Greetings from the Burgh, where we are closely monitoring from bed the picket lines that are supposed to start today at major studios in LA and NYC.
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Writers Guild & Alliance of Motion Picture & Television Producers Far Apart.
Today, at 3 PM, picket lines at Hollywood & TV studios are going up in LA & NYC. The union and the Alliance of Motion Picture & Television Producers (AMPTP) say they are still very far apart. (See a complete list of picket lines here)
Some predict that the Writers Guild strike could last for some time as they are both far apart.
The Writers’ Guild insists that the minimum number of writers on a TV show be boosted from 6 to 12. They also demand more money from residuals from TV shows but so far have been stonewalled by management in their push for more residuals.
Finally, the Guild wants to see regulations for using artificial intelligence to write scripts, a proposal that management flatly rejected.
The Guild says that until their demands are met that its 9,000 writers are willing to stay out on strike for as long as it takes.
“Here is what all writers know: the companies have broken this business,” the Guild leadership told members Monday night. “They have taken so much from the very people, the writers, who have made them wealthy. But what they cannot take from us is each other, our solidarity, our mutual commitment to save ourselves and this profession that we love. We had hoped to do this through reasonable conversation. Now we will do it through struggle”.
All Major Late Night TV Show Will Stop Airing Immediately
Out of respect for their union contracts, all major late-night talk shows will stop airing immediately because of the strike. These shows include “The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon,” “The Late Show with Stephen Colbert,” “Jimmy Kimmel Live,” “Late Night with Seth Meyers,” and “The Daily Show.”
“No one is entitled to a job in show business. But for those people who have a job, they are entitled to fair compensation. They are entitled to make a living,” Seth Meyers said in a statement. “I think it’s a very reasonable demand that’s being set out by the Guild. And I support those demands.”
Most TV Showrunners Won’t Promote New Shows During Strike Either
Most TV showrunners are also refusing to promote new shows because of the strike.
Filmmaker Boots Riley has a new show coming out on Amazon called “I Am a Virgo.” He’s been touring festivals and released sneak peeks of the show. However, with the strike, Boots says he will only promote the show once the strike is over.
“Still hope ppl see the show, but I wont put in work for it during the strike,” said Riley on Twitter. “These kinds of choices are what much of my work for decades, including this show, is about. More importantly, its these kinds of moves that win strikes”.
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With over 9,000 Film and TV writers out on strike in one of the largest Hollywood strikes in a generation, Payday hopes to cover the story.
However, we need your help paying bills and groceries so that I can focus on writing rather than fundraising.
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International Solidarity Key to Maintaining the Strike
Finally, some studios and streaming services may try to bust the strike by running programs from overseas studios that are not covered by the Writers Guild contract. However, several international unions have signaled that they would honor the picket line of their American counterparts.
“We express our solidarity with colleagues at the WGA, because their struggles are ours too,” Giorgio Glaviano, President of the Writers Guild of Italy, said in a statement. “All over the world, the figure of the screenwriter is threatened by ever tighter wages and increasingly vexatious working conditions.”
For more on international solidarity packing the strike, check out Deadline.
Alright, folks, we will have more updates later.
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See yinz,
Melk
