Directors Guild Welcomes COVID-19 Guidelines

DGC calls On Screen Manitoba’s health & safety guide a good first step

Winnipeg & Toronto – With Manitoba government guidelines set to allow film & television production to begin reopening today, Cathie Edgar, Chair of the Manitoba District Council for Directors Guild of Canada, joined Dave Forget, National Executive Director of the Directors Guild of Canada, in welcoming the release of the Manitoba Media Production Industry COVID-19 Health and Safety Guide.

“We’d like to thank On Screen Manitoba for their quick, thoughtful leadership, working with us and partners across the industry, to put together this guide,” said Edgar, “and we’d like to congratulate those producers who’ve shown the wisdom to sign-on to abide by these guidelines when production restarts.”

“Our members are excited and eager to get back to work, but we know we have to do so safely above all else,” Edgar added. “The early buy-in on these safety measures is certainly encouraging. Now, we have to ensure that all productions follow these protocols and see to it that key details, like the responsibility for infection prevention, are worked out. We need to be mindful that these new and necessary responsibilities are not represented within Directors Guild job descriptions and will require individuals with the appropriate skills to perform this important work.”

“This guide is a good first step, but there’s still work to be done before production can reopen.”

Dave Forget from the Directors Guild’s national office in Toronto added that the way production restarts in Manitoba could have impacts felt far beyond the province.

“All eyes across the country, and even internationally, are going to be watching how production reopens in Manitoba,” said Forget. “The first productions to start back up in Winnipeg will have a tremendous responsibility to uphold the highest standards of health & safety and not jeopardize the return to work for the entire industry.”