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Members of the Amazing Writers Guild of America (WGA) march in a picket line in front of the Netflix offices as SAG-AFTRA announces it has agreed to a ‘last minute request’ by the Motion Picture and Television Producers Alliance for federal mediation, but declines to extend its existing contract again After the negotiation deadline on Wednesday at 11:59 pm, in Los Angeles, California, United States, July 12, 2023.
Mike Blake | Reuters
Hollywood actors are officially heading to the picket line.
Unable to reach an agreement with the producers, members of the Screen Actors Guild – American Federation of Television and Radio Artists will join more than an already staggering 11,000 film and television writers starting at midnight.
Failed negotiations with the Motion Picture and Television Producers Alliance brought film and television productions featuring actors to an immediate halt, essentially shutting down Hollywood. It would be Hollywood’s first tandem strike Since 1960.
The Actors Union had already granted one extension to his contract, which was originally set to expire on July 1, and said he would not relinquish another.
As negotiations approached last month, Hollywood performers were looking to improve wages, working conditions, health benefits and pensions, as well as create sandboxes for the use of AI in future television and film productions.
The Writers Guild of America, which has been on strike since May, is seeking higher compensation and tailings, particularly when it comes to broadcast shows, as well as new rules that require studios to hire TV shows with a certain number of writers. limited period. The syndicate also seeks compensation throughout the pre-production, production, and post-production process. Currently, writers are often expected to submit revisions or draft new material without being paid.
The WGA also shares similar concerns about the use of artificial intelligence when it comes to writing text.
SAG-AFTRA said the producers were not willing to offer its members a fair deal and had delayed negotiations.
In remarks ahead of Thursday’s news conference, Fran Drescher, the union’s president, called AMPTP’s response to the representatives’ proposals “insulting and disrespectful.”
Her comments come as reports surfaced of tactics studio producers are allegedly planning to implement against writers, namely that producers don’t plan to try to negotiate with writers for months. According to reports, producers are expecting writers They will run out of money and possibly lose their homes They are forced to come to the bargaining table.
While AMPTP denied these reports, studio executives have remained vocal about what they consider unreasonable contract requests.
“We have been successful as an industry in negotiating a very good deal with the Directors Guild, which reflects the value that the directors contribute to this great work,” Disney CEO Bob Iger told CNBC Thursday morning, ahead of the SAG-AFTRA announcement. “We wanted to do the same with the writers. And we’d like to do the same with the actors. There’s a level of expectation they have that’s just unrealistic. And they add to the set of challenges that this work already faces and, quite frankly, is very annoying.”
Iger noted that the industry has not fully recovered from the coronavirus pandemic and these blows come at “the worst time in the world.”
“It would have a very, very detrimental effect on the whole business,” he said. “And unfortunately, there’s huge collateral damage to this industry, to people who, you know, support services. I could go on. It’s going to affect the economy of the different regions, even, because of the sheer volume of business. It’s a shame. It’s a shame, really.”
Disclosure: Comcast is the parent company of NBCUniversal and CNBC. NBCUniversal is a member of the Motion Picture and Television Producers Alliance.
This is breaking news. Check back for updates.
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