On January 6, DGA members gathered online for the Eastern AD/UPM Council First AD Committee’s discussion, Changing the Culture: Safety on Set. Specifically designed for 1st AD members, the event welcomed production safety professionals from the USA, United Kingdom and Australia for an exploration of production safety practices around the world.
The event kicked off with a welcome from Committee Co-Chair Karen Kane, who explained how pilot safety programs are being developed and introduced in California, New York, and Georgia in 2025, and that this event would provide an opportunity for 1st AD members to hear from these safety professionals about their relevant experiences and become familiar with the program models that have been implemented abroad.
In conversations moderated by Kane and Committee Co-Chairs Shelly Keiser and Tony Phillippe, 1st ADs Joe Reidy and Chris Surgent, UK-based Safety Professional Mick Hurrell, USA-based Safety Professional Paul Jordan and Australia-based Safety Professional Sean Rigby discussed working within different regions’ industry requirements, legislation, practices and cultures regarding safety.
Starting with Australia, Rigby covered topics including how production safety came to the forefront in his country; the training and certification process for safety professionals there and how the safety supervisor’s work relates to the country’s Work Health and Safety laws. Reidy joined in on the discussion with an explanation of the relationship between the Safety Professional and the 1st AD and how the culture of safety in Australia makes shooting there stand out.
Moving on to the UK, Hurrell discussed the history of production safety in that country, how it intersects with guidance published by the UK’s regulatory body that oversees workplace health and safety, and the typical background and qualifications of Safety Supervisors in England. Surgent shared his experiences working within the UK model but noted that, although commonplace, supervisors are not legally required there.
In the segment covering the USA, Jordan discussed his own experience working in production safety, both for a major studio and now with his independent company. He shared his approach to production safety and building his team of professionals and identified current challenges to changing the culture of set safety here.
DGA Assistant Executive Director Faith Santilla shared information about California legislation that will introduce requirements for safety supervision on some productions there in 2025 and the work of DGA’s Safety Committee. Assistant Executive Director Mary Hatch spoke about the Basic Agreement’s Safety Officer/Risk Assessment requirements effective in NY and Georgia in 2025, and challenges with addressing production safety legislation in those states.
Kane ended the day by discussing what we can do now to promote change in our culture then opened the floor to questions submitted by the online audience.
About the Committee
The Eastern AD/UPM Council First Assistant Directors Committee addresses issues that concern the members of this category and encourages dialogue amongst members in an effort to bring awareness, devise solutions to problems and continue education and growth. The Committee is co-chaired by Karen Kane, Shelly Keiser and Tony Phillippe. The members are Bloom, Anthony “Ace” Cabral, H.H. Cooper, Jane Ferguson, Jude Gorjanc, Louis Guerra, Mike Hausman, Jason Inman, Michael Lerman, John Lowe, Amy Lynn, Colin MacLellan, Patrick Mangan, Maggie Murphy, Francisco Ortiz, Rich Patrick, Michelle Regina, Joseph Reidy, John Silvestri, Chris Surgent, Chris Swartout, Michael L. Walker and Shelly Ziegler.