Writer's strike & Union opinions

B

BRODEY1

New member
I know very little about the inner workings of Unions and how they weild power. Given the current writer's strike, I was "struck" with a thought (pun intended). Is there not a group of "2nd tier" writers, stand-up comics, protege's, young-fresh talent, etc. that could take advantage of this situation? Especially given that Hollywood is a cut-throat town by its nature.

Look at how many people have shows on-line via pod-cast (Tom Green), or movies basically made by college kids (Napoleon Dynamite), and TV shows made on the cheap by a group of actors (It's always Sunny in Philadelphia). I know that these are the exception and not the rule, but if MY studio is shut down and not making $$$, I think I would be very open to any new ideas from unknown talent.

I noticed that Jay Leno (car guy, yea) and Ellen Degeneres are both in support of the writer's.....are they postering, or will they benefit themselves down the road.

just wondering, Blain
 
I didn't even know there was a writer's strike. I guess that goes to show how much "power" they have...



I have a feeling that no one really cares - so too bad for the writer's union!
 
Being a "scab" and crossing a picket line can be a dangerous thing. I have been on both sides, having been a member of several unions. IMO, unions were a necessary entity way back, for a while became superfluous, and now, with corporate executives making dozens or hundreds of millions of dollars, I can't think of a better reason for the people doing the "work" on these shows to want to secure a small portion of the fortune that the studio executives are raking in. Unions came about almost a hundred years ago because of the greed of owners, today's corporate greed is no different and no less in need of being checked.
 
The risk in crossing the picket line is that you will be blackballed when the strike is over - e.g. writers union members will refuse to work with you, and your career will be essentially over.
 
I couldn't care less about either side in this issue. It is TV for goodness sake, is there anything on these days that is really worth watching? To me TV is just something you do when you are bored and there isn't anything else to do. I wouldn't really miss it if it were gone tomorrow...
 
azenthusiast said:
They make too much already. When they get a real job, then they can gripe about their pay.
Click to expand...



They're asking for 2.5% of the profits from new media...so let's see, the actors get 50%, the studio execs get 30%, 10% gets recycled into new development, the stockholders get 7.5%, and the writers are clamoring for that last 2.5% that the execs are going to take...that sounds like a legitimate gripe to me.



I would consider myself anti-union, but for an example, when Seinfeld released his series on DVD, the other actors on the show were going to get ZERO from it, so they refused to participate in the bonus features included on the DVD's. Is that in any way fair, that they get nothing from the 10's of millions of dollars of revenue from those DVD sales (they negotiated a piece in return for helping with the bonus features). On the other hand you could argue those actors got paid handsomely at the time they were making the shows, and shouldn't be entitled to any more.



These kind of intellectual property discussions are fundamentally different than the situation say, with a car company, where the product made is sold, and that is the only time that the car company makes money on the car (directly, I'm not going to veer off into extended warranties, etc.). With a TV show, it is made once and generates revenues for years or even decades thru reruns, syndication, DVD sales, etc.
 
That last season of Seinfeld those actors all got paid incredibly well per episode. I can't remember the numbers but it was significant and I remember thinking wait is that for the season? It wasn't it was per episode. The dollar amounts on a hit show are just off the charts! I don't blame these guys for trying to get some more of the cut.



Just don't mess with my show HEROES !!! lol :D
 
Yal said:
Just don't mess with my show HEROES !!! lol :D
Click to expand...



Too late. A Heroes spin-off called "Heroes: Origins" was shelved just from the threat of the strike, and last I heard, the series will have a shortened season, probably ending in early December. I read something about last night's ep being the start of a five-episode story arc; my guess is they'll finish those episodes, then go on hiatus until the strike is resolved.



:(



Tort
 
paul34 said:
I didn't even know there was a writer's strike. I guess that goes to show how much "power" they have...



I have a feeling that no one really cares - so too bad for the writer's union!
Click to expand...



