Imitating life art: turn around, put your hands up, and walk slowly towards the sound of my voice

[Mark Suszko]

This is never a funny story, despite what the hipster doofus in the video news clip says. People can get hurt or killed in these situations, and they are hard enough to oprganize even when you DO go thru all the notification steps and put up barrier tape and signs and whatnot. This story happens every year. Some goofball passer-by will ignore the camera crew in front of them and focus only on the actors with guns. You pray that isn’t a cop, and that if he’s a cop, his trained reflexes and judgement are in good order.

Film teachers need to spend significant time teaching their students about this; they are derelict in their duty if they don’t. And auteurs who think they don’t need permits or a heads-up call to their local precinct before shooting scenes like this… well, I think they should get fines for the trouble they put folks to and the danger they create. They hurt the rest of the legitimate film making community when they work irresponsibly.

[Alan Lloyd]

As Stu Maschwitz put it in The DV Rebel’s Guide, “Be a rebel, not a jerk!”