OUR Hollywood writers strikewhich in recent days has provoked protests and “slowed down” television and film production, could only be the beginning of a months-long confrontation.

Writers Guild of America (The Writers Guild of America) and the media pulled out of negotiations hours before Monday’s deadline to reach an agreement and sign the contract.

However, negotiations stalled earlier that day when it became clear that the union and the TV and film studios were at odds on key issues and that neither side was willing to “close the gap,” according to interviews and documents. .

As of Wednesday evening, there were no plans to resume talks. Instead, company executives began working on contingency plans while screenwriters in Los Angeles and New York staged protests.

On Monday evening, the Writers Guild of America released a detailed report summarizing union proposals and studio counteroffers.

The union is demanding $429 million in annual improvements, while the studios are offering an $86 million increase. Of the union’s 21 proposals, the Film and Television Producers Guild, which represents the major media and streaming platforms, agreed to only six.

Regarding the length of the strike, the union’s chief negotiator, Ellen Stutzman, told the Los Angeles Times that it would last “as long as it takes until both sides come to a fair agreement.” Screenwriters will be on the streets until companies help save their profession.”

The situation is being watched closely by Wall Street, politicians and others in the entertainment industry, who fear that a prolonged shutdown could cause collateral damage. Recall that the last strike took place in 2007 and lasted 100 days.

But what are the reasons why this strike will not end soon?

Writer’s room

The association wanted to keep the system in place before streaming platforms “rewrote the script”.

Ten years ago, a screenwriter pitched his idea for a project, and then the network ordered a pilot.

If the responsible people gave the green light to this project, then the writers’ room would open – teams working together to create stories and write TV episodes.

Typically, about 10 writers worked for 10 months to write 22 episodes for a season of shows like The Big Bang Theory or Law & Order: SVU on NBC.

But in recent years, we have seen the emergence of “little rooms” created by streaming services that require fewer writers because their series cycles are shorter: 8-10 episodes each.

This means that fewer and fewer screenwriters are hired and work for short periods of time.

Minimal salary

The minimum wage is a big issue for screenwriters. According to a recent union report, half of TV series writers were earning minimum wage. Resident editors receive $4,154 per week if they stay on a project for more than 40 weeks.

Threatening flow

One of the problems that streaming platforms have caused, in addition to competition due to the sheer volume of content, is the fact that companies such as Netflix, Disney+, and Apple do not disclose viewership data, leaving producers and writers unsure of progress. your content. shows their project.

The Union proposed an update, but it is not certain that it will happen in the near future.

Artificial intelligence

Writers fear that they will be replaced by artificial intelligence. The association called for restrictions on its use in both film and television projects to prevent AI from writing entire scripts.

The studios offer “an annual meeting to discuss advances in technology.”

Letter

Scripting movies may seem like a big deal, but that’s not the case in the era of streaming. Screenwriters are paid based on the milestones of their work, with some claiming that companies no longer pay them for the first two milestones they used to pay after signing a contract.

The studios offered to increase the part of the writers’ remuneration, but rejected offers of weekly pay.

comedy writers

Comedy performers on streaming services don’t get paid the same amount of money as network performers. For example, the cast of The Amber Ruffin Show is paid much less than the cast of NBC’s Late Night with Seth Meyers.

The Union is trying to change this condition.

According to the Los Angeles Times