A year after the COVID-19 outbreak, life isn't the same for technicians on a film set

The COVID-19 pandemic, which continues to rage in many parts of the world, has left a negative impact on almost every business and the film industry is no different. A year ago, all film work came to a halt in India, like most other aspects of normal life, when the country was locked down abruptly in an attempt to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus.

It was only from June onwards that work resumed haltingly in the film sector. But things aren’t the same any more. With the threat of the pandemic still very much present, people involved in making movies have had to be mindful and take strict precautions to ensure that none of the crew is put at risk.

How these changes have influenced the ways in which actors, actresses and directors approach their work is known. What is less known is how the work culture of those 'behind the scenes', who make up the bulk of a film production team, has changed. The impact has not been uniform across departments; some have been affected more than others.

When film units were allowed to resume work in June last year, very few people were allowed on the sets. The number has increased gradually, Jatin Dharna, who works as a line producer and executive producer on feature and ad films, said. "Earlier there were guidelines asking us to work with only 30 or 40 people," he told Cinestaan.com. "When a shoot requires, say, 100 people, how can we accomplish it with just 30? But slowly the crew limit is increasing."

On the other hand, government guidelines require producers to hire a full sanitizing team. "They sanitize the entire set, provide masks and gloves," Dharna said. "They also keep a sanitization tunnel at the gate through which all are required to pass before going on the set to shoot.”

Make-up veteran Umesh Kanojia agrees that safety has become paramount, adding that it is a good thing. "There is a new COVID-19 department now [in film units]," he said. "They are required to sanitize the sets, check the temperature of the staff and check if everyone is wearing masks.

“Everybody before every shoot is required to undergo a COVID-19 test. And it is repeated after 10 or 12 days." In some cases, the makers get the test done for the entire unit while in other cases the unit members are required to get the test done themselves, at their own cost. "This is awkward," said Kanojia, "because if it’s your shoot, you should provide for it.”

Shreyash Kattekari, who works as a director’s assistant and second assistant director, says a major change in the method of working has been the increased use of online video-conferencing. “We have been working a lot on Zoom,” he said. “This will continue now as people have got used to it. They have realized that most of the preparation can happen over Zoom, so we don’t meet at all. We now do a recce and then directly meet on the sets. Earlier we used to meet a lot before the shoot began.”

In fact, he said, there is now a Zoom set-up on the sets as well for those who are not present on a particular day. “It’s connected to the camera’s monitor, so the client [producer] can see it directly. Whoever wants to see but doesn’t want to come on the sets can see it this way, which is going to stay forever now. Everybody has understood that it’s not necessary to be there physically,” he said.

For some members of the team, like editors, this has simply strengthened the way they always worked. Ajay Sharma, editor of Ludo (2020) and Indoo Ki Jawani (2020), says there hasn’t been much of a difference in his work. “We always used to be quarantined,” he said with a laugh. “Our work always happens in a room. Now human interaction has become lesser. Earlier directors used to visit the edit room daily, now they are visiting once in three days."

There is a downside, though. "The pace at which the rushes are sent to us has slowed down,” said Sharma. This, in turn, has complicated the work process. “These days we mail and transfer footage. Say, we have to transfer a sequence to the director. Then he watches it and gives me feedback. Then we again upload and download. I have to keep an assistant just for all this.”

Sharma completed the editing of Ludo at a time when the pandemic was still new and everyone was scared. “Only I and [director] Anurag [Basu] used to be in the studio," he recalled. "We wouldn't go home for a week. We actually lived there for seven days at a time. Then we would return home for three or four days and go back to the studio for seven days. Otherwise it was not possible [to complete the work]. And Ludo was such a project that you needed day-and-night involvement in it.”

Like many other editors, Sharma also has an editing set-up at home but he doesn’t like to work that way. “There are very few sequences that I take back home," he said. "When I get stuck, I change the space. But I don’t dedicatedly work from home. In office, you know where to put a full stop. But at home there is no full stop. You are so involved and you just keep going on. Also, I work at a good pace in the studio. But at home even the pace slackens."

Having said that, Sharma had to edit Indoo Ki Jawani entirely at home. “We were having con-calls and video calls,” he said. “That was a different experience. It has never happened before. But there was no option. I enjoyed it though. I like doing new things. The good thing was that Indoo Ki Jawani was an easier subject. Ludo wouldn’t have happened from home.”

One unwanted side effect of the increased emphasis on safety is that many unit hands now work for lower pay since a good part of the budget is spent on making the shoot safe. “Earlier they used to say the budget is less, but after COVID-19 they are saying there is just no budget,” said Kanojia. “Because of this, you just can’t negotiate. You just agree [to what is offered] while not thinking about your self-respect, for the sake of your family. Now they feel that as they are giving work, people will anyhow agree to work. And there are people who are ready to work for anything. In fact, there is hardly anyone who would refuse work after this period.”

What’s worse is that this is also hurting their pockets. “Now we have to keep different make-up sets for every artiste,” he said. “Earlier we used to sanitize the brush after using it for an artiste. But now we have to have different kits for every artiste. Sometimes the cost is covered by the producers, but not always. “The person closest to an artiste is the make-up artiste," he continued. "I have to make the artiste presentable while maintaining safety measures. Then the artiste will also feel that his staff is taking care of these things.”

Dharna agrees that times are tough but believes this phase is temporary. “Budgets from the clients are lower, which is a challenge," he said. "Because of sanitization, costs have increased. But the budget the client provides has decreased. And as people haven’t had work for long, they are agreeing to work for less pay. But things will get better.”

Sharma also says producers are citing the pandemic and cutting budgets. But he does not see this phase ending anytime soon. Given that the pandemic is far from over, and the number of cases is growing once again in several parts of the country, his pessimism may well be in order.