Hospital shot. . . faking a flatliner. . .

[Stephen Pruitt]

Hi all. . .

We need to shoot a scene with a dying man in a hospital room, and I'm curious as to how you all have managed to get a flatline response out of the heart/breathing monitors without resorting to CGI.

Is this possible?

Thanks.

Stephen

 

[Jack Cooper]

I think you just don't attach the lead...? It is reading a pulse...if it's not connected - then there is nothing to monitor...I think the machine will continue the audible tone for some time. I think it may have an override to turn it off when the responders arrive to the patient's room/area...?

 

[Matt W.]

If it's not plugged into anything it will flatline naturally. A friend had to fix this in a feature he directed in which he wanted the character to have a pulse but wasn't actually monitoring the actress's...he downloaded some stock footage of a heart rate monitor and did a corner pin track and the shot took a few minutes, I think. Even if you miss it, it's like a $20 shot to fix in post.

 

[Yean Loon]

Exactly, once the lead is not attached to the finger, the monitor flatlines automatically. I just recce an operating theatre yesterday and we tried it out.

 

[Christian Felder]

Had the issue here. they came up with a doll where you could simulate every situation possible.

 

[Juhan Malmstein]

Just attach the real lead to an assistant who will take it off his finger when you need the monitor to flatline, and rig the actor with dummy sensors. Alternatively you could just splice a switch to the wire so anybody out of the shot can sever the connection and make the signal flatline.

 

[Christian Felder]

...just taking of doesn't work with high tech machines. They recognize when you "just unlead" them.

 

[Stephen Pruitt]

Thanks guys. . .

I'll give these. . . wait for it. . . a shot.



Stephen

 

[Mark Phelan]

Hi all. . .

We need to shoot a scene with a dying man in a hospital room, and I'm curious as to how you all have managed to get a flatline response out of the heart/breathing monitors without resorting to CGI.

Is this possible?

Thanks.

Stephen

Well there is the obvious method, but that might get you into hot water.