January 14, 2025

"Are Hollywood film crews getting good footage of fires for use in later movies?"

I asked Grok.

Answer:
There is evidence suggesting that Hollywood film crews might be capturing footage of current fires for potential use in future movies. Several posts on X have indicated that filmmakers are taking advantage of the ongoing wildfires in Los Angeles for this purpose. Users on the platform have expressed concern or cynicism about the ethics of filming such disasters, suggesting that some crews are indeed out capturing footage of the fires, especially given the proximity to iconic locations like the Hollywood sign.... There's no direct confirmation from official sources or news articles within the web results provided that Hollywood is currently exploiting these specific fires for footage, although the idea aligns with past practices in film where real-life events have been used for authenticity or stock footage.

21 comments:

Kate said...

I would imagine they are. However, is it studio-financed, or is it second unit crew-style shooting that hopes to sell footage later? Hollywood is full of aspiring DPs who would rent a camera and try to make a name. It's the nature of the business.

Enigma said...

Hollywood is populated by manipulative cynics?! I'm shocked! The next thing you'll say is that many people willingly slept with Harvey Weinstein and others for the last 100 years to advance their careers via the "casting couch!"

How immoral! I must cleanse my brain with some wholesome NPR and PBS content now. Ewwwww!

narciso said...

Reminds of the opening scene in demolition man

wendybar said...

Apocalypse NOW!!

JAORE said...

If they don't obstruct the firefighting effort (like drones in the path of water bombers), so what?

Howard said...

Making lemonade at the sausage factory

Phaedrus said...

As a photographer, I don’t see an issue with this. Not only is photography an art form, but we document points in time of any given subject. Sometimes it’s personal, sometime there can be ways to monetize it. Are the Discovery, History and Smithsonian shows about natural disasters, airplane crashes and the ravages of war that use real footage taken at the time of the event violating some code of ethics? The professional photagaphers? The random traveler in the right spot, right time with cell phone video footage? Was the photographer that got the Pulitzer for the Vietnam War little napalm girl violating some sort of ethical code?

Doesn’t bother me in the least as long as they aren’t interfering with fire fighting efforts. This is historical and there will at some point be both documentary and dramatic uses for these film clips.

Phaedrus said...
This comment has been removed by the author.
Lazarus said...

Hollywood has never been very big on ethics. I'm waiting for the reality show where the newly homeless stars are forced into shelters or onto the streets, and we watch them interact with the rest of LA's homeless 24/7.

Amexpat said...

I don't see anything wrong with this as long as they are not hindering the firefighters in anyway. The footage could later be useful in seeing how the fire spread and how fire fighters could work more effectively in the future.

gspencer said...

It's the Democrat way, "You never want a serious crisis to go to waste."

Two-eyed Jack said...

Do you want future cinematic depictions of the fires to look fake?
The stories are already being written.

https://thepostmillennial.com/author-michael-connelly-to-set-upcoming-lincoln-lawyer-novel-amid-la-wildfires?utm_campaign=64483

PM said...

Load up! A 767 is on fire and has to make an emergency landing at LAX.
We can sell that footage.

Jupiter said...

"I asked Grok."
Fake news!

Magilla Gorilla said...

I'm with Phaedrus and the others who see no ethical issue as long as there is no interference with firefighting efforts. Regarding Michael Connelly, he was one of the best crime novelists around until he went woke. Blood Work (Clint Eastwood) and The Lincoln Lawyer (Matthew McConaughy) were both excellent movies. Probably won't read anything new from him.

MayBee said...

I have my suspicions about the drone that hit a tanker and damaged it.

typingtalker said...

This is funny. I wondered if Microsoft Copilot would give an answer similar to that supplied by Grok, so I asked Copilot, "Are Hollywood film crews getting good footage of fires for use in later movies?"

Copilot responded with an almost exact word-for-word copy of Grok's ... crediting althouse.blogspot.com.

Leland said...

There are people that are worried about the ethics? I know tv and film avoid showing the planes hitting the twin towers, but I've seen plenty of images of war, such as the attack on Pearl Harbor and the explosion of the USS Arizona. Still, the problem is weaving these real images in with the story being told. I think it would be easier to recreate most scenes.

Mason G said...

People chase and film tornados, I don't see that this is much different as long as those doing the filming don't interfere with firefighting efforts or those evacuating.

Narayanan said...

I had similar thoughts in comments on earlier post about some people inside house showing us video of inferno outside and around

boatbuilder said...

And this differs from the footage taken and shown by news crews exactly how?