Insurance is a hurdle for small production companies starting back up

For months now, businesses around the world have been at a standstill thanks to the coronavirus pandemic, with many industries unable to operate until they can assure the safety of their workers. That includes the film and television industries, which involves cast and crew members working shoulder to shoulder on sets where a virus could spread easily.

Things are starting to pick back up, and large content creators like Netflix and Warner Bros. probably able to jump back into it without much trouble. But there are going to be changes. For example, the UK has released a set of guidelines ahead of production reopening: there should be fewer people on set, everyone should stay two meters apart, cast members should apply their own make-up, and equipment should be sanitized between uses.

For smaller production companies like Bad Wolf — the people behind A Discovery of Witches on Sky One and His Dark Materials on HBO — the added costs may end up being too much bear, especially with uncertainly surrounding whether insurance companies can protect them in the case of another outbreak. According to Natasha Hale, Bad Wolf’s chief operating officer, they had to furlough half of the 150 freelancers working on the show, with their other half given their notice. “It was a huge blow,” she told the BBC.

"If we have to stop production or if we have to leave the production totally, there is no insurance and who is going to take responsibility for that? We don’t know yet.I think really the government are going to have to do something because I’m not sure how productions are really going to get back on their feet without some kind of support on the lack of insurance."

Although the plan is still to release the second season of His Dark Materials this year — work has even begun on the third season — it ends up that Bad Wolf was in the middle of filming the final episode of season 2 when it had to shut down, according to the BBC report. Hopefully things come together and they get the help they need in time for people to enjoy the rest of the series.

At the moment, a spokesman from the UK government’s Department of Sport, Media and Culture has said they are working on the issue, but didn’t give many specifics: “We are working closely with the screen sector to understand the full extent of concerns about insurance and explore ways they can be effectively addressed.”

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