Production Sound & Video

Winter 2021 – LOCAL695.ORG 31 Aside from on-set COVID-19 safety protocols, one of the major health and safety concerns for Boom Operators in Local 695 is shoulder and back injuries due to the ever- increasing long takes while using boom poles. In 1951, James L. Fisher designed a mechanical boom arm and base, known worldwide as the Fisher boom. Fisher booms were in use on most sets and locations for at least forty of the past sixty years. Changes in set design, the construction of four- walled sets and production's reluctance to "fl y walls," made the use of the Fisher harder to employ on movie and television shows, although still prevalent on productions and sitcoms. With the use of HD cameras, Boom Operators are forced to hold the boom pole for takes lasting between twenty and even forty minutes at a time. This is obviously untenable and unsafe. Steve Cain, and his son Shannon, who are the Boom Operators of NBC's Superstore, explained, "The fi rst season we were living on eight and six-step ladders for the entire day. It was a really hard show, as we shoot with three cameras; two wing and a middle camera. The takes lasted a long time 'cause it was digital. They would reset and do several passes within each take without cutting." Shannon continues, "You're fully extended with a sixteen-foot pole pretty much the whole day." Sound Mixer Darin Knight went to production to explain that this was a health and safety issue, with the concern that someone could fall from the ladder and or drop the boom, injuring themselves or others. Takes were lasting fi fteen minutes a piece with half a dozen shots for each scene. Darin successfully lobbied for one Model 3 Fisher boom with the Model 2 arm, that extends to sixteen feet. A second Fisher was added in season three and they operate with offset arms, extending the boom's reach to almost nineteen feet each. Each boom is equipped with a microphone tilt hanger and Sennheiser 416's. The main set occupies two combined sound stages at Universal. Steve describes the scene: "This is a giant show, really, for sound, sometimes we have up to fourteen actors all on wireless mics, and two Fishers to move around." Shannon is busy wiring the cast and dealing with all the other equipment needs, and moves up to manage the second Fisher boom. Initially, the booms were hard wired to Darin, but this season they switched to a wireless confi guration to avoid repeated returns to the sound cart, to stay within the COVID protocols. Superstore incorporates a "Phase" system. Phase 1 is where camera will set up the shot and sound can move the booms in place. Phase 2 is for lighting, but often Steve and Shannon need to be there to move the Fisher base to accommodate set lighting. Phase 3 is for setting the background players, and Phase 4 is shooting. Steve and Shannon were surprised by the crew's acceptance of the Fishers. "A lot of the younger trainees and PA's have

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