The Society of Camera Operators or SOC is a union that helps and supports camera operators through out the whole film and TV industry. The mission of SOC is to “advance the art, craft, and creative contributions of the camera operator.” (mission) SOC fulfills its mission by holding workshops and award ceremonies to help and acknowledge camera ops. SOC is a fairly recent union, only being formed in 1979. Since then they have greatly advanced camera operators’ role in the industry. SOC also hosts yearly lifetime achievement award ceremonies where it acknowledges many camera operators who have advanced the industry. Joining the SOC requires a simple application and proof of continued work in the industry. SOC has a short but rich history and strives…show more content… This small group of camera ops wanted to give camera ops in the film and television industry more rights and recognition. (timeline) This group of men created a constitution and bylaws that were required to join. The constitution and bylaws gave strict instructions for membership and requirements for the members once inducted. They also included rules about voting for their awards ceremonies. It stated that they would camera operators, camera assistants, and directors of photography into their union. From the constitution, their motto, “We See It First” was created. This is still their motto today. (history) When SOC was first created it was called Society of Operating Camera Men. The year 1981 was marked by several important events for SOC. The first was they became an official California non profit group. The second is, they had their first SOC Lifetime Achievement Awards. The first winner of the lifetime achievement award was George Hurrell. In 1991, SOC published its first magazine. (timeline) It was published twice a year and was called, Operating Cameramen Magazine. In 2007 this magazine was renamed, Camera Operator Magazine. This magazine gives members information about what some of their fellow…show more content… This is usually held in early February of each year. It honors many different people each year in a variety of categories. Since its start in 1981, it has given out over 100 Cammy Awards and over 30 Technical Achievement Awards. The biggest award that it gives out is the Camera Operator Lifetime Achievement Award. It also gives out Camera Operator of the Year Award for both TV and film. Another one of its biggest awards is the Governors Lifetime Achievement Award. This has been given to Clint Eastwood and Steven Spielberg. These are just a few of the ten plus awards that are given out each year. (Awards) At their awards night, all proceeds go to the The Vision Center at Children’s Hospital Los Angeles. This is the main charity that SOC donates to. The vision center diagnoses more than 15,000 patients each year and performs more than 1,500 surgeries each year. It chose The Vision Center as their charity in 1983, and has supported and donated a substantial amount of money to this charity. The SOC chose this charity based on a story by Bob Marta’s wife about Dr. Murphrees work in soft contact lenses to help young infants see. Marta was was one of the first president of SOC. The union was so moved by this story because they saw the importance of sight in their field of work. Gil Haimson states, “After visiting Dr. Murphree’s clinic, we knew that this is where our motivating
