Mari Jo Winkler has been greening film productions since 2003. As executive producer of HBO's True Detective: Night Country, she made a decision that cut the show's carbon footprint by 2–3x: shoot in Iceland instead of Alaska — not just for the landscape, but for the geothermal grid.

In this excerpt from the NAB Excellence in Sustainability Awards, Mari Jo walks through exactly how she did it: scouting at -22° in Kotzebue, choosing Iceland for its 100% clean energy infrastructure, deploying 40+ EVs, and piloting a battery-powered generator that now lives permanently in Iceland. She also breaks down how the show's environmental themes — toxic mining, indigenous communities, climate justice — made it onto screen, not just into the production protocols.

What you'll learn:

— Why Iceland beat Alaska and Canada on both carbon and cost

— How a single conversation got a facility manager to purchase an EV battery generator for the production

— Why the carbon footprint in Iceland was 2–3x lower than a comparable US or Canadian shoot

— How HBO extended sustainability protocols all the way through marketing and the premiere

— What Mari Jo is calling for from the supply chain right now

Perfect for producers, production managers, sustainability coordinators, and anyone making the case for green production inside a major studio or streamer.

🔗 Mari Jo Winkler-Iofredda

• Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/boneduds/
• LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mari-jo-winkler-254010177/

🔗 Green Production Guide: greenproductionguide.com

🎙️ Zena Harris on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/zenaharris

🎙️ Mark Rabin on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/rabinmark

This is an excerpt from a live session at the NAB Excellence in Sustainability Awards, April 2024. Watch/Listen to the full episode here:

🔗Apple Podcast: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/nabshow-special-release-in-conversation-with-mari-jo/id1753867919?i=1000660156732&l=pt-BR

🔗 Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/1KHnegzzj3eVpqiY2JROo9?si=16c3c0634eea4e44

🔗 YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AwGkWxxhdRs

Clara George has spent over 30 years in film and television — moving from line producer to unit production manager and producer on US and Canadian productions — and she co-wrote the production sections of the PGA's newly released Sustainability Tool Kit for Producers. In this episode, she breaks down the concept she calls holistic budgeting: why the argument that sustainability costs more is almost always a failure to look at the full picture. From diesel generators carried for an entire shoot when you're on stage half the time, to location fees, cable runs, labor, and the hidden cost of a noisy generator on a residential street — Clara makes the case that productions are already spending the money. The question is where. A must-listen for producers, UPMs, and anyone who's ever been told clean energy is too expensive

What you'll learn:

— Why productions are not budgeted efficiently and what that actually costs

— How to calculate the real cost of a diesel generator vs. a battery system

— Why carrying generators for a full run of show when you're on stage 50% of the time is already wasteful

— What location goodwill is worth — and what you lose when a noisy generator costs you a location

— Why "sustainability costs more" almost always means "I don't want to do it"

— How to reframe the conversation from cost to decision-making

Perfect for producers, unit production managers, line producers, production coordinators, and anyone responsible for a production budget who wants to make the case for sustainable production practices.

Topics: sustainable film production, green production, holistic budgeting, production management, UPM, line producer, clean energy on set, battery vs generator, diesel generator alternative, PGA Sustainability Tool Kit, sustainable entertainment, film industry sustainability, production efficiency, carbon footprint film, Vancouver film production, US productions Canada

This is an excerpt of a previously released episode. Listen/watch the full episode!

YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ckgEidUTh4Y&feature=youtu.be

Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/episode/0aZ5zLAEVM6DzKBM8Z1nGM?si=Bm9lY_2_RxGcYRbAfWyZ7g

Apple:https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/s1-e5-championing-sustainability-producer-clara-george/id1753867919?i=1000663777686

CONNECT WITH CLARA AND LEARN MORE ABOUT THE PGA SUSTAINABILITY TOOL. KIT:

🔗 PGA Sustainability Tool Kit: sustainability.producersguild.org

🔗 Clara George on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/clarageorge

CONNECT WITH ZENA AND MARK:

🎙️ Zena Harris on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/zenaharris

🎙️ Mark Rabin on LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/rabinmark

👉 SUBSCRIBE for more sustainability and clean energy content from inside the entertainment industry.

#SustainableProduction #GreenFilm #FilmProduction #SustainableEntertainment #LineProducer #UPM #ProductionManagement #CleanEnergy #BatteryVsGenerator #GreenProduction #FilmIndustry #TVProduction #PGASustainability #ProductionBudget #HollywoodSustainability #CanadianFilm #VancouverFilm #SustainableFilmmaking #EcoProduction #FilmBudget #TheTieIn #EntertainmentSustainability #CarbonFootprint #GreenSet #ProductionEfficiency

A single AI query uses four to five times the energy of a regular search. Data centers consumed 415 terawatt hours of electricity in 2024 — and that number is projected to more than double by 2030. But the carbon story most people aren't talking about isn't the electricity. It's the equipment.

