Blog 12 - Health and Safety

Health & Safety

Before shooting my promo video I had to give some thought to health and safety. I have a responsibility to ensure that the general public and my cast members did not injure themselves and come to any harm during filming. I carefully considered the location and props involved. I carried out a risk assessment to identify areas of concern. Then I took action to reduce or eliminate the hazards to provide a safe working environment.

Props

I showed the cast members how to lift the props correctly bending their knees and keeping their backs straight. I advised them not to lift heavy object by themselves but to seek assistance. I also suggested that they label heavy objects in boxes as a precaution to others. It was important to keep the filming area tidy to remove trip hazards.

Filming

The scenes in my video took place on the seafront, in a house and on the street. Each of these presented a different set of risks. On the seafront I made sure that the cast were aware of the rabbit holes, steep drops and falling rocks from the cliff. I surveyed the area prior to taking the video.

I had to contend with poor lighting and confined space in the house so there was a risk of the cast falling over or tripping on the stairs. I took the following measures to neuralize these hazards We acquainted ourselves with the area before shooting the video. We obtained permission from the house owner to use the property and put a message on the outside of front door advising the family members and visitors that the shoot was taking place. I conducted a dummy run of my movements ensuring the walkway was clear of hazards before peering through the camera lens.

Regarding the scene in the street we cordoned selected for filming choosing a quiet time of the day. We made sure that we did not film near schools, road crossings and such like. Also I asked a friend to look out for the general public while filming was taking place. Their safety was his main concern.

In all case we tidied up after ourselves leaving the areas as we found them.