Camera Operator attacked by castmember

James Emory · February 22nd, 2006, 12:21 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Joe Strong

haha man, I bet that was a somewhat uneasy feeling for the cameramen when that truck pulled up. He looked like bad news. Glad she didn't end up going with him. Yikes.

Yeah, I bet the producers were glad too, that would have been a trainwreck trying to keep up with that. When I worked on Room Raiders for MTV, the police showed up at one of our locations because the show is based on abducting the castmembers, willingly of course. I don't know if they were called or just driving by and saw us in action but they did have a chat with our UPM. To the unknowing neighbors, it could look suspicious seeing someone being escorted to a plane white van, throwing them in and then speeding off. The giveaway was that there are two camera ops and a sound guy and sometimes we had to do it two or three times to get the reactions the director wanted.

John Hudson · February 22nd, 2006, 12:55 AM

I dont condone smacking a chick but in this case I'd understand. She's about 5 minutes from becoming a professional stripper.

James Emory · February 22nd, 2006, 02:03 AM

One of the things I don't like about showing partial content is that the whole story is not represented but the whole thing wasn't relevant here. The backstory showed her traumatic childhood that contributed to this behavior. The one that I worked on brought tears to my eyes when I heard about some of the things that happened to the castmembers, things that weren't mentioned in that show. I'm certainly not agreeing with the behavior she demonstrated early on but at least she chose to get the free help, which is quite expensive if paid for, whereas others have just walked out on the spot or walked shortly after therapy began. These are folks with some very serious issues.

John Hudson · February 22nd, 2006, 02:15 AM

I understand James and my comments are of course in jest.

Dave Herring · February 22nd, 2006, 08:57 AM

Excellent camera work James. I thought you guys handled the 'cameraman intervention' professionally, considering the content. Especially when the truck pulled up, great damage control, this is a nice example of how 'not' to become part of the show.

I have been attacked on a couple of occasions, both times by men who were being investigated by authorities for serious crimes and both big enough to really hurt me.

You can be much more defensive in those situations, but you must stay on the defensive and never initiate anything. My response verbally, in both situations, was to keep saying:

"Don't touch my camera!" Using a 'stiff arm technique' to keep them off me and continue rolling. (I'll post one of the clips later)

My concern was to keep it all about the work, while continuing to do my job.

Being attacked while working, those types of situations are sticky ethical dilemmas, but if you always consider the subject and their ability to hurt you first and stay on the defensive, you usually end up representing your profession with dignity.

Great post, great work.

James Emory · February 22nd, 2006, 09:05 AM

Thanks again Dave, but I didn't work on this episode. I worked on another one much earlier in the series. I just posted this because it had DVX 100s in it and because of what happened to the shooter.

February 22nd, 2006, 12:55 AM	#17
John Hudson Major Player Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: 32° 44' N 117° 10' W Posts: 820	I dont condone smacking a chick but in this case I'd understand. She's about 5 minutes from becoming a professional stripper.

February 22nd, 2006, 02:03 AM	#18
James Emory Regular Crew Join Date: Aug 2002 Location: Atlanta, Georgia Posts: 1,892	One of the things I don't like about showing partial content is that the whole story is not represented but the whole thing wasn't relevant here. The backstory showed her traumatic childhood that contributed to this behavior. The one that I worked on brought tears to my eyes when I heard about some of the things that happened to the castmembers, things that weren't mentioned in that show. I'm certainly not agreeing with the behavior she demonstrated early on but at least she chose to get the free help, which is quite expensive if paid for, whereas others have just walked out on the spot or walked shortly after therapy began. These are folks with some very serious issues.

February 22nd, 2006, 02:15 AM	#19
John Hudson Major Player Join Date: Sep 2003 Location: 32° 44' N 117° 10' W Posts: 820	I understand James and my comments are of course in jest.

February 22nd, 2006, 08:57 AM	#20
Dave Herring Regular Crew Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Indian Rocks Beach, Florida Posts: 67	Excellent camera work James. I thought you guys handled the 'cameraman intervention' professionally, considering the content. Especially when the truck pulled up, great damage control, this is a nice example of how 'not' to become part of the show. I have been attacked on a couple of occasions, both times by men who were being investigated by authorities for serious crimes and both big enough to really hurt me. You can be much more defensive in those situations, but you must stay on the defensive and never initiate anything. My response verbally, in both situations, was to keep saying: "Don't touch my camera!" Using a 'stiff arm technique' to keep them off me and continue rolling. (I'll post one of the clips later) My concern was to keep it all about the work, while continuing to do my job. Being attacked while working, those types of situations are sticky ethical dilemmas, but if you always consider the subject and their ability to hurt you first and stay on the defensive, you usually end up representing your profession with dignity. Great post, great work.

February 22nd, 2006, 09:05 AM	#21
James Emory Regular Crew Join Date: Aug 2002 Location: Atlanta, Georgia Posts: 1,892	Thanks again Dave, but I didn't work on this episode. I worked on another one much earlier in the series. I just posted this because it had DVX 100s in it and because of what happened to the shooter.