There are many occupational health and safety hazards associated with motion picture and television production. An obvious example is the professional stunt performer jumping off a cliff or crashing a car.

However, as we will see, the risk is not just to stunt performers during these stunts; others can also be affected. In addition, there are a multitude of other occupational hazards that are found on motion picture and television sets and locations, including chemical and safety hazards during preproduction, ordinary fire hazards, special effects, heat and cold, as well as ordinary medical problems ranging from bee stings to heart attacks. Lack of quick access to adequate medical facilities, especially when filming at remote locations, can often exacerbate the problem.

FATALITY/INJURY STATISTICS

Fatalities

The Center for Safety in the Arts has compiled a list of 40 fatalities from 1980-89 in motion picture and television production (see

Table 1-1). This includes fatalities in American films and in films shot abroad by American companies or their subsidiaries.

Of these 40 fatalities, 21 occurred while doing stunts or special effects. Only 8 of the 21 stunt or special effects fatalities involved stunt performers; the other stunt fatalities included 4 camera operators or related crew, 6 actors, 1 pilot, and 2 bystanders. The important conclusion to be drawn from this is that stunts and special effects put not only stunt performers at risk, but also everyone else on the set as well.

Of the remaining 19 fatalities, all 9 of the fatalities that occurred during ordinary filming, and 5 of the 10 non-filming fatalities involved helicopters (and one airplane accident). The rest of the fatalities involved accidents on the set (electrocution, a crane accident, and being hit by a truck and a steel beam, and a blank gun accident). High risk stunts are clearly not the only hazard on the set.

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Table 1-1. Motion Picture/Television Production: Fatalities 1980-89

1980 Rodney Mitchell (cameraman) TV Series: "Dukes of Hazzard".Circumstances: car chase

1980 Robert Van Der Kar (cameraman) TV Series: "Magnum PI". Circumstances: helicopter accident

1980 unknown stuntwoman * Film. Circumstances: fall from roof.

1980 unknown male (producer) *Film: unknown Circumstances: hit by steel beam

1981 Jack Tyre (stuntman) Film: "Sword and the Sorcerer".Circumstances: falling off cliff stunt.

1981 Boris Sagol (director) TV Film: "World War III". Circumstances: helicopter accident

1981 unknown male (camera assistant) *Film. Circumstances: hit by truck

1982 Jack Tandberg (cameraman) TV Film: "The Five of Me". Circumstances: car chase

1982 David Perrin (stunt pilot), Jaron Anderson (mechanic), Nigel Thornton (helicopter pilot).Film: "High Road to China"

Circumstances: helicopter crash en route to location in Yugoslavia

1982 Vic Morrow, Myca Dinh Lee, Renee Chen (performers) Film: "The Twilight zone".Circumstances: helicopter accident.

1983 Joseph Leonard Svec (skydiver) Film: "The Right Stuff". Circumstances: skydiving accident

1984 Jon Eric-Hexum (actor) TV Series: "Cover-Up".Circumstances: blank gunshot

1985 Art Scholl (stunt pilot) Film: "Top Gun". Circumstances: airplane accident

1985 Reid Rondell (stuntman) TV Series: "Airwolf" Circumstances: helicopter accident

1985 Claudio Cassinelli (actress), Don Nasca (pilot) Film: "Hands of Stone". Circumstances: helicopter accident

1985 Rich Holley (pilot) Film: "Runaway Train". Circumstances: helicopter accident en route to Alaska filming location

1985 unknown stuntman * Entertainment production.

Circumstances: fall from height. 1986 Dar Robinson (stuntman) Film: "Million Dollar Mystery". Circumstances: motorcycle stunt

1986 Bruce Ingram (cameraman) Film: "The Wraith". Circumstances: car chase

1986 Martin Wenzel and Conrad Wenzel (bystanders) Film: "Gor".Circumstances: gas cylinder explosion-fire scene in South Africa.

1986 unknown fatality **Film: unknown Circumstances: crane accident

1987 Victor Magnotta (stuntman) Film: "Skip Tracer".Circumstances: car stunt

1987 4 unknown fatalities Film: "Braddock: "Missing in Action III". Circumstances: helicopter crash in Philippines.

