Hollywood sets have a safety problem
Post Reports
The Washington Post
4.4 • 5.1K Ratings
🗓️ 10 March 2023
⏱️ 26 minutes
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Summary
It’s not just on movie sets like the infamous “Rust.” Beyond Hollywood’s glitz and glamor, and the spectacle of the upcoming 95th Academy Awards, there are hidden dangers on many of the sets for the tv shows and movies we love.
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Back in October 2021, two major events happened in Hollywood. First, 60,000 union members overwhelmingly voted to go on strike because of rough working conditions on television and movie sets. The strike was narrowly averted, but it left union members wanting more. Later that month, actor Alec Baldwin allegedly shot and killed a crew member on the set of his movie “Rust.” Many blamed poor set conditions, with crew members walking off-set the day of the shooting.
Washington Post filmmakers Lindsey Sitz and Ross Godwin made a documentary called “Quiet on Set” about the people behind the Hollywood cameras and sets. They say 18-hour days have led to dangerous accidents, and sexism and racism can run rampant behind the scenes. But speaking out can get you blacklisted.
Sitz and Godwin spoke with five union crew members about the things they’ve seen, heard, and experienced while on set. “Quiet on Set” paints a picture of exploitation, cost-cutting, and turning a blind eye, all in the name of Hollywood.
Transcript
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| 0:00.0 | I had booked this movie that was set to shoot in Joshua Tree. |
| 0:08.4 | This is Dominique Dawson, a costume designer for movies and TV shows. |
| 0:13.1 | Dominique lives in Los Angeles, but for one movie shoot she had to work out of Joshua Tree |
| 0:17.3 | National Park more than a hundred miles away from LA. |
| 0:21.5 | After being up there for a month and a half and having back-to-back night shoots, I was |
| 0:27.4 | pretty depleted and just exhausted. |
| 0:30.7 | And I did that drive back to LA. |
| 0:33.5 | Eventually I ended up falling asleep at the wheel. |
| 0:37.1 | And I ran my car straight into two parked cars. |
| 0:42.0 | My car flew up over them both and landed upside down. |
| 0:50.0 | That next day when I woke up in the hospital, I got a call from my producer and they were |
| 0:56.0 | asking about the clothing that I had in my car. |
| 1:02.7 | Stories like Dominique are all too common for people working on film sets. |
| 1:06.9 | For many who grew up with dreams of working in Hollywood, the reality of life on a film |
| 1:11.6 | set can mean grueling hours, unsafe conditions, and just pure exhaustion. |
| 1:17.0 | Washington Post filmmakers Lindsey Sitz and Ross Godwin have been reporting on stories |
| 1:21.8 | like Dominique's. |
| 1:23.2 | For a documentary called Quiet On Set. |
| 1:26.2 | So our 14-minute documentary kind of digs into the culture of the film industry from the |
| 1:31.4 | point of view of film set workers. |
| 1:34.3 | So people that are behind the scenes on our TVs and movies and we're kind of looking |
| 1:38.6 | at some of the normalized working conditions on these sets, long days, sometimes 18-hour |
... |
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