Why are Hollywood screenwriters on strike and how will its effect be felt on television screens?

2023-05-02 22:48:40, Kosova & Bota CNA

Why are Hollywood screenwriters on strike and how will its effect be felt on

LOS ANGELES - Screenwriters for movies and TV shows are now on strike. The strike begins Tuesday after the Writers Guild of America and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, which represent studios and broadcast services, failed to reach an agreement. Late night shows will be the first to feel the effects. The central issue in the negotiations is the share of writers' salaries for shows that air on Netflix and similar media. The Alliance of Film and Television Producers says it has offered significant pay increases to screenwriters, but that they are in high demand. It's the first strike by writers - and the first in Hollywood in 15 years.

WHY ARE SCREENWRITERS ON STRIKE?

The scope of the transmissions and its effects are at the heart of the dispute. The association says that even though the budgets of the series have increased, the share of the income given to the screenwriters has decreased continuously.

The use of a small number of staff for streaming over the Internet has made sustainable income more difficult to achieve, the association says. And the number of copywriters working minimum hours has gone from about a third to about half in the last decade. Writers of comedy-variety shows have no minimum protection at all, the association said in a March report.

"On TV staffs, more writers are working minimally, regardless of experience, often for fewer weeks."

The lack of a regular seasonal calendar in broadcasting has further reduced the salary, the report says. And the planned annual salary increases under the current contract have been far behind inflationary increases.

According to industry trade outlet Variety, the weekly minimum for a writer on a TV series in the 2019-2020 season was $4,546. They work an average of 29 weeks on a show for $131,834 a year, or an average of 20 weeks for $90,920. For a screenwriter-producer, the figure is $6,967 per week.

The Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, which represents Hollywood studios, broadcasters and production companies, says its priority is the "long-term health and stability of the industry" and that it is committed to reaching "a fair and equitable settlement." reasonable".

Why are Hollywood screenwriters on strike and how will its effect be felt on

HOW DID IT GET HERE?

After several months of negotiations, mainly over the pay of the show's writers, there is still considerable disagreement between the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers and the screenwriters.

The current contract expired on Monday. By that point, the screenwriters, who voted overwhelmingly to authorize their managers to call a strike, had already begun making their demands for strikes.

The Alliance of Film and Television Producers (AMPTP) said on Monday night that it had offered "generous increases in writers' compensation, and would have improved its offer, but could not due to numerous requests from writers".

WHICH SHOWS WILL BE AFFECTED FIRST?

Late-night shows, heavily reliant on comedy scripts based on current events of the same day, will be the first to feel the effect of a strike. Plays have been the de facto front line during previous writers' strikes. Shows like NBC's The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon and Jimmy Kimmel Live! are scheduled to air new episodes this week. They haven't announced their plans yet, but they're likely moving on to reruns now.

"Saturday Night Live" has a slightly longer production timeline, but is even more dependent on its writers. A strike would derail the final three episodes of this season, starting with Saturday's show with host Pete Davidson.

The status of late-night shows, which rely more on daytime talk and interviews, would be less certain.

HOW WILL THE STRIKE AFFECT SERIAL FILMS?

The impact of the strike on serial films will be seen much later. Even daily serials generally have script prepared months in advance. Visible effects for the calendar of films shown may take even longer to be felt.

Production on already-prepared films can continue as planned (albeit without the possibility of last-minute rewrites), and always assuming that film crews whose unions nearly went on strike recently, as and the actors, whose group contract with AMPTP expires on June 30, will have the will to continue working.

Conscious of this looming deadline, efforts were made to wrap up film production as early as possible. FilmLA, the organization that issues permits for filming locations in the Los Angeles area, says no filming requests have been made this week.

Many moviegoers and moviegoers may not begin to feel the effects of the strike for some time after it is over. The list of movies on Netflix and Amazon Prime Video will not have changed much in the past week, but because this will be the first strike of screenwriters in the era of online movies, there is no telling how the situation may be going forward.

During the previous strike, when cable and broadcast networks with well-defined agendas and seasons dominated the screen, many series, such as "30 Rock," "CSI," and "Grey's Anatomy," shortened their seasons.

Teletext shows without prepared text gained ground in that period. "Big Brother" and "The Amazing Race" increased their presence. The Apprentice, directed by Donald Trump, received new energy when a version with popular personalities was created to fill the void created.

Why are Hollywood screenwriters on strike and how will its effect be felt on

WHAT HAPPENS NOW WITH THE AUTHORS OF THE TEXTS?

A complete stoppage of work would mean huge economic losses for screenwriters, although many say it's worth fighting against the gradual decline in income.

The strike rules prohibit members from reaching new agreements or presenting new texts. They are allowed to accept income from texts that have already been prepared.

WHAT HAPPENED DURING PREVIOUS SCREENWRITERS' STRIKES?

Screenwriters have gone on strike six times, more than any other group in Hollywood.

The first strike took place in 1960, when the union of text authors did not work for almost five months. Other strikes occurred in 1973, 1981, and 1985. The longest work stoppage occurred in 1988.

The 2007-2008 strike was resolved after three months. Among the major concessions that screenwriters won was the obligation that web shows would have to hire screenwriters if they had a certain budget level. This served as a prelude to all the strikes in the entertainment industry that followed in the following years./ VOA