Though one can argue that technology is making film-sets safer, it does seem that in recent years we are still hearing of serious accidents. While some bumps and bruises might be to be expected, famous fatalities such as Bruce then Brandon Lee's death (faulty gun) and Vic Morrow's demise (a crashing helicopter on the set of The Twilight Zone) demise were actual rarities. However in recent weeks, the death of Sarah Jones, working as a camera assistant on the film Midnight Rider, has become a major news story, shining a spotlight on the responsibilities of film-makers.
Jones, only 27 but already a respected camera-person, was killed by a train on Feb. 20 while shooting of the Gregg Allman biopic and in the days that followed serious questions have been asked about the safety issues that led to her death and the injuries of several other production crew members. It is currently believed that a representative of the railroad, who would normally be required to be on set was not there - leading to speculation about whether permission had been granted for the crew to be there at all. Another report sugegsted a warning whistle would give any crew on the tracks a minute to clear the area but in fact possibly gave people less than fifteen seconds. Investigations continue with the production currently shut down.
Though the technical deadline has passed, there has been an unprecedented groundswell of support within the industry for Jones to be included in Sunday's 'In Memoriam' segment of the Academy Awards Oscar broadcast. In addition to this, many productions - especially the behind-the-scenes departments, have rallied to show their support for Sarah's work, with a 'Slates for Sarah' initiative with crews pictured standing alongside clapperboards and scene-slates bearing her name. On a global platform it has caught the attention of productions ranging from tv shows: The Vampire Diaries (on which she worked and who dedicated the latest episode to her memory), Castle, Percepotion, Dallas, Hot in Cleveland, Elementary, Downton Abbey, Doctor Who, Revenge, Devious Maids, True Blood, Grimm, Rookie Blue, Emmerdale, Casulaty, Blue Bloods, Supernatural, Person of Interest, Agent X, The Soul Man, Thunderbirds are Go! and the final episode of How I Met Your Mother and current film productions in the UK, Spain, Israel, Greece, New Zealand, Sweden, Hungary, Portugal, Puerto Rico, Singapore, Malaysia - including the London-based Night at the Museum 3... Boychoir (featuring Duston Hoffman), the cult-sequel Sharknado 2 and Pound of Flesh (for which Jean Claude Van Damme represented the entire crew)
You can see more of the international 'slates' at: Slates for Sarah 's facebook page... and get more information here...
There is a mixture of genuine affection and genuine anger in the wake of Jones' death and it is hoped that this massive show of support will encourage better awareness of film-shoot dangers and responsibility to look after the cast and crew of all productions.
