Safety As You See It

Where is it written, that all health and safety videos must be boring? I've never found it, but I'm sure it must be written somewhere, because most health and safety videos seem to go like this:

A very wooden actor (usually an employee who's been dragooned into playing the part) self consciously demonstrates the correct procedure for lifting something heavy. The patronising voice-over talks at you like you're still six years old and says something like: "When lifting a heavy object, be sure to bend your knees - you know, those flexible bits in the middle of your legs...". All the while Mantovani and his Thousand String Orchestra is playing in the background, and your viewing is punctuated by the snores of your fellow students who have fallen asleep because it's so boring.

Perhaps I exaggerate somewhat, but I'm sure you get the picture! Apart from the skills necessary to do your job (and the location of the coffee machine) the correct health and safety procedures for your particular work site are probably some of the most important things you can learn at work. Following them correctly could save a life - maybe you own.

I was therefore delighted, when asked to draw up the initial treatment for a health and safety at work video for Camden Council, to be told "we don't want it to be like an ordinary health and safety video", and "we don't want it to be boring". Not that I know how to do "boring" anyway. The also told me they wanted the capability to dubb it into foreign languages, which ruled out having a presenter or any interviews to camera. Voice-over (or "paste-over" as it's sometimes called) can be very boring, so this presented me with a challenge.

Here's what I did...

After several meetings and visits to the various Council offices and work sites, I chose two real Camden employees and talked to them about the hazards they faced in their jobs. I got them to point out both the good practices and the most common mistakes. I then shot the whole video on Steadycam from their perspectives and point of view, and presented the narrative in the sort of relaxed, friendly style one would expect when being shown around a new workplace for the first time, and being told who's who and what's what.

The video doesn't just concentrate on the approved procedures - like getting assistance when needed ("When using a stepladder, always get someone to hold it for you. It isn't a sign of weakness!"), but also common instances of bad practice that viewers should look out for - like poor posture ("Just look at the way she's sitting at that computer. She'll have a backache by the end of the shift...")

I kept the narrator's identities hidden until the end of the programme, so as to keep the viewer's curiosity up.

The result: Highly "watchable". I'm told it doesn't seem like fifteen minutes, and is very easy to understand. Just what the client wanted.

Produced by Capricorn Productions for the London Borough of Camden.