And the Oscar goes to ... without insurance protection, many silver screens would be dark and red carpets less crowded.Long before the red carpet is rolled out and the Oscar statues polished, even before most Oscar-winning performances are shot on film, coverage provided by insurers, such as Fireman's Fund, allows the production of movies to begin. Without insurance, films couldn't get the financing they need to be made, said Lauren Bailey, head of the entertainment unit for Fireman's Fund, which insured 16 films that were nominated nom·i·nate tr.v. nom·i·nat·ed, nom·i·nat·ing, nom·i·nates 1. To propose by name as a candidate, especially for election. 2. To designate or appoint to an office, responsibility, or honor. for Oscars. In addition to traditional coverages, films require special insurance to protect against their unique risks. Policies are often almost individually crafted to meet the needs of each film's specific risks, said Denise Dimin, claims manager for the unit. "Claims or underwriting Underwriting 1. The process by which investment bankers raise investment capital from investors on behalf of corporations and governments that are issuing securities (both equity and debt). 2. The process of issuing insurance policies. entertainment is not for the faint of heart. Nothing we do is cut and dry," she said. Fireman's Fund started covering the making of commercials, television shows and feature films decades ago, and has seen protection costs increase from $30,000 a day to $60,000 for commercials; from $50,000 to $100,000-$200,000 for television shows; and from $100,000 a day to $500,000 or more a day for major movies. "We can cover up to a $200 million operating budget Noun 1. operating budget - a budget for current expenses as distinct from financial transactions or permanent improvements budget items, operating cost, operating expense, overhead - the expense of maintaining property (e.g. , and could go higher than that," Bailey said. Premiums run roughly 1% to 5% of production costs, and can vary depending on deductibles. Even traditional property policies can be unusual, because they can cover cameras worth $20,000 to $1.5 million each. In addition to traditional insurance coverages, insurance for film productions can include: * Cast coverage: protects against the extra costs to complete filming when cast and crew members are unavailable because of illness, injury or death. Cast coverage accounts for the highest volume of claims dollars paid. * Props, wardrobe and set coverage: protects the producers' insurable interest A right, benefit, or advantage arising out of property that is of such nature that it may properly be indemnified. In the law of insurance, the insured must have an interest in the subject matter of his or her policy, or such policy will be void and unenforceable since it or legal liability in the value of props, set, wardrobe and related equipment. * Extra-expense coverage: pays for the producer's extra costs when filming is interrupted in·ter·rupt v. in·ter·rupt·ed, in·ter·rupt·ing, in·ter·rupts v.tr. 1. To break the continuity or uniformity of: Rain interrupted our baseball game. 2. because property is damaged from an external cause. * Negative film coverage: insures against theft or damage to the film negatives or the videotape videotape Magnetic tape used to record visual images and sound, or the recording itself. There are two types of videotape recorders, the transverse (or quad) and the helical. equivalent. Most often claims are paid when film is damaged in transit. * Faulty stock: insures against extra costs incurred when problems occur with the film during shooting, processing or editing. A scene can be ruined when even a small scratch on a piece of film is magnified many times for the big screen. Recent Claims Fireman's Fund didn't win any gold statues for its work or get to strut down the red carpet, but paid claims for the following Oscar-nominated movies HOTEL RWANDA $50,000 to cover a car hijacked in South Africa South Africa, Afrikaans Suid-Afrika, officially Republic of South Africa, republic (2005 est. pop. 44,344,000), 471,442 sq mi (1,221,037 sq km), S Africa. . The car was carrying $50,000 in South African currency African currency was originally formed from basic items, materials, animals and even people available in the locality to create a medium of exchange. This started to change from the seventeenth century onwards (though there is still some slavery), as European colonial powers to pay local workers. THE AVIATOR Paid to relocate re·lo·cate v. re·lo·cat·ed, re·lo·cat·ing, re·lo·cates v.tr. To move to or establish in a new place: relocated the business. v.intr. two filming locations after they were both damaged by brush fires in California. Also covered equipment destroyed in the fires. Ray Covered the cost to replace a tractor-trailer load of period costumes that were destroyed in a fire while being transported. |
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