Not what you thought #2
Last week we featured some cautionary tales pulled from the arena of professional, creative 3D. Well, there are plenty more where they came from. It's another world. That's not much of an exaggeration, as it often seems like a separate economy standing aside from the mundane world of job centres, vacancies in the press, the 'formal' hiring and firing procedure, verbal/written protocols and at times: health and safety. Once again: it's all true. The nightmare continues.
Imagine hearing a fellow worker commenting on the dangers of fine metal powder; how it cripples your lungs, but when the previous boss was around: “We lived and breathed it”.
How about the test rig for a prosthetic make-up effect that involved exposing foam latex (a long-used material for reproducing fake skin) to a particularly noxious industrial solvent, creating a dramatic deformation reaction. When the chemical was pumped into the test piece (a foam head) to no effect; a crew member was instructed to “go underneath” in order to check the pipes. This was a particularly uninspired idea considering that liquids tend to flow downwards; and the 'volunteered' individual was not wearing safety gear. With something akin to looking down a gun barrel whilst trying to unblock it - but physically inverted - the crew member managed to get the chemical flowing. That was the good news. The bad consisted of a dangerous, fuming solvent spewing out through the deforming foam and down over his face, neck and chest!
Out of shock he brought his solvent-soaked hands to his face (to inhale still more of the substance) before the hit to his system caused him to black out, all in a matter of seconds. In A&E some time later the concerned doctor told the victim in no uncertain terms that he should stay clear of chemical 'X' from now on. The brief but concentrated exposure had already lodged enough within his system to threaten his health; so much so that any further exposure could result in the manifestation of liver cancer, a condition that is often fatal within 6 months of diagnosis.
In a system that works similar to the old adage: “What happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas” - nothing was said, investigated or reported. There was no claim for compensation, no suing of the company by the Health and Safety Executive. Why? Because that would mean the end of the crew member's job and possibly career. A whistle-blower is an unemployable liability in such a lax environment and no-one wants the dream/nightmare to end, least of all the 'victim' who is living it. If a company is shut down then a whole freelance crew loses work as the recurrent employer disappears. No one on the inside wants that.
The hidden fumes, dust and vapours that hover cloud-like around the industry are particularly insidious threats. Fumed Silica Powder (effectively: ground glass) can grind away at lung tissue, as can clay dust (resulting in ‘Potter’s Rot’). Then there are the chemicals in spray paint blasted through airbrushes, the potent fumes (and fine-ground dust) from fiberglass processes and the odour-free fumes from polyurethane resins and foams. Oh, and resin dust, of course. Silver-soldering and welding generate metal fumes and combustion products that can be inhaled to your general detriment.
And if you consider that wood must be 'safe' then think again. Dusts from hardwoods e.g. mahogany are notoriously hazardous; potentially causing nasopharyngeal cancers. It's a minefield.
Aside from near-misses and ongoing threats to your very existence, there are also the demands of the actual projects themselves and the logistics involved. It's typical practices for a client or production company to expect work to appear magically and change specification instantly and supernaturally. To be fair, it's not their business. To also be fair; it would really make your job easier if they actually understood something, anything about what is involved before opening their mouth and saying: “That's good, but can you just make it a bit bigger?”. Yes, this actually gets said.
No problem, we can destroy the sculpt and strip all the clay back down to the armature, which may need adjusting/re-positioning. Then we can block it all out, shape and sculpt it all again, detail it and finish it off for you. Maybe you'll like it then? Maybe not. Who knows?
Oh it'd be so much easier to run your business if clients weren't involved.
[Photo by svilen001]
Tagged with: creativity, dust, metal powder, workplace hazards
