Greenlit’s first Carbon Emissions Review, drawing on production-level data from productions across 2024 and 2025, establishes a baseline that the entire sector can use to guide its path toward lower emissions.
This isn’t just a report full of numbers. It’s the starting point for an evidence-based conversation about how we reduce the environmental impact of making screen content in Aotearoa.
Why this report matters
Until now, discussions about sustainability in the New Zealand screen sector have often relied on assumptions, international benchmarks, or anecdotal experience. This report changes that. By collecting and analysing real production data through the Greenlit carbon calculator, we now have local, specific evidence about where emissions are generated – and where the biggest opportunities for reduction lie.
The findings are striking. Flights account for 34% of all measured emissions, with first and business class travel making up roughly three-quarters of that figure. On-road vehicles represent another 26%, followed by material use (primarily wood and textiles) at 10% and stationary fuel – mostly diesel generators – at 8%. Together, these four categories account for close to 80% of all measured emissions.
Having this level of clarity matters because it allows us to move beyond good intentions and into targeted action. When we can see the problem clearly, we can discuss solutions as an industry – and we can measure whether those solutions are working.
How the report can be used
The data in this review is relevant to everyone working in and around the screen sector.
Industry bodies can use the findings to inform policy development – particularly around travel policies and access to lower-emission energy on set. The evidence around premium-class flights, for example, points to a clear behavioural opportunity that could be supported through industry-wide guidelines.
Production companies can benchmark their own footprints against the sector averages and identify where their biggest reduction opportunities lie, whether that’s transitioning away from diesel generators, rethinking material sourcing, or adjusting travel practices.
Sustainability managers will find the breakdown by production type and budget size particularly useful. The report shows that emissions profiles vary significantly between tentpole productions and smaller projects, reinforcing the need for tailored sustainability strategies rather than one-size-fits-all approaches.
Crew members at every level can use the report to better understand how day-to-day production decisions connect to the bigger emissions picture – and to advocate for change within their own departments and workflows.
Where to from here
This first report is a foundation, not a finish line. Two priorities sit side by side as we move forward.
The first is continuing to improve our data collection processes. Only around a third of the productions registered in the Greenlit calculator were completed in time for this report, and data quality varies across submissions. Categories like crew commute and freight – which Greenlit measures as experimental categories ahead of most international calculators – need fuller participation to give us a complete picture. As more productions engage with the calculator and as familiarity with carbon reporting grows, the data will become richer and more representative.
The second priority is putting the findings to work. The report identifies clear next steps: embedding sustainability managers earlier in the production process, expanding access to grid power and battery systems, developing mechanisms for sharing sets and materials between productions, and addressing the outsized impact of premium-class air travel. These are practical, achievable actions – and many are already underway.
The willingness of crew, sustainability managers, producers and suppliers to contribute their data – alongside the everyday pressures of production – is what makes this baseline meaningful. With continued commitment from across the sector, Aotearoa New Zealand is well positioned to lead the way in sustainable screen production.