SHAPE
THE
WORLD
WITH
STORIES
NOT
HOW
THEY’RE
TOLD
WHAT WE DO
Picture Zero is a film and TV sustainability consultancy and production company. We believe in the power of stories and the need for change. We are lucky enough to work in an industry that entertains, informs and inspires. Now we are working to help that industry make the maximum impact on screen and minimum impact off it.
We offer a broad range of services to productions and creative businesses looking to reduce their carbon footprints, minimise waste and transition to more sustainable ways of working.
Steve Smith
steve@picturezero.com
Steve is Picture Zero’s lead sustainability adviser. He is also a BAFTA award-winning director who’s helped create some of the UK’s most popular television programmes. Steve is the former Chair of Directors UK and a former non-executive director of Elstree Film Studios where he chaired the studios Net Zero committee. He oversees the Screen New Deal Transformation Plan for Wales and Studio Sustainability Standard for BAFTA albert.
Steve believes passionately that culture is a powerful force for galvanising climate action and challenging high-carbon lifestyles. To that end, in 2019 he co-founded Picture Zero with a dedication to making the film and TV sector a zero-carbon, zero-waste industry, integrating sustainability into storytelling.
Fergus Haycock
fergus@picturezero.com
Fergus co-founded Picture Zero. He originally qualified as a solicitor and has worked in many production capacities as a producer and executive producer. He brings over a decade of experience in TV and film production. His credits include LINE OF DUTY, THE FALL and BE WATER. Fergus co-founded Picture Zero and is focused on the impact that improving production management and supply efficiencies for content production can have on driving sustainable change across the UK.
Fergus lives in South London with his young family and spends his weekends chasing footballs, golf balls, rugby balls and cricket balls.
Will Norton
will@picturezero.com
Will leads the day-to-day operations of Picture Zero. His background is as a line producer and production executive for feature films and documentaries. As a consultant he has supported some of the UK’s biggest broadcasters, studios and rights holders. He believes the four of the most powerful words in the English language are “Once upon a time”, and that our creative industries have the ability and responsibility to inspire positive action on climate change.
Will lives in Devon with his family and has a passion for sustainably-minded food and farming.
Mandy Cayford
mandy@picturezero.com
Mandy is Picture Zero’s Chief Operating Officer. She has extensive experience in the creative industry covering broadcast television, brand marketing, corporate and operations management. Most recently Mandy led Responsible Production for Sky Studios, driving the decarbonization strategy for Sky Original scripted productions, sat on the BAFTA albert consortium, as well as overseeing production safeguarding, wellbeing, and trainee schemes.
Mandy lives in West London with her family, including 3 cats. She’s passionate about sustainable actions that help both the environment and make a positive social impact.
Alex Cheesman
alex@picturezero.com
With a strong passion for the environment, Alex studied Geography at Oxford University, before completing his Masters in Biodiversity, Conservation, and Management. Alex has worked as a Sustainability Consultant in other industries, providing biodiversity and climate consultancy.
Over recent years, he has been working closely with Universal International Studios and NBCUniversal on their sustainability journeys and how this translates to their production activities. He has also led the sustainability drive on production for Carnival, Sister and others within UIS.
His motivation comes from his belief that the Film and TV industry has the power to, one day, change the world.
Liesl Hattingh
liesl@picturezero.com
Liesl is a systems thinker and pragmatic doer who arrived at sustainable film and TV production after successfully launching earthworks, South Africa’s first publication dedicated to green building and urban planning. She co-found specialist consultancy WrapZERO in 2017, leading on major international productions filming in Cape Town, and developing accredited training with youth-focused NGO Greenset. WrapZERO, along with the KwaZulu-Natal Film Commission, took home the Makers and Shakers Award for sustainability in 2020 in recognition of pioneering industry research and guidelines.
Liesl now lives in Northeast London with her family, from where she manages implementation on Picture Zero projects while remaining engaged with regenerative design and practice.
Isobel Pietsch
isobel@picturezero.com
Isobel is a Sustainability Consultant, working across a range of Picture Zero projects. Prior to joining Picture Zero, Isobel worked as a development & production executive and Assistant Producer on projects ranging from narrative and documentary feature films, to episodic audio dramas.
With a background spanning film, theatre, dance and live cinema, she believes that the creative industries – whatever form they may take – have a unique ability to bring us together, and act as a powerful conduit for change.
