California screenwriters continue strike costing Hollywood millions of dollars

2023-06-30 22:45:16, Kosova & Bota CNA

A Hollywood writers' strike has been going on for two months, essentially halting the production of television scripts and costing California millions of dollars in losses every day. VOA correspondent Angelina Bagdasaryan brings more details.

Since the beginning of May, screenwriters in Hollywood have been outside movie studios every day, from 10 am to 2 pm, with signs in hand demanding better wages.

Hollywood screenwriter Stuart Beattie, who wrote the screenplays for Pirates of the Caribbean and I, Frankenstein, says his life has changed direction - instead of writing screenplays, he's now busy protesting every day, fighting for his rights.

"None of us wanted to be here. We all wanted to tell stories. But we have been forced to come out here in protest."

Screenwriter Beattie goes on strike with his son - a future screenwriter too. During the last series of strikes in 2007, the two also went together.

"In 2007, I had my son with me; he was much smaller then. It's a lot bigger now, so that's the difference. But in 2007 I had to explain to people why we were protesting - people didn't understand, some were even angry at us for protesting."

According to the Milken Institute, the 2007 strike cost California approximately $2 billion. According to the Writers Guild, this strike is now costing California and Hollywood an estimated $30 million a day in lost revenue.

California's small businesses are suffering, too. Milt & Edie dry cleaners are also in a difficult position. Before the strike, CEO Robert Shapiro says many major studios were coming in to take care of their costumes.

“We've definitely seen a decline in our business, mainly because a lot of shows have stopped filming, and as a result we're seeing a lot less designers and clients coming in.

Restaurants and makeup artists are also losing money, as are hairdressers, florists, decorators and electricians.

At the moment, there is no indication of how long the strike may last. No talks between studios and writers are scheduled, and there's a chance members of the Screen Actors Guild will also go on strike. Their contract expires on Friday./ VOA