Movie makers fined for shooting

WASHINGTON: The film company that was producing the movie Rust, where actor-producer Alec Baldwin fatally shot cinematographer Halyna Hutchins on set last October, has been hit with the maximum possible fine by workplace safety regulators and accused of “willfull and serious” safety violations.

A fine of almost $137,000 ($184,000) was handed to Rust Movie Productions for firearms safety failures.

In addition to paying the fine, New Mexico’s Occupational Health and Safety Bureau issued a scathing rundown of safety failures in violation of standard film industry protocols, including testimony that the film’s production managers took little to no action to address two previous gun misfires on set prior to the shot that fatally struck Hutchins and wounded director Joel Souza.

Also documented in the occupational safety report were gun safety complaints made by crew members that were ignored, along with weapons specialists’ requests for additional training that went unheeded.

“What we had, based on our investigators’ findings, was a set of obvious hazards to employees regarding the use of firearms and management’s failure to act upon those obvious hazards,” Bob Genoway, bureau chief for occupational safety, said.

The report also confirms that a large-caliber revolver was handed to Baldwin by assistant director David Halls without first consulting on-set weapons specialists during or after the gun was loaded.

Halls also served as safety co-ordinator and was present and witnessed two accidental discharges of rifles on set, and yet took no action to investigate or redress the misfires.

The report notes that crew members complained or expressed their dismay.

“The Safety Coordinator was present on set and took no direct action to address safety concerns,” the report states.

“Management was provided with multiple opportunities to take corrective actions and chose not to do so. As a result of these failures, director Joel Souza and cinematographer Halyna Hutchins were severely injured. Halyna Hutchins succumbed to her injuries.”

The report is the result of 1500 hours of investigation, perusal of hundreds of documents, and at least 12 interviews with cast and crew members, according to James Kenney, secretary of the Environment Department that oversees occupational safety in New Mexico.

The misdemeanours around firearms were startling, including a small and overworked weapons team and a shotgun that was left unattended on set twice.

Armourer Hannah Gutierrez Reed, the daughter of a weapons expert and film consultant, was restricted to just eight paid days as an armourer for the film, and otherwise had to put her time into being the film’s props assistant.

Gutierrez Reed warned a manager that she could not accomplish what was needed from an armourer in this short amount of time.

Safety investigators found that there were no protocols in place to prevent live rounds of ammunition from making it onto the set.

Mr Kenney told AP separate investigations into possible criminal charges were still under way.