LOS ANGELES, Feb. 5, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- SAG* contracts with
producers help guarantee safety during stunts – even so, actors
continue to be killed and injured during stunts – Vic Morrow and Brandon
Lee, who died from on set accidents and many more – such as
Harrison Ford - who were
injured.
The basics before a stunt are – advance notice to the actor that
a stunt is planned, consent from the performer to participate, and
a walk through to do as much as possible to uncover the risks and
to make sure everyone is on the same page.
As detailed in Tensor Law's court filings, during the filming of
"Nurse 3D" in Toronto in 2011 –
Lionsgate launched a stunt with no warning to the performers, no
consent and no walkthrough. Lead actress Paz de la Huerta was struck by a speeding
vehicle that raced onto the set.
Was this an accident? In the court filings, Tensor Law asserts
that the director, Doug Arniokoski demanded a retake because the
actress jumped out of the way just before the truck hit her –
minimizing the impact. Arniokoski ordered de la Huerta not to look
toward the direction of the oncoming vehicle. After heated
discussion, Paz agreed – under significant pressure to avoid being
fired from her lead actress job in the major motion picture. At the
second take she was hit with tremendous force, being hurled to the
ground and suffering a spine fracture as the whole episode was
recorded on film.
In a decision mailed today, Judge Gerald
Rosenberg found that because the stunt director,
Layton Morrison, was a Canadian, he
could not be sued for his role in allowing the unscripted stunt to
go forward despite the breach of SAG and AMPTP** safety rules.
A California court will have
Personal Jurisdiction over a Canadian citizen, if that person has
consented to work under California
law or if that person was an "agent" of Lionsgate. Lionsgate –
based in Santa Monica, California
– did not reveal Morrison's contracts but others all had a
"California Law" clause in their contracts according to Tensor
Law.
Tensor Law asserted in the court filings that by using a foreign
non-SAG stunt directors in a SAG film, Lionsgate was able to avoid
following SAG safety rules even when those violations led to a
nearly lethal accident. Lionsgate appeared in Court in Santa Monica on February 2nd to "Quash" service of a
summons on Layton Morrison, and
Judge Rosenberg agreed. The next major hearing in the case is
scheduled for February
23rd at the Santa
Monica Courthouse, Dept. K.
Reacting to the decision Paz de la
Huerta said: "I'm very concerned about seeing justice done –
a studio should not be able to avoid its responsibility for the
safety of performers. I'm disappointed by this result and worried
about whether an individual actress can actually rely on
courts and judges like this to fight a multi-billion dollar
studio."
(*SAG–AFTRA = initials stand for: Screen Actors Guild
– American Federation of Television and Radio Artists)
(**AMPTP = initials stand
for: Alliance
of Motion Picture and Television Producers)
Photo - http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20160205/330387
To view the original version on PR Newswire,
visit:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/lionsgate-dodges-responsibility-for-on-set-safety-violations--according-to-tensor-law-pc-court-filing-300216297.html
SOURCE Tensor Law P.C.