Deadline: Local, state, and federal investigations are underway to determine who from the Gregg Allman biopic Midnight Rider is responsible for the February 20 train collision on location in rural Georgia that left 27-year-old camera assistant Sarah Jones dead and seven others injured. As the production community rallies around the tragedy and calls for stronger guidelines to ensure that similar accidents never happen again, a Deadline investigation that included interviews with people on the ground in and around Savannah has revealed several troubling factors preceding the afternoon when the crew of the movie, directed and produced by Randall Miller through his Unclaimed Freight Productions banner, placed a metal hospital bed on the live train tracks overlooking Southern Georgia’s Altamaha River. Was the “whatever it takes” spirit that’s fueled filmmaking for decades partly to blame for such an avoidable on-set tragedy?
4 comments:
I remember reading about this tragedy last year- I'm glad that they're doing such a thorough investigation into it, but it is disheartening that it seems to be taking so long. There is a lot of disturbing information in this article- clearly this team had a history of serious disregard for safety. I can't believe that someone would think it was OK to black out a stop sign and remove another entirely- that shows incredible disregard for the safety of not only your own crew but literally everyone else in the city you're working in. In addition, the fact that their location manager allegedly didn't show up to work that day in protest of the shoot and they went ahead with it anyway is just unbelievable. It's so unfortunate that it was allowed to get this far, and I only hope that there will be lasting change because of this horrible tragedy. We definitely need to take steps to increase oversight when it comes to safety and create ways for people to report safety concerns without fear of retribution.
It seems like this production company runs with the mentality that the "show must go on." These people seem to be doing whatever it takes to make their film happen, and this attitude has clearly gotten them to where they are now. I am curious about the safety regulations on film sets. I do not know much about how permitting for film sets works, but I cannot imagine this company could have gotten away with all of these crazy dangerous stunts if proper regulations have been in place. I agree with Sarah that it is great that such a thorough investigation is happening with the Sarah Jones case. However, I think this whole situation brings up a larger issue that the film community needs to address together. Yes, the show must go on. But lives and people's safety do not and should never trump the important of the show or film.
This is disgusting just so disgusting, reading this article i wanted vomit. The actions that led up to that terrible incident were only compounded upon in due to their inability and unwillingness to take responsibility for this horrible loss of life. The company should not only have to pay for all the bills, physiological treatments, and other associated costs for the still living victims, but should also be up for criminal charges. Outside of that we need to take a seriously hard look at the way we allow companies and crews operate because this kind of mistake has happened way to many times. I'm tired of reading about avoidable tragedies.
I definitely recall hearing about this tragedy when it occurred last year. The fact that the investigation is taking this long baffles me, however I am glad that even a year later they are still trying and searching to bring ease to the family. This act of vengeance was heartless and unneeded. Removing and vandalizing stop signs is illegal because they are state property. The fact that they continued to shoot was just plain wrong. I understand that 'the show must go on', but at least let people have some time to grieve over the loss of their crew members.
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