Green filming funding

The catalogue of criteria for the ecological minimum standards for Austrian cinema film productions ÖFI / ÖFI+// ANIMATION, was developed in collaboration with experts and Green Film Consultants from the animation industry, Barbara Galante (GFC&VFX, AT) and Elena Pfändler (GFC, D). The necessity arises from the fact that currently valid Green Filming criteria catalogues do not take into account the special features of animated films. The guidelines of the Austrian Ecolabel UZ76 also currently exclude animated films from certification because they are not “REALFILM productions”.

The MUST and SHOULD criteria in this criteria catalogue for animated films reflect the necessary requirements and also enable the focus to be on a sustainable production method, which is desired under the Austrian Film Funding Act.

The catalogue of criteria for ecological minimum standards for Austrian cinema film productions ÖFI/ÖFI+ / ANIMATION can be downloaded at the bottom of this page.

According to the current guidelines, the following points must be considered:

According to point 6.1.3, the funding requires that the producer of the film project submit a statement on the planned implementation of Green Filming.

According to point 6.1.7 Funding requires that the applicant complies with the criteria of the Austrian Film Institute for Green Filming, based on the UZ76 guideline “Green Producing in Film and Television” Austrian Ecolabel.

The GREEN FILMING CHECK is an integral part of the funding application and the funding agreement. It allows productions to test in advance whether they can meet the required number of MUST REQUIREMENTS. These are then contractually anchored.

In addition to the  mandatory Final Green Report, the actual status of the GREEN FILMING CHECK is attached to the final report. All documents and mandatory TEMPLATES or information on the evidence are available for download.

GREEN BONUS ÖFI+: Since the Green-Bonus ÖFI+ is part of the financing, it is necessary to decide after the GREEN FILMING CHECK whether it can be applied for or not.

The mandatory requirements must be met as follows:

• Calculation scheme ÖFI/ÖFi+: Minimum 15 of 19 mandatory criteria (implementation recommended, final report mandatory – 6 mandatory basic criteria, other mandatory requirements are optional)
• Calculation scheme ÖFI+ GREEN BONUS: Minimum 17 of 19 MUST criteria (mandatory implementation – 6 mandatory basic criteria, other MUST requirements are optional)

Further information on the ÖFI+ Green Bonus can be found in points 6a.8; 6a.9 and 6a.12. of the current funding guidelines here.

A calculation template including the option of calculating the additional costs of Green Filming must also be taken into account. Please refer to the information on this page about “Green Filming additional costs”.

For your information: Certification according to the Austrian Eco-label (UZ76) is not possible for animated films according to the new version of January 2025.

The Green Bonus is independent of the actual amount of the Green Filming ADDITIONAL COSTS. These additional costs are to be shown in a separate sheet “Green Filming Additional Costs” for both ÖFI and ÖFI+(Green Bonus) in cooperation with the Green Film Consultants in the course of the project application. It is important that these additional costs are also included in the main calculation! Unlike the “ILV” supplement, which includes an extract of all valued own services included in the calculation, only the ADDITIONAL COSTS are to be included here (e.g. production coordination 13 weeks of total activity, 1 week of which is additional work due to green filming activities, i.e. enter 1 week in the planned weekly flat rate in the supplement; aliquot wage costs are calculated automatically).

Most of the budget areas in this supplement are freely configurable and should be budgeted in collaboration with the green consultant.

Calculation of the expected additional costs:

Any additional costs for compliance with the measures taken during the film production are generally eligible for funding (subject to review) and can be calculated accordingly in the production costs. The costs for the mandatory green film consultant are also considered additional costs.

In addition to fixed positions such as a Green Film Consultant and Green Runner, additional staff members can be selected from drop-down lists. Weeks and weekly wages must be entered separately; the pro-rata non-wage labour costs are automatically calculated if you activate the “Employment” box.

The Green Bonus is calculated automatically when you tick the corresponding checkbox in the financing plan. The Green Bonus criteria catalogue and the mandatory Green Filming Check_ÖFI_ÖFI+ can be downloaded at the bottom of the page.

If you are planning to certify your project with the Austrian Ecolabel, the certification costs for UZ76 and its consultancy costs can also be recognized. (If certification is sought, we ask that this be indicated separately in the calculation).

If you have any questions regarding the content of Green Filming, please contact Ms Mag. Nina Hauser or Mr Christian Ruthner BSc at: greenfilming@filminstitut.at

Since 2021, the FINAL GREEN REPORT has been a mandatory part of the final audit of ALL cinema films (feature films, documentaries, animation) funded during production.