Miranda Simmons
miranda@picturezero.com
Miranda leads sustainability support on a variety of Picture Zero projects. She is an experienced TV line producer, with a background in factual programming for major UK and international broadcasters. She founded the PMA Green Wing at the Production Managers Association and is a BAFTA Albert Trainer in sustainable production. Her passion for the planet and climate solutions was ignited by working on the Tony Robinson Channel 4 series, MAN ON EARTH, showing how previous civilisations were affected by climate change.
Fascinated by positive innovations, Miranda’s journey has been inspired by the eclectic ideas of climate leaders like Rob Hopkins, Antonio Gutierrez, Christiana Figueres, Robert Llewellyn and of course, Greta
Maya Wallis
maya@picturezero.com
Maya is a Sustainability Coordinator working on some of Picture Zero’s biggest projects. She grew up in Colombia and moved to the UK in 2017 after winning a scholarship to study at the United World College in Wales. Since then, she has worked in a variety of jobs in the film industry, from production to research.
Before joining Picture Zero, Maya worked at NBCUniversal, where she was heavily involved in the company’s sustainability initiatives. Maya is passionate about climate fiction as a tool to change the world, and is currently developing a short film about growing up in an apocalyptic, flood-ravaged Britain.
Sara Hamilton
sara@picturezero.com
Sara is a Sustainability Coordinator working on a variety of Picture Zero projects. She had a passion for sustainability long before entering the industry and created a 60 second short film for a COP26 competition before working at the event as a runner for Atomized Studios. She has since worked as a Sustainability Coordinator for some of the UK’s leading production companies and has been inspired by the many possibilities that exist to reduce production emissions and work more sustainably.
Sara is passionate about thought-provoking stories and believes climate change is one of the most important topics the world should be discussing right now. She lives in Scotland and enjoys working with productions and local suppliers on their sustainability goals.
Sakhile Shann
sakhile@picturezero.com
With eight years of industry experience across narrative and documentary films as well as episodic. Sakhile is now on her fourth production in a Sustainability role, Sakhile is supporting Picture Zero on a large international feature film.
She has worked with an array of budgets over varying television bands adapting the responsibilities of the role to fit. Sakhile feels it is integral to have sustainability practices embedded at every level of the production to implement best practice.
Particularly interested in the potential for positive social impact, Sakhile hopes that an increasing awareness of sustainability will work to improve not just the screen industries but also wider society.
Eve Stollery
eve@picturezero.com
Starting her career producing theatre, Eve realised the huge impact a production can have on the environment. After working with a theatre company to establish their environmental policy, she then made the jump to work at BAFTA albert. Having helped to relaunch BAFTA albert’s affiliate scheme and training programme, as well as helping with and streamlining the certification process, she moved over to Picture Zero to focus her efforts on production itself.
Eve recognises the importance of communication as a means to overcome obstacles, whether in day-to-day conversations, through training, or in the editorial work of TV, film, and games. She believes the use of language and art to start conversations will be one of the key factors in helping to solve the climate crisis.
Ash Booth
ash@picturezero.com
With an industry background in documentary filmmaking, locations and researching, Ash is a now Sustainability Coordinator. She grew up in Liverpool and moved to Austria in 2014 where she worked with local communities producing documentaries shown all around Vienna. Working on biodiversity-focused productions led to her interest in sustainability, and later retraining after working as a University Lecturer in Film and TV Production when she returned to the UK.
After retraining with Media Cymru in Sustainability Coordination, Ash joined Picture Zero, bringing her skills and passion neatly into one place.
Nicole Wait
nicole@picturezero.com
Nicole is a Sustainability Coordinator, working on film and TV projects based primarily in Wales. She has previously lived in Europe, Africa, Southeast Asia, the Middle East and Central America, working as a teacher and an international school leader. Returning to the UK in 2023, she trained in environmental management (AIEMA) and made her home in Eryri, North Wales.
Nicole completed Media Cymru’s Sustainability Coordinator training and is determined to help productions have a positive impact on local communities and their natural surroundings. She leads the North Wales hub for the Women in Sustainability (WINS) network, aiming to unite women working in the sustainability field.
Content Production
The pictures on our screens shape the way we see the world. As well as providing sustainability support to others, we also produce climate-focussed content with the aim of inspiring audiences to tackle the climate and biodiversity crises.