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Directing · Foundation · Brief

On-set Roles, Communication & Health and Safety

Hazards, risk assessment, safe handling of equipment and emergency procedures — plus the call sheet, the chain of command and how a small crew actually talks to itself on set.

The brief

Risk & Roles

Draft a risk assessment for a fictional one-location shoot and assign crew roles across your team. The point: H&S is a working document, not paperwork.

Week 1

Deliverables
  • 1-page risk assessment
  • Crew role chart
  • Emergency procedure note
Constraints
  • Single location
  • No equipment booking yet
Learning outcomes
  • LO2 — Identify the core on-set roles and describe what each is responsible for.
  • LO3 — Complete a basic risk assessment for a small crew shoot.
  • LO2 — Run a safety brief and call the set with clear, standard language.
What you'll practise
  • Chain of command: producer, 1st AD, director, DoP, sound, gaffer, grip, art
  • Standard set calls ("turning", "speed", "rolling", "cut", "reset")
  • Writing a risk assessment: hazard, who, likelihood, control, residual risk
  • PPE and cable management as everyone's responsibility
  • Reporting near-misses without blame
Before you start
Prerequisites
  • None — this is your first workshop.
Kit
  • Notebook and pen
  • Studio induction complete
Safety
  • No live rigs in this session — we walk the studio and identify hazards, we do not power anything up.
Step-by-step
  1. 01

    Walk the studio

    In pairs, tour Studio A. Photograph three hazards you can see right now (trip, electrical, working-at-height, manual handling).

  2. 02

    Map the crew

    On A3, draw the call sheet hierarchy for a five-person shoot. Mark who talks to who during a take.

  3. 03

    Draft a risk assessment

    Using the template, complete a RA for a two-hour interior interview shoot with one light and a boom.

  4. 04

    Run the set

    One team runs a mock take — 1st AD calls it, sound and camera respond. Swap and repeat until every role is called at least once.

  5. 05

    Debrief

    What went unsaid? What would have gone wrong on a real set? Add three controls to your RA.

Watch this

  • Children of Men — Bexhill sequence

    Watch the crew work, not the frame. Every hazard was planned, every call was rehearsed.

  • TodoAdd a 3-minute BTS clip of a student production safety brief — need to record this term.
Read this
  • TodoLink to the University's studio H&S policy PDF (tutor to attach).
Common pitfalls
  • Treating H&S as paperwork instead of behaviour.
  • Assuming the person louder than you is the person in charge.
  • Coiling cables the wrong way — kinks kill leads and trip people.
How you'll be assessed

Your Assessment 1 portfolio must include a risk assessment for the short film shoot. This session is where that document starts.

Tutor notes — TODO

Fill these in below. Notes save automatically to this browser.

  • TodoAttach the official University studio induction slides.
  • TodoProvide the current risk assessment template (Word).
  • TodoRecord BTS of a compliant set brief for reference.