Kanika Arora Sharma, Principal of Sustainability at Introba, led the research report Hidden Emissions of the Cloud — examining the embodied carbon of data center cooling systems over a 60-year life cycle. She breaks down what a data center physically is, why the mechanical and electrical equipment inside it dominates its carbon footprint over time, what happened when her team asked manufacturers for their carbon data, and what the entertainment industry's studio and streaming infrastructure has to do with all of it.

If you work in film, TV, or production and use cloud tools, AI workflows, or streaming platforms — this episode connects directly to your industry.

💼 Connect with Kanika: https://www.linkedin.com/in/arorakanika/

🌐 Introba: https://www.introba.com

🔗 Read Kanika’s report: https://www.introba.com/news/hidden-emissions-cloud

Connect with your hosts:

💼 Zena Harris: https://www.linkedin.com/in/zenaharris/

💼 Mark Rabin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rabinmark/

👉 SUBSCRIBE for more sustainability and clean energy content from inside the entertainment industry.

#DataCenter #AIEnergy #EmbodiedCarbon #DataCenterSustainability #AICarbon #CleanTech #GreenTech #Sustainability #DataCenterCooling #ImmersionCooling #CarbonFootprint #Scope3 #NetZero #ClimateAction #SustainableEntertainment #FilmIndustry #StreamingSustainability #GreenProduction #TheTieIn #EnergyTransition #AIEnvironmentalImpact #CloudComputing #BuildingDecarbonization #WholeLifeCarbon #MEP

What does it actually take to get content from a camera to your screen — and how much energy does it burn along the way? Barbara Lange, founder of Kibo 121 and co-founder of the Media Tech Sustainability Series, breaks down the four stages of media tech — production, digital factory, distribution, and consumption — and why the industry needs to stop quietly doing good work and start talking about it. From the Media Climate Accord to right-to-repair, this is a behind-the-scenes look at the people and systems working to make entertainment less wasteful.

🎙️ Connect with Barbara:

🌐 kibo121.io | mtsseries.org

💼 LinkedIn: : https://www.linkedin.com/in/barbarahlange/

🎙️ Connect with your hosts:

💼 Zena Harris on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/zenaharris/

💼 Mark Rabin on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rabinmark/

Andre Champagne, founder and CEO of Hollywood Trucks, just announced a multi-year deal with NBCUniversal to deploy his new Eco Luxe trailers across all their film and TV productions — on-lot and off-lot. In this episode, he joins us from inside one of his new Eco Luxe trailers — parked on the Universal Studios lot, running entirely on its own power, never plugged in.

He breaks down how autonomous power works on a real film set: solar-powered trailers that generate, store, and distribute free clean energy to anything on the lot — including EV charging for cast and crew. On one Amazon production, he walked up to eight Hollywood Trucks trailers with eight EVs tied in and charging — no external power source, no cost. Listen in to hear why he believes the clean energy tipping point for the entertainment industry has already arrived.

From his first solar panel on a trailer in 2012 to a fully off-grid base camp by 2015 — this is a behind-the-scenes look at how sustainable film and TV production actually gets built, and where it's going next.

🎙️ Connect with Andre:

🌐 hollywoodtrucks.com

📸 Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hollywoodtrucks/

💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/hollywood-trucks/

🎙️ Connect with your hosts:

💼 Zena Harris on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/zenaharris/

💼 Mark Rabin on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rabinmark/

👉 SUBSCRIBE for more sustainability and clean energy content from inside the entertainment industry.

Mark Walter has spent thirty years inside Hollywood's production infrastructure — launching and operating major production facilities across California and globally, and working with manufacturers to find cleaner power solutions for film and TV sets. In this episode, we get into why hybrid generator systems are the most accessible and effective solution for base camp power on location today, what resistance to new technology actually looks like on set, how small legacy vendors are navigating a rapidly changing equipment landscape, and what Hawaii's coming diesel generator ban signals for the rest of the industry. A candid, practical conversation from someone who has seen it from every angle.

🎙️ Connect with Mark:

💼 LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/mark-v-walter

🎙️ Connect with your hosts:

💼 Zena Harris on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/zenaharris/

💼 Mark Rabin on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rabinmark/

👉 SUBSCRIBE for more sustainability and clean energy content from inside the entertainment industry.