1988 Patrick Dungan (electrician) Film: "Men Don't Leave". Circumstances: electrocution

1989 Geoff Brewer (stuntman), Gadi Danzig (cameraman), Michael Graham (key grip), Jojo Imperial (pilot), Don Marshall (gaffer).

Film: "Delta Force 2".Circumstances: helicopter crash in Philippines.

1989 Clint Carpenter (stuntman) Film: "Hired to Kill". Circumstances: helicopter stunt in Corfu.

1989 Tobi Halicki (director) Film: "Gone in 60 Seconds II". Circumstances: falling water tower special effect.

Sources:

* National Traumatic Occupational Fatality Database (National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health)

** California Division of Labor Statistics and Research

news clippings from the Cinema: Accidents file of the Lincoln Center

Library for Performing Arts.

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Injuries and Illnesses

Accurate statistics on the number of accidents and illnesses in motion picture and television film production are difficult to obtain. It is also difficult to correlate information from different sources since definitions within the industry vary.

The Bureau of Labor Statistics of the U.S. Department of Labor provided national information for the motion picture production and services industry for 1985 and 1986 based on the Annual Surveys of Occupational Injuries and Illnesses. For 1986, they reported 4,240 recordable occupational illnesses and injuries in full-time workers, of which 1,600 involved lost workdays. The data for 1985 was about the same in total injuries but 10% higher for lost workday injuries.Table 1-2 shows the number of disabling, nonfatal injuries in motion picture production resulting in more than one lost workday for the years1980-1988, compiled by the California Division of Labor Statistics and Research. These statistics indicate a definite increase in injuries and illnesses over this time period. During this period, California also reported 13 fatalities directly related to film production. This gives a ratio of 1.5 fatalities per 1000 injuries. This is 3 times higher than the 1988 California average of 0.5 fatalities per 1000 injuries, and higher than the ratio for manufacturing and construction.

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Table 1-2. Disabling, Nonfatal, Work-related Injuries and

Illnesses. Motion Picture Industry. California, 1980-1988.

Year Injuries

1980-1982 2,588

1983-1985 2,962

1986-1988 2,968

Total 8,518

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The Screen Actors Guild (SAG) has also done several studies, based on accident reports submitted by member companies of the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP). One study, reported in Variety in 1985, reported 600 injuries and illness in SAG members between 1982 and 1984. Of those injured, 53% were stunt performers. About 80% of the injuries occurred while filming. In addition, 80% occurred on location, as compared to in studios. A breakdown of the 1982 injuries showed that 34% were due to falls, 21% to smoke and chemical inhalation, 10% to auto accidents, 7% to fight scenes, 7% to equipment failure, 5% to horses, 5% to motorcycles, and 11% to other causes. In conclusion, the statistics indicate there has been an increase in the number of injuries in motion picture and television production over the last several years. Furthermore, the fatality/injury ratio reported earlier for California indicates a higher risk of death, compared to most other industries, once a person is injured.

Common Hazards

Motion picture and television film production often pose a number of unique fire hazards and risks to life safety as compared to routine fire hazards in commercial buildings because filming and other activities take place in temporary and varying locations.

Common hazards are ordinary occurrences that might be associated with most commercial film productions. Examples of these fire and life safety hazards include blocked exits and emergency routes, electrical and lighting hazards, accumulation of combustible materials, smoking, welding and cutting operations, hot surfaces, combustible tents, and inadequate refueling facilities.

Filming in remote areas or other countries can make these hazards an even greater risk due to inadequate fire fighting capabilities or the lack of direct and quick access to the filming location by fire fighting personnel and equipment.

