Health and safety by Stella

For our film we will be shooting in two locations : a wood and the living room of a house. Before filming there are several health and safety points that we must be aware of, in order to make sure that filming is safe, and to reduce possible risks.


Potential Hazards: Woods

• In order to have clean shots that don't contain any unimportant setting such as houses, cars driving along the road etc. we will need to shoot reasonably deep into the woods, meaning there is a risk we will get disorientated.
• There will be debris such as litter, twigs etc that could be potential tripping hazards.
• Tree roots will also be tripping hazards.
• walkways and paths may be slippery, which could potentially cause an accident, and may be especially hazardous when carrying equipment to location.
• there may be holes dug by animals whicch are covered by falling leaves etc. meaning that we are unaware  of their existence.
• Loose cables from the equpiment may not be visible on the floor and will be potential tripping hazards.
• Equipment such as lighting stands risk falling over when placed on the uneven ground, which could damage the equipment and those operating it.

Potential Hazards: House

• A room in a house is generally a restrictive space, and will be even more so when all equipment is set up, so there are risks that things could be knocked and broken when setting up equipment, and tripping hazards when people are moving around the set.
• Loose cables on the floor will be potential tripping hazards.
• Overhead lighting might be knocked or damaged when setting up equipment, which has a potential risk of broken glass.
• Props such as the coffee table which will be used in our scene may be a potential trip hazard, if not enough room is given around it.

How to prevent these risks

Woods

• When filming in the woods we will establish a safe open space to film and will clear it of all debris, litter etc. before setting up equipment and filming.
• We will make sure that all free standing equipment is positioned on level services before filming.
• We will plan the routes that we will use for the tracking shots and clear them to prevent trip hazards and any damage to the equipment.
• we will make sure all crew and cast are wearing suitable footwear to prevent any accidents to and from the location
• To prevent becoming disorientated we will make sure our filming location is not too far from a public footpath that leads back to the car park, so we can easily find our way back.
• To reduced the amount of loose cables on set we will put fully charged batteries in all equipment just before filming, so no extension leads to a power supply need to be used.

House

• Before filming we will clear the set of any fragile ornaments or items belonging to the houseowner that are at risk of being knocked.
• All props being used will be securely firmly or placed on even services to avoid them being knocked.
• All cables will be taped down to prevent tripping.
• Extra caution will be taken when setting up equipment near or under overhead lighting.
• Set will placed in areas where there is suffcient space to move around it to prevent any tripping hazards.