Life is a cruel son of a bitch sometimes. This unfair world takes people well before they are supposed to go and we are left lingering in the aftermath wondering why such a thing had to happen.  Before her death became a hot news item these past few weeks, I am sure NO ONE knew who Sarah Jones was.  I didn’t and now look back at her life as if I should have paid more attention.  Last month, Jones was killed while working as a camera assistant on Gregg Allman’s biopic Midnight Rider. The crew was setting up a shot on a train track thinking there weren’t any scheduled locomotives coming through the area during that time. When a train suddenly came down the tracks, most of the crew didn’t have time to react. Jones was struck and killed. She was 27 years old.

Since her death, the film community has came together and tried to raise awareness about the safety hazards for crew members who work on a movie set while getting Jones’ name out there. A group of people have contacted the Oscars to include Jones’ name in the segment “In Memoriam”. There is a facebook page called “Slates For Sarah” that has also gained steam the past week. It’s a proper name since crew members like Jones held the slate at the beginning of each take.  Sitting at 62,000 likes and basically including photos, kind words and different things from people around the business who either worked with or knew the woman. I think it is an important stand to take for Hollywood.  Why are hard working people like Jones never talked about or given the proper respect? They are a huge part of a film’s production and add the tiny details on a set that often go unnoticed.

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