Risk Assessment

Risk Assessment

A risk assessment helps to identify and analyse the potentially negative events that could occur prior to filming. This could involve the filming set (environment), individuals involved in filming such as the director or the cast, assets etc. By taking into consideration these possible outcomes, it helps to prevent taking bigger risks and have a plan B in case of an emergency. In other words, I can make a judgement if on the tolerability of the risk on the basis of a risk analysis. 

More professional film settings use risk assessments that are in detail to ensure and account for all possible hazards. They also require the severity and possibility of the injuries to predict the level of seriousness in the worst cases. The more shoots and hazards involved in filming in a day, the more complicated and developed these risk assessments are (example below).

Example

Since I'm working with a small crew, these risks are less likely to happen for multiple reasons. For example, the equipment used for filming does not require a lot of expertise. They are much more compact, simpler and designed for music videos rather than for bigger movie sets. Therefore, using my camera offers more mobility when walking or running while shooting the video, which results in a lack of danger. Injuries are therefore unnecessary to include, especially because even the biggest impacts are easily manageable. For example, a risk could be falling over in a shoot and potentially twisting an ankle, although this is mostly realistic if I was filming with the cast during a rainy time of the day when it's muddy, making the set primarily inappropriate for its purpose. In conclusion, I wouldn't film anything at that time in the first place and would rather delay filming dates for more appropriate occasions. I also wouldn't make my cast members perform any choreographed dance moves requiring professional experience. I would rather improvise on set or ask my cast to perform a few simple moves that I will later edit so that it matches the beat of the song. 

It is important to consider the necessary competence of completing a risk assessment so that it serves it's purpose and is not just created for no useful reason. I decided to create one for  myself and my team so that we are aware of potential hazards and avoid any risks for greater adaptability. 

My Risk Assessment

In conclusion, taking these risk factors into consideration I know I will be more prepared and tempted to take action in case they will be encountered on a setting. This therefore makes the music video production more efficient as useful decisions will be made in time rather than hesitating.