1. Risk Assessment
As Director I am responsible for the majority of these risks, however it is important to remember that general health and safety rules and
“common sense” should be adhered to at all times.
Risk Identified Shooting Location Responsibility
Strategy to Overcome /
Prevention
Illness / injury All Sam May
In the case of the actor being ill, I will
ensure a substitute is in place a few days
beforehand. In the case of myself being
ill, the risk cannot be overcome and
imminent rescheduling will need to take
place.
Actor Inconveniences / Clashes All Sam May
Sometimes there may be unforeseen
circumstances in which the actor or
myself is unable to make a shoot due to
clashes with other events, and as such
regular face-to-face contact will be
maintained to ensure that the project runs
smoothly. The actor has been chose
based on their reliability and they are
unlikely to let me down.
Weather Outdoors Sam May
I will check the weather forecast
beforehand and ensure that it is
appropriate for the relevant scene. If it is
not, rescheduling will need to take place
as early as possible and thus the forecast
will be checked at regular intervals
leading up to shoots. Weather such as
heavy rain and wind will be inappropriate
in all circumstances as it will be
inconvenient and may damage
equipment.
Memory card full / formatting malfunction All Sam May
I will ensure that I bring at least two back-up
memory cards to every shoot so that if
one does not work I am fully covered. I
will use 16GB memory cards as these
can hold huge amounts of video footage,
2. and furthermore I will ensure that they
are emptied of any existing data the day
before each shoot.
Broken Equipment All Sam May
Most of the equipment used in the
sequence will be my own (camera,
costumes, etc.) and hence it will be my
responsibility to ensure that it is not
broken before use. This will be done the
day before each shoot, as to ensure any
problems can be resolved before a shoot
if possible. If issues cannot be resolved,
this gives up to a day’s worth of notice if
rescheduling needs to take place.
Low battery All Sam May
The camera will be charged the night
before each shoot, and after every shoot
as soon as possible. This means that the
battery is now likely to become low during
shoots, or if any spontaneous
rescheduling needs to take place.
However, I will be ordering an additional
camera battery from the internet just to
be sure - this will be especially important
when on location as there will be no plug
sockets!
Not getting props / costumes on time All Sam May
Though the actor may assist, I will be
responsible for procuring the props and
costumes for each shoot. To avoid
problems in this area I will ensure that I
know exactly what I need for each shoot
by looking at the Call and Costume and
Make-up Treatment at least a week
before each shoot. I will get each
costume to the actor beforehand, and
anything purchased online will be done
again a week before so that it is delivered
in good time.
Actor gives poor performance All Sam May
Although this will predominantly be the
fault of the actor, it is also my
responsibility to ensure that the actor is
3. fully briefed as to exactl y what is required
of her. I will hold regular meetings to
ensure that she knows what I require
from each shoot, ensuring that she has
time to perfect her lip-syncing, dancing
etc., and also voice any concerns. This is
important so that any issues can be
resolved beforehand, and not on the
spot.
Lighting All Sam May
The default lighting in the studio may not
be sufficient for the visual style that I
require in my video. As such, I will book
the studio out beforehand so that I will
familiar with the lighting and what it can
do. I will then acquire a grasp of how it
can be changed to suit my needs. In
terms of the outdoor lighting, this goes
hand-in-hand with the weather. If the
lighting/weather is completely
inappropriate shoots may be
rescheduled, but I will careful assess the
lighting as to film shots from the best
possible angle – i.e. shadows, etc.
Location safety / unavailable All Sam May
Research has been conducted into the
shooting locations as to assess the
suitability of filming in each. The outdoor
locations are busy public areas and so
there should be no such issues other
than public interference – even at
nightfall. In college the studios are
designed for activities such as this and
therefore there will be no issues in
procuring these resources. However, I
will need to ensure that I book the studios
as to avoid clashes with other users.
Here, I can only film during the day.
Trip hazards Studios Sam May
In the studio there may be trip hazards
when using an abundance of professional
lighting equipment. To overcome this risk
4. I will keep the studio as tidy as possible,
making the actor aware, and a metal note
of where the wires are. Wires should not
be trailed across furniture and instead the
floor. Wires should only be kept to a
minimum when unwound and put away
when finished with.
Public interference Outside Sam May
Because my outdoor shooting locations
are in busy public areas, there may be
times when the public interference poses
a risk to our own safety, or theft of the
equipment, etc. To avoid such issues I,
along with the actor’s help, will ass ess
each location upon arrival for any
persons that may seem a threat.
Although this may seem judgmental, it is
important to put our own safety above
anything else. If we felt at risk or unsafe
we would leave and come back at
another time or go to a different location
Some people may not wish to be caught
on camera and as such, we will have to
respect the wishes of the public. This
means that filming could take longer than
needed and so the call times account for
an additional time that may be necessary.
If necessary we will bring along an
assistant who can keep an eye out on
safety – it may be difficult to do this
ourselves given that we will be in the
“zones ” of filming and performing
respectively.
General Health & Safety All Sam May
It is important than general health and
safety and common sense is adhered to
all times. Our own safety is paramount,
but at the same time it is important to
respect the equipment used and the
facilities. To do this in the studios
particularly we (me and the actor) will
