LOS ANGELES—Free Speech Coalition on Wednesday issued the following update on its FSC COVID-19 Task Force and the ongoing hold on porn production.
It follows in full:
Since late April, the FSC COVID-19 Task Force has been meeting twice weekly — as well as speaking with advisory groups of producers, performers, and medical experts — to discuss benchmarks for lifting the production hold and developing the guidance needed to safely resume production.
Production Hold
The voluntary production hold related to coronavirus remains in effect. It is neither safe to shoot, nor is any film production legally permitted in production hubs like Los Angeles, Las Vegas, and Southern Florida. Various regions are implementing a phased approach to easing restrictions, but no region has entered a phase of reopening that allows for film production to resume.
The Task Force is closely monitoring developments within the mainstream entertainment industry. In a live roundtable earlier today, California Governor Gavin Newsom said that his office will publish guidelines for the entertainment industry on Monday. Representatives of his office were not specific about when production could resume, saying that it could vary by jurisdiction. (Watch the full video here.)
We cannot yet give a firm date when the adult industry production hold will be lifted. That timing is largely dependent on the orders from various government agencies as they move through the phases of their reopenings. The Task Force is working to be able to provide more specific guidance about this.
Production Health & Safety Guidelines
In the meantime, our highest priority is completing Production Health & Safety Guidelines for the adult industry. We have contracted with an industrial hygienist and are working with industry stakeholders to produce guidelines to reduce risk on-set for a variety of productions, and provide guidance about health screening and COVID-19 testing.
The Task Force has received the first draft of the guidelines from the industrial hygienist and provided initial feedback. Next, we will seek feedback from content buyers, producers, directors, talent, and crew on the second draft to ensure that the guidelines are practical for adult production.
We will publish these guidelines publicly as soon as they are ready. While our guidance can not replace your own legal counsel, we hope to provide protocols that can help lower risk on-set, regardless of where, how, or when you shoot.
Advisory Groups
Since our last update, we invited the nearly 200 people who indicated in our survey that they wanted to be involved with the Task Force to participate in listening sessions. Last week, members of the Task Force joined these performers and crew in a series of group calls that provided us with valuable insights we will incorporate into our decisions and guidance moving forward.
The Task Force has also begun to hold regular calls with large producers and content buyers to discuss how production can safely resume. We are pooling knowledge from different areas of the industry to help create meaningful and effective guidance.
Tomorrow, we are meeting with a panel of medical experts, including representatives from PASS-certified lab networks and experts outside of the industry. Their input will provide important guidance about how to incorporate COVID-19 testing into our Production Health & Safety Guidelines.
Once we have draft guidelines, we will schedule another round of calls with production crews and talent to determine if and how they can be effectively implemented.
Legal Liability
As members of the adult industry discuss when and how to return to production, they will need to evaluate their tolerance for risk. Ultimately, any decision a business makes needs to be based upon the regulatory rules of their jurisdictions, the needs of their specific business, and the advice of their lawyer.
FSC is gathering as much information as possible to assist businesses in making those individual decisions.
Future Updates
Please follow @FSCcrisiscomms on Twitter to remain informed about the activities of the FSC COVID-19 Task Force, as well as any developments regionally and nationally that impact the adult industry.
