Studio 91's story
Studio 91 is a Manchester-based video production agency, formed in 2018. They aim to help clients of all shapes and sizes to tell their inspiring, shareable stories. Studio 91 is a socially-focused company. As they like to say: "We don't just want to make good video, we want to make video that does good."
This commitment is captured in their simple manifesto: "We want to create video content that is good for people, good for platforms and good for the planet"
What does "good for the planet" look like in practice? To start with, Studio 91 has signed up as member of 1% for the Planet, a global network of thousands of businesses and environmental organisations who work together to support people and the planet, and donate at least 1% of their turnover – hence the name.
They also aim to encourage a climate-positive workforce, who are aware of the sustainability impact of their work. All staff are trained in carbon literacy, with help from the excellent Carbon Literacy Project, also based in Manchester.
Lastly, the team has set itself the ambitious goal of bringing the studio's carbon emissions to Net Zero by 2025, just two years away now - decades before the UK Government target. As a small, agile business that cares about the planet and the people on it, Studio 91 is aiming to show the way. After all, it's SMEs that represent half of the UK's private sector economy.
The studio's ambitious Net Zero target means they're always looking for new ways to bring carbon emissions down. Most emissions are generated by travelling to shoots, so where possible the team use a cargo bike or other eco-friendly modes of transport. Since clients are primarily based locally, in and around Greater Manchester, this is not too difficult, yet over time it makes a big difference.
Useful learnings from Studio 91
One of the main benefits of working towards sustainability is that it gives the team something to talk about with new clients. The fact that they ride around Greater Manchester with a full camera kit really gets people's attention, and starts conversations.
Engage your staff and colleagues with your sustainability strategy. For example, the most challenging aspect of Studio 91's sustainability story so far is around employees and freelancers driving their own cars to get to film shoots. The studio has no control over what kind of car that is and what emissions it has, so they are always looking at ways to engage the team, address the problem, and help them make better choices with sustainability in mind.
Studio 91's metrics
Scope 1,2 and 3 emissions are measured using Normative's excellent free Business Carbon Calculator.
Community engagement.
