Health and safety in filming is always a hot topic, now it’s red hot due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

A ‘Production company’ is generally the ’employer’ of crew, actors and stunt perfomers etc… So, it is their responsibility to make sure that there is a health and safety policy in place for a production. However, the health and safety responsibility doesn’t stop there – Producers, Production Managers, Directors and even crew members have a duty of care.

This is me performing a stunt in a scene from ‘Gangs of London’ with Stunt Coordinator Jude Poyer.

Why have I written this article?

This article is for people who want to get some basic insights into health and safety in productions. I have been in the filming industry for over 22yrs and I am qualified in Safety Management in Film and TV Production.

As an ex-firefighter, I also have a certificate in health and safety in the workplace. It’s an aspect of my life that has been an ongoing learning and training process, dealing with emergency situations and being aware of potential hazards was the major part of my work in the London Firebrigade.

Hopefully, you find some useful information from this article, that’s my goal.

Production companies are having to make big changes to their health and safety procedures. It’s not just a matter of the physical care of those involved in a production, we now have the extra challenge of dealing with a pandemic. Hygiene is of the upmost importance as is protection, both adding time and money to a budget and filming schedule. Whilst this extra pressure is rather daunting we have to remember the added restrictions from social distancing are temporary. It shouldn’t scare production companies, they just need to do extra planning. It appears they are and things are starting to move again in the industry.

Health and safety…

‘Health and safety policies’ – safety responsibilities are moral, legal and economic, by that I mean the well being of a person, the rules, regulations and costs.

It’s important to remember that different countries and locations may have different legislations, it’s also key to remember that each scene in a production will present itself with a different set of risk factors.

READ THE FULL ARTICLE:
https://www.thefightcoordinator.co.uk/post/health-and-safety-in-the-film-and-tv-industry