As everyone is aware, the current pandemic has resulted in many business disruptions. In the production space, it is essential to adopt some specific protocols to meet this challenge. In our case, we have implemented a disinfection process for our gear between projects, limited our social interactions, promoted frequent hand-washing, and taken care to do meetings remotely when possible. Another aspect to consider in this time is the number of essential crew required for any given project.

To disinfect most camera equipment, you can use a disinfecting wipe or alcohol (60%) wipe on most of your gear. 60% alcohol is safe for your lens coatings and sufficient to disinfect. For areas of your gear that are less sensitive such as camera bodies or tripods, regular disinfecting wipes will be sufficient. For C-Stands, Light Stands and other non-porus surfaces, a bleach solution (1/3 cup bleach per gallon of water) is sufficient. For porous items such as microphone covers etc, it is often helpful to utilize a specific product such as microphome. Shoes are disinfected with disinfecting wipes and clothing can be sanitized by washing with vinegar (1 cup per load), hydrogen peroxide (1 cup of 3% per load) or borax.

Additionally, if you have the budget, purchasing a UVC-light wand like the Cleanwave can be a great addition to your cleaning kit. It allows you to sterilize items that can’t withstand harsh cleaners.

At allied, we have always practiced a ‘thin to win’ mentality with our production staff as well as our company ethos. Now, more than ever, it is important to have folks on your crew who can do more than one job. No matter the outcome of this pandemic, the days of bloated production crews may be over. If your sound operator can run a B camera, you’re already ahead of the curve.

Sanitizing essential gear such as microphones, tripods, cameras, and lights may seem to some as excessive but to us, it is our responsibility to our clients to do no harm. It’s our responsibility to keep our space clean and healthy for ourselves and our clients and adding an air-purifier to your studio can go a long way in reducing the spread of unwanted bacteria in your studio environment. Purifiers have the added benefit of removing pollutants, dust, and other fine particles that can wreak havoc on equipment and prevent your from losing money in the long run.

During times of social distancing, it is often necessary to communicate via video and often necessary to hire a crew. Being mindful, observing social distancing, and disinfecting equipment can go a long way in being a production team that is solution-oriented in a time of crisis. We take our health and the health of our clients seriously, and we encourage every production company to create disinfection processes and limit their production day staff to essential crew only.

Disenfect and Distance; How a production team deals with a Pandemic