Our Berlin-Based Film Production in Latin America

A Firsthand Account of a Unique Film Production in Berlin

In November 2022 , we traveled to five Latin American countries on behalf of MPC Energy Solutions, a subsidiary of MPC Capital AG . As a global provider of sustainable energy,MPC Energy Solutions focuses primarily on low-carbon energy infrastructure, including solar and wind power plants, as well as other hybrid and energy-efficiency solutions.

On this trip, we visited various solar power plants—both under construction and in operation—as well as a wind farm. The goal of the film production was not only to create a scripted, international promotional film but also to produce as much footage as possible for additional video clips. In addition to shooting footage for the promotional film, we therefore captured plenty of impressions from the construction sites and the surrounding areas, both near and far.

To make the video snippets as informative as possible without having to write commentary or hire voice-over artists, we conducted interviews with more than 25 project participants. Based on these interviews, combined with the many photo galleries, we are currently producing a variety of short and long-form videos that MPC and its subsidiaries are using primarily on LinkedIn. But first things first…

Our first three stops: the Dominican Republic, El Salvador, and Costa Rica

After filming in the Dominican Republic and El Salvador—a country that feels much safer, both subjectively and objectively, following the wave of arrests of some 60,000 gang members in 2022 —we filmed at photovoltaic parks—some under construction andothers already generating electricity—for the promotional film on renewable energy. This exciting and varied film production then continued in Costa Rica. It is one of the few countries that already meets nearly 100% of its energy needs with renewable energy. An interesting article on this topic can be found here.

In addition to hydropower, the country uses wind to generate energy. A good location for this is the windy highlands near Tilaran, located about 110 km northwest of San Jose. Even though that sounds fairly close, in Costa Rica that currently means a four- to six-hour drivefor the approximately 160 km route . The road networkis undergoing an extensive expansion and renovation program, which results in several long stretches where you can only drive at 20–30 km/h.

On top of that, Highway 1 —which, incidentally, is also part of the Pan-American Highway —is often reduced to a single lane. Especially in the mountainous sections, a truck can then become a moving obstacle. If it rains as well, as it did on the return trip, conditions become unpleasant and even dangerous.

So, as always, the goal was to give it our all on this Berlin-based film production by PanFilm Wolfes & Landbeck GbR to capture compelling stories and striking images for the renewable energy promotional film!

The Tilawind Wind Farm

On behalf of MPC Capital’s Caribbean investment fund, MPC Caribbean Clean Energy, we developed the Tilawind in Tilaran, where seven turbines generate 21 MW, meeting the electricity needs of approximately 10,000 households. In addition to producing a promotional video about the wind farm, we conducted interviews with the asset manager and a female soccer player, and captured several aspects of MPC’s community engagement efforts.

This includes, for example, a bus that MPC financed, which takes children from the Tilaran area to kindergarten and back home. We would like to share two of the videos we edited from the footage here.

Mariacruz Fernández Barrantes works in asset management at MPC in Costa Rica. In this video, which is just under 90 seconds long, Mariacruz gives us a tour of the facility and lists the key facts.