David Rovsek has been putting sustainable power to work on Hollywood productions since 2011 — long before the industry was ready. As President of King Kong Production Services — the parent company behind King Kong Production Vehicles and #setlife — he's spent two years building out a battery energy storage business serving film sets, live events, and festivals. In this episode we get into what it actually takes to get productions to try something new, where batteries are winning on cost and logistics, and why the next generation of filmmakers may be the ones who finally tip the scale. A practical, on-the-ground look at how clean power is moving from niche to standard on set.

🎙️ Connect with David:

🌐 kingkongproductionservices.com

📸 Instagram: @kingkongtrailers | @setliferentals

👤 Facebook: David Rovsek

💼 LinkedIn: King Kong Production Vehicles Inc.

🎙️ Connect with your hosts:

💼 Zena Harris on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/zenaharris/

💼 Mark Rabin on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rabinmark/

👉 SUBSCRIBE for more sustainability and clean energy content from inside the entertainment industry.

What happens when a software engineer turned sustainability consultant turns musician decides to use her fan base as a force for climate action?

Vienna Teng — songwriter, performer, McKinsey Sustainability Fellow, and one of Grist's 50 Climate Innovators to Watch in 2025 — joins Zena Harris and Mark Rabin to talk about the unlikely through line connecting all of her careers: empathy-driven problem solving.

Vienna breaks down how she runs climate action workshops inside music venues, why she intentionally keeps the tone hopeful rather than doom-focused, and what it actually looks like to walk a fan from curiosity to real community impact. Including one fan who stopped a solar ban in her township after a single conversation.

She also reflects on her years working in clean energy access and waste diversion systems in the Global South, what she learned that she couldn't have learned from the outside, and why she came back to music as the most powerful tool she had.

Topics: climate action, fan engagement, hope-based climate communication, music and sustainability, artist activism, clean energy, behavior change, climate storytelling, indie music, McKinsey sustainability, Grist 50, community solar, waste diversion, Global South, climate innovation

🎙️ Connect with Vienna:

🌐 viennateng.com

📸 Instagram: @viennatengmusic

🎵 Patreon: patreon.com/viennateng

🎙️ Connect with your hosts:

Zena Harris on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/zenaharris/

Mark Rabin on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rabinmark/

👉 SUBSCRIBE for more sustainability and clean energy content from inside the entertainment industry.

#ViennaTeng #ClimateAction #MusicAndClimate #Sustainability #HopefulClimateCommunication #FanEngagement #ClimateInnovation #Grist50 #IndieMusic #CleanEnergy #BehaviorChange #ClimateStorytelling #EntertainmentSustainability #TheTieIn #ArtistActivism #CommunityAction #ClimateHope #SustainableEntertainment

What if the foam, wood, and metal used to build film and TV sets could be replaced with a material that's stronger than it sounds, faster to build with, and goes straight into the blue bin when the shoot wraps?

Karmen Hansen, Owner of Nordwerk Design Inc., joins Zena and Mark to break down how engineered paperboard is replacing virgin, high-emission materials in film, TV, and event production — and why the total cost argument for conventional materials doesn't hold up the way most productions assume.

From building the Echo Probe for the opening scene of Alien: Romulus to engineering the CBC Edmonton news desk — which holds a 211lb tabletop and is still standing after a 4-week stress test — Karmen unpacks how this material works, what it takes to get major clients to trust it, and why the circular economy case for cardboard on set is stronger than anyone expects.

Topics: sustainable set design, circular economy, film production materials, engineered cardboard, Re-board, zero-waste production, sustainable events, trade show design, set builds, sustainable architecture, film industry sustainability, replacing Luon, cardboard furniture, sustainable construction.

🎙️ Connect with Karmen and Nordwerk:

Karmen Hansen, Owner — Nordwerk Design Inc.

🌐 nordwerk.co

📸 Instagram: @nordwerkdesign

🎵 TikTok: @nordwerkdesign

💼 LinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/nordwerk-design/

🎙️ Connect with your hosts:

Zena Harris on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/zenaharris/

Mark Rabin on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/rabinmark/

What does it take to build a thriving community around big ideas — and what does that have to do with sustainability in entertainment? Jenny Stefanotti, founder of Denizen, joins Zena and Mark to talk about how an accidental pandemic-era salon grew into a conversation with an 85,000-person reach on Clubhouse and a global community of leaders at the forefront of systemic change. They dig into AI's disruption of the labor market, the democratizing potential for indie content creators, and why individual agency may be the most underestimated force for change. A wide-ranging conversation about technology, culture, and what it means to build something that lasts.

Connect With Jenny

Jenny's Website

On Instagram

On X/Twitter

On LinkedIn

Connect with our hosts:

Zena Harris on LinkedIn

Mark Rabin on LinkedIn