Croatia

No national legislation (yet): Green practices are mostly voluntary, but HAVC plans to adopt the MEDIA Carbon Calculator and formal criteria by 2025.

Regional pilot (Istria): First Croatian region with mandatory sustainability conditions for funded productions starting in 2025.

Growing expertise: Small but increasing network of certified green managers and trainers driving industry awareness.

1. Overview

The information for this territory profile comes from Christopher Marcich who is President of European Film Agencies (EFAD) as well as CEO of Hrvatski audiovizualni centar (HAVC) - Croatian Audiovisual Centre. Furthermore, the Croatian producer Morana Ikić Komljenović has also contributed to the profile.

Croatia’s film industry is a small but stable ecosystem, supported by strong public funding, a competitive 25–30% cash rebate scheme, and growing international co-productions. According to the portrait about the Croatian film market, the country produces up to ten national fiction films annually, with recent efforts to boost micro-budget projects and independent distribution. While audience numbers are improving and VoD platforms are emerging, screen density remains low, and the market is still heavily reliant on public support.

Croatian productions have received certifications for their work on sustainability: The tv-series “Back to the Land” by Wolfgang & Dolly Productions has just earned a Green Film-Certification. The short fiction film used for the historical and cultural site ETNOLAND – DALMATI, produced by Boris Micka Group from Spain and serviced by Croatian production VAL produkcija was certified by Green Film. For the purpose of this certification, the production used the Carbon'Clap calculator from Ecoprod. As a low-production capacity country, just as it is the case with Lithuania and Estonia, the Croatian audiovisual sector already incorporates sustainability standards during production, which are imposed by small production budgets (reuse and/or rentals of costumes and props, optimizing transport and waste management, avoiding air-travel, using local suppliers, shooting in fewer days).

2. National Guidelines for Sustainable Film Production

HAVC doesn’t promote any specific guidelines. HAVC plans to incorporate the future MEDIA Carbon Calculator (currently in beta testing) as the recommended carbon calculator for the audiovisual industry.

As green filming certification puts additional strain on the production budget (the costs of hiring a sustainability manager and external auditor, but also the purchase of organic cosmetics and materials, rentals of electric vehicles, etc.), the certification process is not commonly used.

The peninsula of Istria is the only local region that has started promoting green filming through its program Istra snima zeleno (Istria Films Green), which is done in cooperation with the Istrian Cultural Agency and Little Red Dot. Istria County has inserted questions about environmental and social sustainability in its upcoming call for proposals (for co-financing short fiction, documentary, experimental, and animated films).

Croatian projects that apply for Eurimages funding include a Sustainability strategy (that includes both Environmental and Social sustainability), and a calculated carbon emission pre-rating score and evaluation sheet in their production documentation and plans.

3. Legislation

At the moment, there is no legislation about sustainable film production in Croatia.

4. Handbook

HAVC doesn’t promote any handbooks.

5. Green Consultants and Managers

HAVC works closely with Morana Ikić Komljenović, film producer and sustainability manager (certified by Bureau Veritas ISO 14001:2015, and ALBERT Sustainability training by AFI). Together with Tanja Ladović Blaževi, Morana Ikić Komljenović is a member of the “Eurimages sustainability group”.

Tanja Ladović Blaževi has been the Head of the Filming in Croatia department at HAVC since 2018. With a background in history and philosophy from the University of Zagreb, she has over 15 years of experience in PR and film production. In her current position, Tanja Ladović Blaževi plays a pivotal role in coordinating Croatia’s production incentive program, bringing green principles into mainstream filmmaking. As a representative of EUFCN, she actively promotes eco-friendly practices and collaborates internationally to develop sustainable film policies.

Morana Ikić Komljenović, Associate Professor, Producer and Sustainability Expert in Film and Media, is a leading advocate for sustainability in the film and media industry. With over 25 years of experience as a producer, consultant, and educator, she focuses on embedding environmental and social responsibility in all stages of production.

Founder of Little Red Dot, she works internationally on sustainable project development, financing, and education. Morana is a certified ISO 14001:2015 auditor, a graduate of the ALBERT BAFTA and Green Film Lab programs, and an active member of the Eurimages Sustainability Working Group.

She teaches at the Academy of Dramatic Art in Zagreb, collaborates with Creative Europe Desk, Eurimages, and the Croatian Audiovisual Center, and serves as President of the Production Branch at the Filmmakers Association of Croatia.

6. Green Education

HAVC has been involved with and supported a few training initiatives focused on sustainable production through the Cinema-related activities program support scheme, intending to empower the local filmmaking community to adopt more sustainable production practices.

HAVC also financed the participation of producers and directors in programs organized by Torino Film Lab, as well as film festival workshops regarding Green practices.

Furthermore, they financed the local training initiative "Distribute this! - Green edition" program implemented in 2023 and 2024 by Little Red Dot (Morana Ikić Komljenović) in collaboration with the Academy of Dramatic Arts, Green Film - Trentino Film Commission, Mini Art-kino Croatia, Filmaktiv, Taskovski films LTD., Creative Europe Desk - MEDIA Office Croatia, and the Filmmakers Association of Croatia.

In 2023, the production house 4 FILM organized a one-time workshop led by Zsófia Szemerédy and Julia Tordai from Green Eyes Production, producers and experts in sustainability and green production.

Film Commissions that are members of the EUFCN participated in the online course It's Green or Never (in collaboration with Green Film and Trentino Film Commission). Three sessions were held in November 2024.

The research project Green Education in Media (GEM) is an international educational initiative aimed at integrating sustainability into media and film education. In Croatia, the project is led by the Academy of Dramatic Art at the University of Zagreb, which is one of the core partners. GEM focuses on developing green teaching methods, curricula, and digital tools that promote environmental awareness and sustainable practices among film and media students, educators, and professionals. The project is part of the Erasmus+ program and runs from 2022 to 2025, involving universities and film schools across Europe.

As a part of the academy’s work with sustainability, they have also introduced the SEAM project. This project aims to empower students as key stakeholders in the sustainability transition, both in universities and society. It introduces a threefold concept of sustainability towards self, society, and the ecosystem. It fosters teaching innovation, develops sustainability-focused media prototypes, and strengthens industry-academia ties. By embedding sustainability into curricula, SEAM equips students for future media challenges while promoting ethical, inclusive, and eco-conscious practices.

SEAM will implement student-led co-creation workshops, integrating sustainability into curricula. "Living Labs" will enable teachers to adapt courses dynamically. Transnational hybrid workshops will foster collaborative sustainability-themed media projects. An international lecture series and three multiplier events at major festivals will engage academia and industry. SEAM will document methodologies, best practices, and outcomes to ensure long-term impact in media education.

7. Co-Production

The incentives program already encourages green-related production activities and the green certificate procedure by including all related expenses as eligible for a cash rebate.

Many international productions that shoot in Croatia act under the green filming procedures from their countries.

8. Prospects and Plans

HAVC plans to start incorporating the sustainability criteria in the bylaws for the national production and incentives program funding in 2025.

By incorporating the sustainability criteria in the bylaws for funding available for the production, the HAVC intends to have more formal and confirmed information about the green production of financed projects. At the same time, they will consider the production environment and the local infrastructure available to the Croatian producers in order to implement these measures.