World News – AU – Hollywood productions have been suspended due to Covid-19

. . LOS ANGELES • Most Hollywood productions were suspended until at least the middle of the month, the film industry union said, as Covid-19 cases in Los Angeles hit record levels. . Read more at straitstimes. com.

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LOS ANGELES • Most Hollywood productions were suspended until at least the middle of the month, the film industry union said, when Covid-19 cases in Los Angeles hit record levels.

SAG-Aftra said in a statement to members Tuesday that the majority of entertainment productions « will pause until the second or third week of January, if not later ».

The news comes after Los Angeles County Health officials on Christmas Eve urged filmmakers « to consider taking a few weeks off work during this catastrophic surge in Covid cases ». .

Los Angeles – the most populous county in the US – has emerged as the youngest US epicenter of the coronavirus pandemic, gaining more than 7 for the first time on Monday. 000 hospital stays in Covid completed.

In the sprawling county of 10 million people there are nearly 750. 000 cases occurred, including just under 10. 000 deaths.

Southern California’s « stay-at-home » order was extended indefinitely Tuesday as multiple hospitals were overwhelmed and forced to turn away ambulances.

SAG-Aftra has put months of effort into restarting Hollywood since it first closed in March and signed a deal with top studios last September to improve on-set security for its actors, including testing.

Even so, entertainment productions in Los Angeles were less than half their usual activity level last October before declining again as Covid-19 cases began to rise.

Film LA, the agency that grants permits for productions in Los Angeles, said film applications had recently dropped to « lows we haven’t seen since the weeks after production restarted last summer ». .

Aside from a few dozen indie films, very few feature films have been re-produced in the Los Angeles area over the past year. Most of the shooting was limited to commercials and music videos.

In contrast, high-profile productions have resumed overseas, including Tom Cruise’s latest blockbuster mission: Impossible 7 in the UK and Italy, and television series like Supergirl and Batwoman in Canada.

SAG-Aftra said it will « ensure adequate precautions for the vacation break, including additional time for testing before resumption of production ». .

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