Green screen: the march of TV ‘planet placement’

Britain’s film and TV industries want to help save the world. That’s hardly news. But one organisation is ensuring the industry focuses its efforts on environmental sustainability: Albert, which also goes by the name of Bafta Albert.

You might have seen the logo – a black footprint – at the end of many TV programmes, from BBC’s Newsnight to Sky Sports News. It’s a rapidly expanding body that few people other than industry insiders have heard of. But Albert is increasingly influential in determining how media institutions programme content, conduct their working practices and set their goals.

It describes itself as an environmental organisation which aims to encourage TV and film companies to reduce their carbon footprint. ‘We are leading a charge against climate change,’ it says. One of its big initiatives is Planet Placement – effectively introducing subliminal messaging. The unspoken idea is that almost everyone in broadcasting must accept Albert’s worldview.