After several requests from various associations of the Indian film industry in the past months, Prakash Javadekar, Minister of Information and Broadcasting has announced on Sunday, the SOPs (Standard Operating Procedures) for film shooting and the guidelines to be followed when theatres reopen all over India.
While the lists included the fundamental rules to be followed, it also added special pointers with respect to equipment, departments, and stay-over facilities.
‘Contact Minimisation’ is at the core of the SOP. This will be ensured by minimal physical contact and sharing of props, PPEs for hair stylists and make-up artists among others. pic.twitter.com/fBdkfEXcR9
— Prakash Javadekar (@PrakashJavdekar) August 23, 2020
The SOP list for production includes,
- Six-feet social distancing at all shoot locations, studios, and rooms by entire cast and crew.
- A minimum cast and crew during the shoot as much as possible.
- Prohibition of visitors/audiences on set.
- Compulsory coordination with local authorities for crowd-management during outdoor shoots.
- Stay-over facilities to prevent the spread of infection.
- Staggered call sheet timings for different crew units that work at studios with multiple sets.
- Designated entry and exit points at shoot locations.
- Regular sanitisation of sets, makeup rooms, vanity vans, and other facilities.
- Adequate stock of gloves, boots, masks, Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) kits, etc.
- Face covers and masks for all except for the talent in front of the camera.
- Sharing of costumes, wigs, makeup items, and others to be kept at a minimum.
- Compulsory PPE kits for makeup artists and hairstylists.
- Persons handling shared equipment to wear gloves compulsorily.
- Direct contact with the diaphragm of mics to be avoided and Lapel mics to be done without or never shared.
- Minimise usage of props and use only after sanitisation.
The guidelines for theatres include,
- Higher risk employees to take extra precautions and preferably not have direct contact with the public.
- Mandatory wearing of face masks at every point.
- Prohibition of spitting.
- Installing sanitiser dispensers at strategic points and spraying disinfectants at all places right from the box office, security checkpoints, food and beverage counter to the lobby and exit points.
- Respiratory etiquette to be strictly followed.
- Thermal screening at entry points; only asymptomatic persons to be allowed on-premises.
- Six-feet social distancing at all times.
- Crowd management ensuring social distancing to be taken care of at the parking lot and anywhere outside the main premises.
- All relevant areas and points of sale to have demarcated circles with sufficient distance for queues.
- Provision of posters/standees/audio-visual media for the display of COVID19 preventive measures.
- Seating arrangement with social distancing.
- Digital transactions only for buying tickets, food, and beverage.
- Disinfection of premises if anyone found COVID19 positive.
- Self-monitoring of health by all and reporting of illness at the earliest.
- Temporary isolation of any suspect cases.
- Aarogya Setu App (developed by the Government of India to connect essential health services with the people of India) is advised to be installed by all staff.
While the Hindi film industry and other South Indian film industries began filming a while ago, the Tamil film industry is yet to begin, considering the situation in Tamil Nadu.
Producers, directors, and distributors are however awaiting the order from the Tamil Nadu government to commence with film shooting as soon as possible.
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They have been constantly approaching the Information and Publicity Minister of Tamil Nadu, Kadambur C Raju, as well as Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, Edapadi K Palaniswami for the same. After many requests, the minister recently issued a statement about the resuming of shoots saying that the State government does not plan on granting permission any time soon because of the spread of the disease in the state.
Read: ‘The Current Situation Will Not Permit Us To Grant Shooting Permission’: Kadambur Raju