Safety Tips During Video Production for Independents
As a smaller business that deals within the realms of video production and photography, we need to ensure that all safety measures when it comes to production are met. This is to aid in keeping both our crew and our clients safe during the filming process.
Covid Safety Measures
When considering the widespread virus, the company decided to implement extra safety precautions both in and out of the office for production.
Firstly, we ensured that all members of the production team had taken a Covid Safety on Production Course. In regards to our Blue Whale Media Video Production team, we chose to go with the training course provided by https://www.screenskills.com/ which is considered industry standard.
Further additional safety guidelines we established for production within the company were:
● Travel – Given the conditions for travelling, we have to minimise travelling as much as possible, as well as keeping to social distancing guidelines during travel wherever possible.
● Location – In order to keep filming on location, we need to ensure that there is enough space to keep to social distancing guidelines and make sure both crew and clients are comfortable with the possible close quarters that could be being filmed in. It would also be advantageous if there was an area that could provide a separate space for the Blue Whale crew to conduct their set-up and leave their personal belongings, eat lunch if necessary etc.
● Equipment – With the need for the crew to manage the equipment between the team, there is extra care needed when ensuring the equipment is cleaned before and after filming when being shared making sure that good hygiene is maintained and that the more “used” areas of the equipment (e.g. the record button on a camera) are frequently sanitised.
● PPE – The use of personal protective equipment (PPE) would need to be worn at all times (unless exempt) by crew members visiting locations, this is something that we applied just to our company as other companies might have different rules and regulations regarding PPE. The key pieces of PPE that are to be worn are face masks and gloves, and access to personal bottles of hand sanitiser. All PPE is in regulation with Government and APA Covid Shooting Guidelines.
● Monitoring and Testing – Before going to film on location all of the production crew will do a Lateral Flow Covid Test or PCR Test to ensure they are not showing any symptoms of the virus. The crew will also monitor their temperatures and keep an eye out for any possible symptoms of Covid-19.
● Mental Health – With the prolonged isolation before getting back to work for many people, mental health is something that must be considered and cared for. Particularly when going out on location to somewhere new it could cause heightened anxiety and insecurity for members of the crew due to how prominent the virus is. Furthermore, spending so long away from work could have had a negative effect on members of the crew who may suffer from depression, so once again care and consideration for our staff members will be of a high priority to the staff here at Blue Whale Media.
