March 2024 Newsletter
As we wrap up International Women's Month, we would feel remiss if we didn't recognize the incredible women in our industry working overtime to make it more sustainable. From the sustainable leads at the major studios to screenwriters, showrunners, set PAs, etc., it takes women at every step of production to produce a sustainable story. And as a women-led organization that's worked for decades to improve our industry, we would know!
While every woman working in this space deserves recognition, we'd like to share the story of Producer Amber Mundinger, who kept sustainability at the forefront of her EMA award-winning production, 'Monumental: Ellie Goulding at Kew Gardens.' Read the following interview, written by Mekeisha Madden Toby, and watch the documentary on Amazon Freevee!
What does it mean to you to win an EMA Award?
It's a great honor to receive an EMA—especially for this show—and given the EMA's long-standing history, it feels very special to have received this. For the show with Ellie, it was very important to her to showcase her work in environmental activism and to highlight the individuals and locations doing that work every day.
Kew Gardens was an ideal choice. Given the location itself is where 300+ scientists and botanists work and are attempting to answer questions about plant evolution, diversity, and conservation. We worked to have a sustainable production on set, and then, through this show in particular, we were able to highlight the great work at Kew. So, it was especially meaningful to be able to receive this award when working with an artist who is actively out there on a daily basis advocating for change.
In an interview in the film, Ellie Goulding says that her performance at Kew Gardens is one she "will never forget." Can you talk about some of the things that you created as a producer to make this happen?
There were many things, from my perspective, that made it so memorable, including the location itself. It gave us special access during an incredibly busy time. We were under very tight timelines to be able to shoot there, but they worked extremely hard to accommodate us because of the storytelling of the show.
The interviews with Ellie Goulding and TV personality Roman Kemp were right next to the time capsule that David Attenborough has at Kew Gardens. He buried the time capsule in the foundation of the building during its construction in 1985, and the capsule contains seeds of important food crops and several endangered species. It will be opened in 2085, when many of the plants it contains may be rare or extinct. When Ellie and Dr. Carly Cowell were chatting, they walked through the Princess of Wales Conservatory. The location has 10 distinct climate zones inside. We did the concert performances in the Temperate House which is the largest Victorian Glasshouse in the world. We were also able to get drone footage of Kew Gardens and the sunrise over London and along the Thames early in the morning (a nice 5 a.m. shoot). We really tried to capture as much as possible of the essence of the space and the critical work being done there.
To help save our planet, we must empower everyone with science-backed nature skills. From composting to tree planting, learning such skills has never been more accessible or fun, thanks to Earthed! Our Creative Director, Asher Levin, recently joined the Earthed team and a few LA-based eco-influencers to get his hands in the soil and plant trees.
From the Earthed team, "Teaming up with EMA to restore an area of the Santa Monica Mountains epitomizes action over words, which felt particularly poignant after Honoree Laura Dern's call for less speaking and more doing at the 33rd EMA awards this March. In just one morning, we planted 200 coastal oak trees in Cheeseborough Canyon, reclaiming degraded land in the LA area ravaged by increasingly common wildfires. This collaboration shines a spotlight on our human potential to nurture the areas in which we live. As Earthed launches three practical courses filmed on the West Coast, including 'Permaculture for Wildfire Defense', 'Restoring the Santa Monica Mountains', and 'How to Start a Farmers Market', we extend our gratitude to Jay, Debbie, Asher, Aicha, and the entire EMA team for their unwavering support."
