‘We will miss you’: Jennifer Aniston is emotionally mourning the ‘sudden’ death of The Morning Show’s camera assistant
- The 53-year-old actress paid tribute to camera assistant Erik Gunnar Mortensen
- Gunnar died Monday at the age of 39 in a motorcycle accident on Highway 74
Jennifer Aniston has paid tribute to Morning Show camera assistant Erik Gunnar Mortensen after he died “suddenly” following a motorcycle accident.
The 53-year-old actress took to her Instagram Stories on Thursday to pay her respects to her late colleague, whom she described as “qualified and dedicated to his job.”
Gunnar died Monday at the age of 39 in a motorcycle accident on California’s Highway 74 under investigation by the California Highway Patrol.
Sadness: Jennifer Aniston (pictured in January 2020) has paid tribute to Morning Show camera assistant Erik Gunnar Mortensen after he died ‘suddenly’ following a motorcycle accident
He was taken to Hemet Global Medical Center after the incident and died about an hour later at 7:47 p.m., according to the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department.
On Thursday, Jennifer shared an emotional tribute to Gunnar on Instagram, whom she described as “one of the bright lights” on the set of The Morning Show, where she stars as Alex Levy.
She wrote: “In the past week we have suddenly and tragically lost Gunnar Mortensen. One of the bright lights on our @themorningshow set.
“As a camera assistant, he was so skilled and dedicated to his work. A page has been set up in Gunnar’s memory to raise funds for his wife Keely and two-year-old son Lars during this difficult time. We will miss you, Gunnar.”
Loss: The 53-year-old actress took to her Instagram Stories on Thursday to pay her respects to her late colleague, who is survived by his wife Keely and son Lars, two
She also shared a link to a GoFundMe page to raise funds for Gunnar’s family, who have already raised $128,805 (£107,800), surpassing their goal of $20,000 (£16,000) in just two days.
The fundraising page was set up by Local 600, which represents camera professionals, and Gunnar was a member of the group for 13 years, according to Variety.
A description on the page read: “Local 600 mourns the loss of Gunnar Mortensen, a camera assistant who died on Monday 4th July as a result of injuries sustained in a motorcycle accident. Gunnar is survived by his wife, Keely, and their two-year-old son, Lars.
“In memory of Gunnar, Local 600 created this GoFundMe page to raise funds for his family during this difficult time. We encourage you to donate if you can.’
Gunnar has reportedly served on the National Executive Board of the International Cinematographer’s Guild (ICG) since 2013 and has been co-chair of the Active Engagement Committee since 2017.
Paying tribute to him, Rebecca Rhine, ICG’s national executive director, told Variety, “Gunnar was happiest when he was sharing stories and pictures of his family. He found the joy and humor in everything and showed us how to follow the guiding light of kindness and laughter.
“He left us way too soon. We will carry his spirit on in his name.”
According to Gunnar’s IMBD page, he has worked as a camera assistant on projects such as Homecoming: A Film by Beyoncé, Lorde’s Green Light music video, Yes Day and Hubie Halloween.
He has worked on a total of 81 different projects since 2007, having discovered his love for filmmaking when he watched a dolly go by on 1992’s Ladybugs. He began his career filming car commercials in Denver before moving to Los Angeles.
Gunnar was also one of the founding members of the Society of Focus Technicians, which is now an internationally recognized group, according to IMDB.
‘We’ll miss you’: Jennifer described Gunnar as ‘one of the bright lights’ on the set of The Morning Show, where she stars as Alex Levy (pictured 2019)
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