Lights, camera, emissions cut: Candy Cane Lane fueled by renewable diesel

Dreaming of a lower-carbon Christmas?

Then take a trip down Candy Cane Lane, the holiday movie from Prime Video starring Eddie Murphy and Tracee Ellis Ross that was powered in part by renewable fuels from Phillips 66.

That’s right. Phillips 66’s Rodeo Refinery near San Francisco was a supplier of renewable diesel for the generators and vehicles in the production of the movie, which airs on Prime Video beginning Dec. 1.

“We’re already supplying renewable diesel to consumers at over 600 76® stations across California,” said Brian Mandell, Phillips 66 Executive Vice President of Marketing and Commercial. “We’re proud to play a role in lowering carbon emissions in the state’s film industry.”

Made from feedstocks such as fats, oils and greases, renewable diesel has lower lifecycle carbon emissions than its petroleum equivalent, even though it shares similar chemistry. It’s a drop-in fuel for diesel engines, which means it does not require further blending.

Candy Cane Lane, which tells the story of a man who makes a deal with a mischievous elf that brings the 12 days of Christmas to life, was shot in Los Angeles from December 2022 to February 2023.

Producing a major motion picture can be a carbon-intensive undertaking. Generators power cameras, base camps, lighting, hair and makeup trailers and other production equipment. Vehicles, some of them heavy duty, are used to move props and sets.

The Sustainable Production Alliance, a consortium of the world’s leading film, television and streaming companies dedicated to making the entertainment business more sustainable, found that the average carbon footprint of a large feature film is 1,081 metric tons. Roughly half of that comes from transportation needs and the fuel used to power generators.

Just how big a difference can non-traditional fuels make in the production process? It’s the equivalent of taking 486 homes off the power grid for an entire year.

Phillips 66 is more than doing its part. The company is undertaking the complete conversion of the Rodeo Refinery to meet the world’s growing demand for renewable fuels. Upon completion in 2024, the facility will have over 50,000 barrels per day of renewable fuels production capacity.

Currently, Rodeo Refinery produces 12,000 BPD of renewable diesel from a single unit.