Location Hazards

There are a variety of hazards related to filming on location. In cities, for example, old buildings and warehouses are often used. These buildings can present safety hazards due to unstable walls, broken staircases, falling ceilings, etc. In addition, there can be environmental hazards, such as crumbling asbestos insulation, left-over waste chemicals, and contaminated pigeon droppings. Possible hazards while filming on location in the country include insect stings, contacts with poisonous plants, accidents in mountainous areas, heat-related diseases in deserts, frostbite in cold weather conditions, and drowning in rivers and lakes. Drowning is not the only water hazard around rivers, lakes, oceans, swamps, etc. Other hazards can include poisonous reptiles, contaminated water, flash floods, boating accidents, hypothermia in cold water, and underwater hazards such as undertows and hidden rocks. There is also concern about unusual local health hazards. For example, outdoor filming in many parts of the Northeast could mean having to take special precautions against Lyme Disease caused by deer ticks. In foreign countries, there would be concern about vaccination requirements, possible current epidemics or other local endemic diseases (such as dysentery and typhoid), contaminated water supplies, etc. In addition, local political instability and street violence are causes for concern. Traveling to location is also a serious hazard, since four of the fatalities discussed above involved helicopter travel to the location.

Preproduction Hazards

The construction and painting of sets - whether in a studio, or on location - can involve a wide variety of health and safety hazards.

Construction can involve accidents with scaffolding, ladders, machinery, vehicles, welding equipment, electrical equipment, etc. In addition, welding, wood dust and scraps, flammable solvents, and other combustible materials can present fire hazards.

Scenic painting presents many health hazards due to exposure to hazardous solvents, paints and other coatings, dyes, fire retardants, polyurethane foams, and a wide variety of other chemicals. While these hazards can be minimized with proper ventilation in a scenic shop, often fabrication of sets and props on location is difficult to ventilate adequately.

Filming Hazards

As discussed in the section on Fatality and Injury Statistics, stunts are the main single cause of fatalities in motion picture production. A stunt can be defined as any action sequence that involves greater thannormal risk of injury to performers or others on the set. A SAG analysis of films in 1982 found that major causes of injuries and illnesses were falls, smoke and chemical inhalation, auto accidents, fight scenes, equipment failure, horses, and motorcycles. Most of these are stunt-related.

Other filming situations which would be considered stunts because they could involve an increased risk of injury or illness include: being a passenger in a stunt car, driving a background car or being a pedestrian in a car chase scene, heat exposure during a desert scene, cold exposure during repeated filming of a scene involving a walk in a cold mountain stream, and underwater or swimming scenes.

A major cause of the increasing number of fatalities and accidents involving stunts has been the demand for realism and increasingly more dangerous stunts. For example, 9 of the 21 stunt-related fatalities since 1980 involved helicopters, one example being the death of stunt performer

Clint Carpenter while filming "Hired to Kill" in Corfu in 1989. In past years, many of these helicopter scenes would have been simulated - not live action. Even normal filming sequences involving helicopters is hazardous, since 8 of the 9 ordinary filming fatalities involved helicopters (the other involved an airplane).

The lack of proper emergency medical care has also been a contributing factor in several filming fatalities. This is typified by the 1983 death of famed stuntman Dar Robinson while filming a motorcycle sequence in Arizona. There was not adequate on-site emergency medical care, nor any provision for emergency evacuation. After waiting about two hours for an ambulance, the film crew loaded him into a station wagon and started driving towards a local hospital. He subsequently died. Medical experts have said that Dar Robinson might have survived and recovered had he received immediate attention from a qualified emergency specialist, had proper and timely emergency transportation, and treatment at a properly staffed and equipped emergency room.

Such poor emergency medical care is not restricted to remote location filming. In filming "Sanctuary" in New York City in 1988, two stuntmen got glass in their eyes during a scene involving windows exploding from machine-gun fire. Because advance arrangements had not been made, they had to wait over two hours in the emergency room of a hospital before being treated. Although advance arrangements will not guarantee quick treatment if more serious cases are present, lack of these arrangements can result in delayed medical treatment.

Special Effects Hazards

Special effects can include fire, pyrotechnics, firearms, fogs and smoke, rain and snow, lightning, lasers, wind and sand storms, computer and model simulations, and a multitude of other situations.

The most dangerous types of special effects involve the use of fire, pyrotechnics, and firearms. Many of these special effects scenes are also stunts since actors are involved. The death of Vic Morrow and two children during the 1982 filming of "The Twilight Zone: a Movie" involved a special effects explosion which caused the helicopter to crash onto the actors.

Other types of hazardous fire and pyrotechnics special effects include car explosions, simulated bullet hits, burning buildings, flames, flash pots, etc.

