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Capsule summary: ‘Greenlit’
‘GREENLIT’
In ‘Greenlit,’ director Miranda Bailey follows efforts to be environmentally friendly during production of ‘The River Why.’ She finds that the movie industry isn’t as green as it seems.
In fact, Bailey cites a report indicating that Hollywood is one of the biggest polluters in Southern California, blowing up cars, setting fires and gobbling down hundreds of thousands of bottles of water each year.
And they’re not green anywhere else, either, it seems. Take, for instance, ‘The Beach,’ starring the environmentally conscious Leonardo DiCaprio and shot in Thailand. The producers decided that they needed palm trees, so they removed some of the native vegetation and planted the palms. Then the rains came and washed the dunes into the ocean.
Or take, for instance, the filming of ‘Titanic,’ once again with DiCaprio, in a giant tank off Mexico. The moviemakers decided that the water would look better on film if it were treated with chlorine. Then, after production was completed, they released the water into the ocean, causing a fish kill.
As Bailey quickly discovers on the set of ‘The River Why,’ even well-intentioned production companies who hire green consultants aren’t always open to being environmentally friendly.
Packing peanuts in the compost bin. Bigtime complaints about the lack of compact bottled water. Ignored phone calls about recycling efforts. And so it goes.
Insightful, funny and sad, ‘Greenlit’ shines a spotlight on an industry that’s full of people who pride themselves on being green — but don’t practice that same philosophy at work.
Screenings: 4:45 p.m. Saturday, March 13, Alamo South; 6 p.m. Friday, March 19, Alamo South
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