Experienced cameraman Mark Milsome - who previously worked on Game of Thrones and Saving Private Ryan - died after being hit by a Land Rover Defender performing a stunt in Ghana for the series Black Earth Rising.
Tuesday, November 19, 2019
Cameraman, 54, who was killed while shooting a stunt could have been the victim of costcutting
Experienced cameraman Mark Milsome - who previously worked on Game of Thrones and Saving Private Ryan - died after being hit by a Land Rover Defender performing a stunt in Ghana for the series Black Earth Rising.
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You forget how dangerous film making can be until you see articles about incidents like this. It seems unclear as to why this happened but for any production company that is willing to put their employees at risk better put the proper money into protecting their workers. Reading that the stunt coordinator wasn’t at the shooting of the stunt just sounds idiotic. I don’t know much about why they changed the stunt or who made what decisions but in the end a life (of a very talented cameraman) was lost. I think that multiple people messed up that day and something tragic occurred because communication was lacking and the planning of this stunt might not have been well thought through. Hopefully, this production company (and other production companies) use this incident to make sure camera men and stunt professionals are safe when filming. I feel very bad for the family of the cameraman, I don't know what I would do if I lost someone due to doing the thing they loved.
This really is the nightmare scenario for people in our industry, and I hate to see when things like this happen as a direct result of the mindsets we bring into the work we do. Regardless of whether or not cost cutting was specifically the cause for the stunt going wrong, it seems clear to me that there was clear negligence and poor planning that led to this accident. When things like this are being done, they have to be inspected and thought about in such a high level of detail for them to be safe. There are just so many factors that can go wrong, and they can not just be changed on the fly without fully considering the ramifications of what could happen as a result. It seems like this happened because of a mentality that promotes getting the job done now regardless of what could go wrong. I am sure that they did not ignore the dangers associated with this stunt, but they clearly felt they were worth the risk in order to get this film shot. There should never be a time when higher ups on projects are weighing the lives of their people with the results they want to get, because bad things are bound to happen because of that.
This article reminds me of the dangers that are present in filming movies. I never thought about dangers, especially with the glamour and prestige that stems from Hollywood. Reading this article, I wonder who was responsible for the last minute decision to change the stunt in Ghana that put the cameraman right in the path of the car. Changing a stunt last minute without the Stunt Coordinator present is irresponsible and negligent on the production company. The cameraman should have never been in front of the car. It also seems that the person driving the car was inexperienced, which in itself is even more worrisome. How did this happen? Was the production company trying too hard to rush the process in order to create a show for the deadline? Or is this just how the company always worked but this time it fell apart in a tragic fashion? Whatever the case may be, I hope that the company fully cooperates with the inquest and helps give some justice for the family of the cameraman who are looking for answers in his death.
Many people often forget how dangerous filmmaking can be. Specifically, any scene consisting of a stunt is dangerous for both the actor in the scene as well as the crew around them. It is always extremely important for everyone involved in any sort of stunt or combat scene to be properly trained and aware of everything that is going to be happening within the scene. To me, it sounds like the stunt that killed Mark Milsome was simply not as critically thought out as it should have been. For the scene to take place with a cameraman standing directly in the "line of fire" of a moving vehicle doesn't exactly sound like a stunt that was thought out in enough detail to recognize the dangers that it poses for both the cameraman and the driver of the vehicle. Also, the point on the fact that "the crew in Ghana was not as qualified as it should have been and the drivers were inexperienced," should have been enough to determine that this stunt was not safe. I hope Milsome's family is doing well and that they get the answers they need in this investigation.
The line from this article, about how the stunt coordinator wouldn’t have made that choice, is particularly haunting, and what left me thinking after reading this. First of all, the coordinator definitely should’ve been there, especially if the team on site was filled with unmatched expertise compared to Milsome. But, I also understand that with speedy timelines on productions nowadays, that waiting for Spencer to recover and travel to Ghana would’ve shifted the timeline—but this isn’t an excuse for putting a crew member’s life in danger. I think it’s a positive light in a terrible situation that Milsome’s family has launched a foundation, and that high-profile actors are publicly supporting that foundation. Stunt and camera workers are often behind-the-scenes heroes, and with an accident as tragic as this one, they deserve recognition for the dangerous positions they often put themselves in in commitment to their work. I think that out of respect to Milsome and his family, this stunt scene should be cut from the series. I can’t imagine being a family member of his and seeing the episode years down the road, imaging Milsome in that moment. Absolutely haunting.
The fact that there is a POSSIBILITY that a stuntman died from cost cutting is upsetting. Having researched about stunt work out of curiosity before, I knew that people who do stunts know that they signed up to take risks, to do physical work that is deemed too dangerous for actors (because they have contracts limiting them) or too demanding. Yes, they are performing dangerous acts but the stunt team should be working under safe conditions. Conditions where the surrounding environment has passed safety rules, the team is all qualified, and everything is planned accordingly. The fact that someone high up in budgeting thought it was okay to cut the cost, and potentially risk someone’s safety is unacceptable. It’s great that in the past few years, stunt people have been getting more recognition, like Brie Larson giving credit to the two women that did her stunts during an awards ceremony. But in the organizational front of a film, people in higher up positions should definitely not neglect the safety of crew who are not actors. Don’t violate their right to work safety.