Firearms are also a potential hazard, whether live ammunition or blanks are used. In 1984, the actor Jon Eric-Hexum accidentally killed himself when he pointed a blank-loaded gun at his head and shot himself during the filming of the TV Series "Cover-Up". There have been many other accidents involving supposedly "safe" blank ammunition.

Smoke and fogs used on the set can create respiratory irritation, which, although obviously less dangerous than pyrotechnics and similar special effects, can cause serious asthma attacks and short-term irritation, necessitating production delays.

Other special effects can create specific hazards. Examples are the use of lasers, electrical equipment, and chemicals to create specific effects.

Camera Crew Hazards

As described earlier, 5 of the 30 stunt-related fatalities were camera operators. The camera crew can often be at high risk in stunts because they are so close to the action, or even part of it. The classic example is the 1980 death of Rodney Mitchell and the injuring of 8 others during filming of an episode of the "Dukes of Hazzard". The TV camera truck carrying 12 crew members overturned during rehearsal of a car chase scene.

Actual stunts are not the only risk to the camera crew. During normal filming, cameras can be located on moving vehicles, fixed wing aircraft, helicopters, scaffolding, overhead cranes, mobile elevating devices, boats, etc., which can involve risks of equipment failure, falls,collisions, and other accidents.

Medical Emergencies

Stunts are not the only cause of major traumatic accidental injury that can result in death and disability on a set or location. Falls,machinery accidents, falling sets, non-stunt related motor vehicle accidents, etc. can also occur. Of course, many of these accidents can result in minor injuries and in lost time. In addition, medical problems, both major and minor, can arise, and preexisting chronic medical problems can be exacerbated. Examples can include asthma attacks, heart problems, appendicitis, colds, infections, and insect stings. These types of medical problems can affect anyone on the set. The greater the number of people on the set, the greater the chances of someone becoming ill or being injured.

A major factor in determining the outcome of such medical emergencies can be the quality of local medical care. Another factor can be the time to reach adequate medical facilities. Even in a major American city like New York City, this can be a problem due to traffic and slow ambulance response time. In rural areas or in many foreign countries, the local level of medical care might not meet modern medical standards, or the time to reach medical care too long. In such situations, adequate on-site medical services would be necessary.

For example, during the 21-day shoot of the James Bond film, "The Living Daylights", in the Moroccan desert, the on-site medical team treated 496 patients, at least 9 of whom would have had to be immediately evacuated if they were not equipped for on-site surgery.

Aside from the serious danger of loss of life or health, such injuries and illnesses can result in enormous cost increases associated with delays in production, canceled projects, possible lawsuits, costs of health care, increased workers' compensation rates, lawsuits, and, of course, budget overruns. This can affect the production company, distribu- tion company, insurance companies and everyone on the stage or location.

REFERENCES

Backstage. (June, 1990). Set Fatalities: It Isn't Just Performers. Backstage.

 Bahr, C.R. (1989). Fatalities and disabling non-fatal work-related injuries and illnesses, motion picture industry, California, 1980-1988. Division of Labor Statistics and Research, California Department of Industrial Relations. Personal communication.

Conroy, C. (1988). Movie Production and Television Production Work-related Deaths, 1980-1985 from National Traumatic Occupational Fatality Database.Division of Safety Research, National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, Morgantown. Personal communication. Davidson, R. (December 17, 1980) Scenery and Rigging Accidents Deadly Variety. Eisenberg, W.M. (1988). Occupational injury and illness incidence rates for select industries, 1985 and 1986. Bureau of Labor Statistics, US Department of Labor, Washington, DC. Personal communication. Farr, L. (March 13, 1982). TV's Daring Stunts: Are the Thrills Worth Dying For?. TV Guide. Robb, D. (March 6, 1985). Almost 600 SAG Members Hurt on the Job in Last Three Years, Variety.

 Robb, D. (March 5, 1987). Stuntman's Death Casts Doubt on Adequacy of Safety Guides. Variety.

The Hollywood Reporter. (October 29, 1987). Emphasis on Realism Blamed for Increase in Stunt Mishaps. The Hollywood Reporter.