of this film release, which is expected to be the biggest Norwegian release of 2019, is extremely timely because “Amundsen” is an adventure film about Arctic explorer Roald Amundsen, who was the first man to reach the South and the North Poles. Sadly, the vast ice caps at the Poles are already melting as the effects of human-induced climate change take hold. This film will help to highlight the need to take action to avoid the worst impacts of climate change.
Motion Blur’s commitment shows that the film industry can play an important role in helping raise public awareness about the urgent need for climate action from all members of society. The film industry is particularly well placed to do so given its ability to reach wide and diverse audiences. In addition, bringing climate awareness into the mainstream will help to ensure that governments receive the support they need from citizens to act on their commitments to reduce greenhouse gas emissions under the Paris Climate Change Agreement.
Speaking about their climate positive commitment, Motion Blur stated that: “Roald Amundsen believed that the poles affected the global climate. We recognize that climate change is caused by humans and that we must also be a part of the solution. We have therefore done what we can to make the production of the film “Amundsen” as environmentally friendly as possible. Our partnership with CHOOOSE is an important part of this work”.
In order to make the production of “Amundsen” as sustainable as possible, Motion Blur implemented, among others, the following measures to reduce their emissions: Reducing food waste and donating left overs; offering vegetarian meal options; trying to eliminate single use plastics on set; ensuring that all electrical equipment and lights were turned off; using efficient lighting; establishing a system for recycling all suitable materials; reusing previous materials and selecting sustainable ones for the new products, as much as possible; donating materials used during shooting for use in other locations; encouraging the use of public transportation among staff.
“Amundsen comes at a time of growing awareness about the need for bold climate action to protect our way of life, biodiversity, and ecological zones such as those in the cryosphere. We welcome Motion Blur’s leadership and support for global climate action”, said Niclas Svenningsen, who leads the Climate Neutral Now initiative of UN Climate Change.
“Amundsen” will be distributed by SF Studios in Norway on 15 February 2019.