Wow! What an incredible failure! When I was reading this article, all I could think is about how terrifying it would be to be trying to take a video for a film, being an incredible cameraman, thinking you're just taking a cool action shot, and then seeing the car hurdling towards you and SQUASHING you! The fact that this happened to a person is incredibly devastating. Such an immense amount of not paying attention to detail went into this happening, and it's so incredibly scary! The fact that someone higher up cut the costs and this man and his family suffered as a result is such a fantastic example of capitalist greed, and this is such a frustrating thing to read. The fact that the stunt director wasn't there is also chilling. Especially with a stunt like a CAR JUMP that involves a cameraman in the PATH OF THE CAR.
Just because the production company and Dominic Kay say cost-cutting was not the cause of Milsome's untimely death, which I genuinely think is a statement that is questionable at best, does not mean cost-cutting was not an indirect factor. By virtue of having inexperienced drivers and crew members (i.e. not up to Milsome's caliber), the production company is effectively lowering the cost of production by not having to pay more seasoned professionals to do their jobs safely, reliably, and at a higher quality of output. Cost-cutting is never an excuse to lower the standards of work safety, much less put a worker in harm's way. That is the most ridiculous part for me. The production literally put Milsome in harm's way; they put him in front of a moving car, at night, no less. Who could have possibly thought that was a good or remotely acceptable idea? I hope this production company is held accountable for this tragedy.
This is so awful to hear. I am deeply saddened to hear that someone died, most likely from company greed. If a production is not well trained enough or don't have sufficient funds to ensure safety on their sets, the shoot shouldn't happen. No one should die in a accident at work. Although some jobs are more dangerous than others, there are always precautions met so there will be no casualties. The fact that inexperienced people changed the stunt without the stunt coordinators approval is extremely bad. This is a professional production and there is no reason why a man, who has done this for 30 years, has to die due to others not completing their task and making the production a safe environment. My heart goes out to his family and to everyone else who has known or worked with Mark Milsome. Cutting funds should never lead to something like this.
-Pablo Anton
Stunts are really risky, that’s the reason why stars don’t do them, and professional stunt doubles are an actual profession. It involved a huge amount of training, planning and rehearsal. On the technical aspects is pretty much the same. The level of artistry involved in achieving stunts can make or break a production. There are so many people involved that I can see why there is an extense investigation. It is very sad that the production lost an experienced cameraman. This case is really interesting and fishy. I am full of questions.. Why was the stunt changed and not rehearsed? Why didn’t wasn’t the stunt director in place? Why did they hire unexperienced drivers to drive this stunt? And ultimately, why are they refusing to look at cost cutting as one of the reasons for his death? There are so many variables, that seem like poor choices, it would make some sense to at least not drop the ball in some of the areas.
This is so terrible, and there's no wonder that the family wants to investigate all possibilities as to why he was put into the direct line of a moving vehicle. To an extent, it almost doesn't matter if cost-cutting was a factor here, as there were so many other things that went wrong in this scenario. If the stunt coordinator was too ill to travel to Ghana with the shoot, they should have planned for his assistant and another stunt coordinator to go in his stead. Why was the crew in Ghana not up to the standard of training, and how was that not discovered beforehand? Whose job was it to ok the change in stunt, and then whose job was it to do the new risk assessments? Didn't they have to run it by anyone? Did Milsome himself bring up any objections and were these silenced due to time/money/talent constraints? I find it infuriating how big company executives can brush aside safety measures as if the cost of these risks isn't the loss of a seasoned, talented camera operator, time lost in filming to replace him, and most importantly a man's life.
Stories like this are one of the many reasons I am taking about a million risk assessment and crisis management courses over the next few years. Being able to properly address such a high stakes stunt, even with the plan that had originally been set, there are still things that are out of our control or we don’t know or we can’t accurately predict, so we build in contingencies and buffers, and, when the moment comes to execute the move, the entire group is focused, clear on the plan, and ready with additional safety measures. Even in the best case scenario, this is terrifying, so to hear stories of people changing the plan on a whim makes me wonder what could have possibly led them to think that their instinct is better than the combined planning of several highly trained and experienced people. Even something meticulous and practiced is really high stakes.
This article was quite eye opening to show just how much risk being a crew member can hold. It is heartbreaking to see that a man lost his life at a job he is passionate about, and especially upsetting to see it was due to lack of care for his well being. Everyone wants to save money, but when it comes at the cost of losing lives, it doesn’t seem to be worth it. It goes to show just how little care others can have about the crew members that create their work. It’s one thing to not give them the recognition they deserve, but when crew members start losing their own lives, then the well-being of the people should start to become a serious consideration for the production. Hopefully the family will be ok and they will get the respect they are owed. In the meantime, this man’s tragic loss of life should stand as an example of the consequence of cost cutting and lack of consideration for the crew.
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