While screenwriters and film studios begin negotiations on the terms of new contracts, Hollywood preparation for days of 2007When strike the writers were paralyzed for 100 days.

11,500 members Writers Guild of America RGV) seek to revise the methods that define them their royalties in the era of streaming – including how copyrights are valued and transferred – as negotiations begin with AMPTP, an association of motion picture and television producers (representing over 350 production companies). A valid contract between two parties expires May 1.

“Screenwriters were underestimated for a while, but the transition to the streaming model made the situation desperate. The industry is broken, writers can’t make a living,” says Chris Keizer, screenwriter and member of the WGA negotiating committee.

The launch of Neftlix and other similar platforms led to a huge increase in the number of new producers, but not to a salary increase for most screenwriters, who ended up earning less. streaming era.

“It’s like seeing a bunch of Ubers on the street and thinking now is the time to be a taxi driver,” notes the Los Angeles lawyer, adding: “Working as a screenwriter is much more difficult than it used to be. Salary level, attitude and expectations – everything fundamentally different compared to what it was before.”

Under the traditional model of broadcast television in America, the writers produced about 22 scripts per season and received royalties if the show was successful. However, streaming series are much shorter, often as short as 8-10 episodes, greatly limiting the writers’ profits.

According to an industry lawyer, the studios have also reduced the number of writers for series, leading to the emergence of so-called “mini-rooms” – small teams that “write scripts in less time with fewer writers.”

The fee negotiations, which are repeated every three years, come at a difficult time for studios. Having invested billions in their own streaming platforms, Disney, Warner Bros., Paramount and NBCUniversal are under pressure from Wall Street to cut costs and make services profitable.

In addition, Hollywood studios have to contend with declining revenues from traditional television, as well as competition from Apple and Amazonwhose streaming services are backed by their profitable parent companies.

It is noted that the 2007 strike, which began on November 5, 2007, the year of the premiere of Netflix, and ended on February 12, 2008, cost the state of California more than $ 2 billion.

Source: Financial Times.