It was yet another script for a training video that I had just completed. It was titled the easy guide to Occupational Health and Safety in the workplace.

Reasonably happy with myself, I submitted it to each of the people in our office for comment and feedback.

Although very happy with the content itself, the consensus of opinion flooding back to me on my treatment hovered between “boring” and “2 out of 10”.

I have to confess to being a little bit miffed. After all, I was merely following the path of many training videos that had come before me, and, I dare say yet to appear in the market place. The treatment I proposed was having a presenter presenting the facts with some supporting vision and graphics when possible.

It was time for …. “a meeting!”

With the team sitting around the table, I threw out the challenge … “find me a better treatment”.

Although the entire team was present, the question was really only aimed at one person. I watched Rory (our cameraman slash editor) out the corner of my eye and observed as his eyes glazed over and focussed upwards.

Moments later, he cut the silence in the room with the words “Uhmm I think I have an idea but I think it might be a bit silly?”

Success? I pondered to myself … “perhaps not quite .. after all what was his idea?”

Unassuredly, Rory posed the question “We could look at OHS through the Grim Reaper’s eyes.  How OHS is costing him customers and what he would do about it.”

I loved it and so did everyone else at the meeting.  So much so I let Rory not only take my script and “reaperise” it but also shoot and direct the video.

The result …  Fantastic!

The Grim Reaper’s guide to OHS has been one of our most successful titles in the past few years, all out of a not so silly idea.

Below is a 4 minute scene from A Reaper’s Guide to OHS.

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