Good news for Steveston crews: there is now a power kiosk in the parking lot at 3300 Chatham, which has also been entirely paved. Base camps can be plugged directly into the two (200 Amp, 208 Volt camlock) tie-ins for a flat rate of $500/day, eliminating the need for a diesel generator there – in fact those noisy smelly beasts are no longer even allowed in the lot! Your production will save on the cost of towing a generator to Steveston and running diesel all day to the detriment of our ears, lungs and carbon footprint.

Not to be outdone, the City of Vancouver has also added more power kiosks. There are now 5 in the various lots around Pacific Blvd., plus two new ones on opposite sides of Shaughnessy Park on The Crescent (1300 & 3300 blocks). Using them can score you a 50% discount on CoV film permits – not to mention the fuel savings. For everything to know about plugging into them, check out this handy guide.

In December, Maple Ridge installed their own new power kiosk in the Railway Lot near Haney Bypass. Specifically targeting film and TV circuses, they hope to eliminate over 86,000 litres of fuel from being burned in generators and preventing their associated greenhouse gases from further warming our atmosphere. This is expected to translate into approximately $160,000 per year in fuel costs! Thank you, Maple Ridge.

For every other location in the Lower Mainland, you can ask your liaison beforehand about tie-in possibilities. Reel Green™ has recently updated their Grid Power Access Map so you can check where other crews have succeeded in using clean energy to power their set as well as add your own wins to the map.

Electrification in all its forms is currently (pun intended…) the most effective way to make our film sets more sustainable. Decarbonizing our vehicles, locations and set power generation takes us a huge step forward in reducing our industry’s considerable environmental impact.

Plug in and power up. Peace out.

Annabelle Wilczur
Assistant Business Agent and Sustainability Lead