Legislature Passes Senator Cortese’s Film Safety Bill Spurred by ‘Rust’ Movie Tragedy

The Legislature passed legislation by Senator Dave Cortese on Tuesday establishing landmark safety rules on motion picture productions. The state budget agreement, which incorporates Senator Cortese’s SB 735, establishes the nation’s first safety protocols in law for television and film workers. The bipartisan legislation reflects two years of negotiations between studios and labor representatives following the 2021 death of a cinematographer on the ‘Rust’ film set. The bill is headed to the Governor.

“Conversations about this legislation started the week after the tragic loss of a cinematographer. Those negotiations have produced the nation’s first and best safety practices for California workers in the state’s vital motion picture industry. The agreement will also boost diversity on film productions and create an industry pipeline for students of color, and it will uplift local economies by helping to keep motion picture productions in California,” said Senator Cortese (D-San Jose), who chairs the Senate Committee on Labor, Public Employment, and Retirement. “This agreement establishes best practices statewide that were already in use among Hollywood’s top studios. I commend Governor Newsom, the film studios and unions for their commitment to film safety.”

“The IATSE and its 54,000 members working in California owe the landmark Safety on Productions Pilot Program legislation in AB/SB 132 to Senator Dave Cortese, who for the past two years, has stood by his commitment to work with us to move industry safety protocols from rules on paper to actual enforcement on the ground,” said Mike Miller, 4th International Vice President/Department Director, Motion Picture & Television Production, International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees, Moving Picture Technicians, Artists and Allied Crafts of the United States, Its Territories and Canada (IATSE). “Our unique industry faces a myriad of hazardous and potentially hazardous activities that take place daily. Now, starting here in California, with productions that receive the California Film and Television Tax Credit 4.0, IATSE members, and everyone who works on these productions, will know that safety is important, not only to them but to the Governor and Legislature as well.”

The bill protects film and television workers by establishing clear, mandatory guidelines around the use of firearms and ammunition on productions, among other provisions. It establishes training requirements and safety standards for prop masters and armorers, and prohibits the use of live ammunition except in limited circumstances following safety rules and laws.

The bill also creates a five-year safety pilot program requiring any employer who receives a motion picture tax credit to hire an independent safety advisor to conduct preproduction risk assessments, and oversee safety practices and procedures in motion picture, television, and streaming productions. 

“We thank Senator Cortese for his leadership on this transformational legislation that will prioritize safety in our industry and save lives,” said Rebecca Rhine, Western Executive Director of the Directors Guild of America. “Now DGA directors and their teams, along with all other cast and crew members, have a skilled and experienced ally and collaborator on production whose sole focus is keeping everyone safe. While this model starts with the film tax incentive in California, we look forward to the day it becomes the standard across the country.”