Krewe of Boo

I hope everyone had a fun time at Krewe of Boo this past weekend! It seems like the overall feedback from the parade was positive, and people enjoyed a night of costumes, music, and pre-pandemic normalcy. However, some health precautions were taken during the parade, as all volunteers and parade members were required to show a vaccine card or negative COVID test. Also, about 40 health employees and volunteers were stationed throughout the parade route, conducting a study to better understand how the virus spreads in large gatherings. According to the mayor, unless there is a dramatic turn of events in COVID numbers, Mardi Gras will be approved to roll next year, so it’ll be important to watch the numbers over the next couple weeks.

Louisiana Tech Virtual Movie Club

Louisiana Tech’s Office of Inclusion Initiatives and Student Success is starting a free Virtual Community Movie Club open to all University community members beginning November 1. The club will highlight a film every month, as well as discuss related social issues through an online forum. The first film to be featured is Indian Horse which is available to watch on Netflix. The club is managed by PBC Guru.

Box Office Numbers

With the slow but steady return of films screening exclusively in theaters, box office numbers have been quietly increasing over the past few months. The highest domestic gross of the year so far is Marvel’s Shang Chi, bringing in nearly $221 Million. Following that are Black Widow, Venom 2, and F9 of the Fast and Furious franchise. As of this week, Dune holds the top spot, and has grossed over $40 Million in just 3 days. The second highest this week is Halloween Kills, and third is No Time To Die which has grossed over $120 Million in the US.

DMII Receives $500,000 Grant

The Digital Media Institute at InterTech, known as DMII, is the recipient of a $500,000 grant from the Louisiana Entertainment Development Fund to help prepare college students for the digital media and arts industry. Through the grant, students of UNO, Northwestern State University, and Nunez Community College will have access to DMII’s programs in animation, visual effects, and interactive content. These specialized programs will give students the opportunity to learn about the newest types of production technology, including virtual production, virtual reality, augmented reality, and more. This is the fifth Entertainment Development Fund Award given out just this year, and any opportunity to teach more students about production will result in the growth of our industry.

Film Safety Facts

With film safety being in the forefront of the news this week, we wanted to first off say that safety is our number one priority at The Ranch. We have fantastic crews, elaborate sets, and large stages, but none of that is remotely possible without making sure that every individual and group is safe during production. That being said, here are some facts about film safety.

1. There is a Television & Film Production Safety Manual provided by the Injury and Illness Prevention Program. The manual is nearly 300 pages long, and goes through the responsibilities of each crew member in regards to safety. It also discusses OSHA guidelines, and environmental and chemical waste, among other things. The PDF is available online here.

2. “Reasonably Practicable” means taking the best possible precautions to ensure that those working on set are as least likely to become injured or ill as possible during production. These practices include but are not limited to:

• Determine what kind of risks are caused by your work
• take appropriate action that is proportionate to the injury or illness that could occur
• implement well-known and effective industry practices,
• involve your staff in identifying and controlling risks

3. IATSE has an anonymous set safety hotline for members to report any hazards or concerns during production. Callers can talk directly to a safety representative, who will look into the issue for them. It’s all done anonymously to protect the caller, and the number is (844) 422-9273.

4. The California Film Commission has free resources on their website to promote safety on productions. While many of these are state specific, their safety tips on filming with drones and helicopters could be useful to any production. They also have information about contracts, security, and safety bulletins that can make any production safer. Follow this link.

5. To stay as safe as possible, it’s important to be aware of the most common occupational hazards on a film set. According to USRisk.com, the most common hazards are:

• Tripping Hazards
• Injuries from pyrotechnic events
• Vehicle crashes
• Electrical Hazards
• Falling equipment and props
• Insufficient safety equipment on set.