David Slade is tweeting away again. He sounds in better spirits than he did the last time. He’s again paying homage to the unsung heroes behind the scenes. This time it is J.W. who David refers to as the “King of grips”.

In case you were wondering what exactly it is that a grip does, Wikipedia has a good description. You can easily see why this position is key in any movie, especially a stunt heavy one.

“Grips also satisfy rigging needs on set…More advanced rigs can include working with pulleys, steel cable or trusses. Grips are also called on to rig picture cars on process trailers and placing camera and lights all around the vehicle to achieve driving shots…When shooting interiors day-for-night on location, grips need to cut all the daylight entering onto set. If the scene is “blocked” or staged away from windows or other openings to the outside, the light may be simply blacked out with cloth or plastic sheeting…Grips are also responsible for safety on the set as it relates to the force of gravity. Insofar as stands, ladders, scaffolds, and overhead rigs are properly installed, grips are charged with making them safe because the other crew members will invariably have to climb on, walk around, or otherwise negotiate the different grip set-ups. As regards legal statute, the key grip may even be held liable for injuries that happen on set, especially if the injury is the cause of something falling down onto somebody…”

Other David tweets include:

“Forrest again today, tomorrow we do wolf shots, saw some great wolf tests today, early stages developed from New Moon wolves.”

and

“Worked w/entire Cullen family today. @peterfacinelli borrowed my camera, took my picture being strangled by Jackson, will upload later…”