The final report contains all the information relevant for the audit. A specific audit procedure and a verification process for the required mandatory and target criteria have been developed, which specify concrete evidence for the given criteria.

The verification of this FINAL Green Report was coordinated with the Filmförderungsanstalt FFA, Prof. Philip Gassmann and the Österreichisches Filminstitut ÖFI in view of a cross-national cooperation.

Here you find further information on the cooperation between the different countries.

The TEMPLATES of the final reports (FINAL GREEN REPORT (HE, HE ANIMATION and CINEMA LAUNCH) for the various criteria catalogues are available for download, including a prescribed folder template (for evidence)!

Possibility of an INTERIM REPORT:

For projects that want to make the implementation visible in the credits, there is the possibility of submitting an interim report. To do so, contact the Green Filming Department after the end of shooting.

Audit:

As part of the interim and final audit of the production, the interim and final report “Final Green Report”, if any, will be audited with all documents and receipts, statistically documented and evaluated. All documents, completed and commented on, must be submitted at the end of the shooting and at the latest with the final invoice of the project, including the completed folder template.

After a positive review by the Austrian Film Institute, the production of the Green Bonus will be released. If the project is not approved, the Green Bonus will not be granted. A mandatory final report “Final Green Report” is mandatory even without applying for a Green Bonus.

For the Austrian Film Institute, the sustainable realization of a feature film project is important not only in Austria but also abroad.

After consultation and decision by the supervisory board of the Austrian Film Institute in December 2023, the following regulations for co-productions were established:

Majority or national co-productions incl. Green Bonus 5%:

22 of 25 MUST criteria (this applies to all Shooting Days in Austria and abroad)

Minority co-productions incl. Green Bonus 5%:

22 of 25 MUST criteria (this applies to all Shooting Days in Austria)

20 of 25 MUST criteria (this applies to all Shooting Days abroad)

The foreign regulations apply mainly to countries that do not yet have their own legal and statutory regulations. These fall back on the regulations of the Austrian Film Institute. (All documents, including the criteria catalogues and templates for the final reports, are therefore also available in English).

For countries such as Germany (FFA) and South Tyrol (IDM), there is already close coordination for transnational projects.

If you have any questions, please contact us at greenfilmg@filminstitut.at. Here you find further information on transnational coordination.

9a.3. The subsidy amounts to 30% of the eligible distribution and/or exploitation pre-costs. The definition of eligible distribution and/or exploitation pre-costs follows para. 6a.7.1. (personal services) and point 6a.7.2. (company-related services). In addition, it is possible to apply for a 5% green bonus for an ecologically sustainable cinema release. The Green Bonus is part of the financing and can only be granted if the implementation of the project meets the ecological sustainability standards set by the Film Institute.

For this purpose, the Austrian Film Institute has developed a Criteria Catalogue of Ecological Minimum Standards for Austrian Exploitation Funding for Cinema Releases ÖFI+ to be able to apply for the Green Bonus ÖFI+.

The minimum standards for Austrian exploitation funding (cinema releases) are the first fundamental measures for the implementation of sustainable thinking in the execution of cinema releases. These are to be evaluated in the future and further developed with the distribution companies.

The “Criteria Catalogue of Ecological Minimum Standards for Austrian distribution funding for Cinema Releases ÖFI+” can be downloaded at the bottom of the page.

Ecolabel UZ 76

Since 2017, it has been possible in Austria to have a film production certified for Green Producing and awarded the Austrian Ecolabel by the Federal Ministry for Sustainability and Tourism (BMNT).

The guidelines of the Austrian Ecolabel UZ76

The Austrian Ecolabel is awarded to specific film productions, not to individual production companies. The production company is thus exclusively a licensee and is not awarded.

For registration and certification with the Austrian Ecolabel, costs are incurred for certification and for the responsible environmental consultant and auditor of the Austrian Ecolabel.

The ecological requirements must be met along the entire production chain of a film production.

A film production is defined as follows: the production of cinema, advertising, documentary or television films, series, shows (if the aspect of recording is in the foreground) or reports, which can be divided into the phases of project development, pre-production, shooting, post-production and film exploitation.

The guideline includes criteria for the specific film production in the areas of mobility and climate protection, set, materials for construction, set design and props, costume and make-up, technology, catering and accommodation. Although the specific film production is being awarded, criteria have also been defined that must be met by the production company. These must be proven during the initial environmental label test.

Here you can find all the the information and current guidelines for the Austrian Ecolabel UZ76