They have enough power to basically stop most of what you see on TV. This means more crap reality shows and repeats. It also means that those big studios will stop raking in the money that their hit shows bring in. From what I've heard/read they're not asking for much.
 
TortoiseAWD said:
Too late. A Heroes spin-off called "Heroes: Origins" was shelved just from the threat of the strike, and last I heard, the series will have a shortened season, probably ending in early December. I read something about last night's ep being the start of a five-episode story arc; my guess is they'll finish those episodes, then go on hiatus until the strike is resolved.



:(



Tort
Click to expand...





Darn! I hope they settle before it comes to that.

:(

Could do without another season of American Idol though :D
 
Setec Astronomy said:
I would consider myself anti-union, but for an example, when Seinfeld released his series on DVD, the other actors on the show were going to get ZERO from it, so they refused to participate in the bonus features included on the DVD's. Is that in any way fair, that they get nothing from the 10's of millions of dollars of revenue from those DVD sales (they negotiated a piece in return for helping with the bonus features). On the other hand you could argue those actors got paid handsomely at the time they were making the shows, and shouldn't be entitled to any more.
Click to expand...



As said earlier, unions had their place in time but bad management and union labor leads to trouble: GM, Ford, etc. With a global economy, you are competing with people in other countries and long term you will lose. I believe in the right to work laws found in many states (like the south where many mfg jobs are going) since you do not have to join a union to work. The funny thing it is not like they are not well paid they just want a bigger piece of action so it is all about greed.
 
SpoiledMan said:
They have enough power to basically stop most of what you see on TV. This means more crap reality shows and repeats. It also means that those big studios will stop raking in the money that their hit shows bring in. From what I've heard/read they're not asking for much.
Click to expand...



South Park and sports will still be on so the writers can stay out on strike as long as they want.
 
There is an article up all over the web where they interview Eisner and a few others and they all say the same thing. That Steve Jobs is high on the list to blame for this, because of the outrageous cost demands that are put on studios right now to be able to be a part of Itunes.
 
Scottwax said:
South Park and sports will still be on so the writers can stay out on strike as long as they want.
Click to expand...



Now that Basketball is on I don't care either. I was just answering the worthless statement.



These guys aren't greedy nor rich in most cases. These are working guys that are the big part of what makes these shows happen. When their work gets resold they should be compensated IMO.
 
joshtpa said:
There is an article up all over the web where they interview Eisner and a few others and they all say the same thing. That Steve Jobs is high on the list to blame for this, because of the outrageous cost demands that are put on studios right now to be able to be a part of Itunes.
Click to expand...



This is as much Steve Jobs fault as it is mine or yours. They could simply tell him that they're not selling him anything or they can split the profits.
 
Rich is a relative term. And in most cases, they KNOW UP FRONT, that when shows go into syndication after 5 years or so (100 episodes or so), they do not get compensated. I agree that something should be done, but this is no different than anyone in sports HOLDING OUT. Most fans get pissed and say "you have a contract"...This is no different.
 
SpoiledMan said:
They have enough power to basically stop most of what you see on TV. This means more crap reality shows
Click to expand...



Possibly one of the most terrifying statements I've heard in many months. Let us all hope this does not happen, for the sake of our children and grandchildren.
 
Setec Astronomy said:
Being a "scab" and crossing a picket line can be a dangerous thing. I have been on both sides, having been a member of several unions. IMO, unions were a necessary entity way back, for a while became superfluous, and now, with corporate executives making dozens or hundreds of millions of dollars, I can't think of a better reason for the people doing the "work" on these shows to want to secure a small portion of the fortune that the studio executives are raking in. Unions came about almost a hundred years ago because of the greed of owners, today's corporate greed is no different and no less in need of being checked.
Click to expand...



Exactly.



The writer's strike really hasn't impacted me, since I hardly watch sitcoms or any series really -- more Discovery, PBS, History Channels, Sports, etc. I do agree with them that they should get a cut of the 'new media' action though.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top