Writer's Strike....

[Michael Corleone]

How long is this writers Strike going to go on for ?

The last one several years ago lasted for 22 weeks.

 

[The Caped Knight]

The last one several years ago lasted for 22 weeks.

So does that mean

24 is delyed in january ?

No new episode of Heroes, House, Bones, Prison Break , Lost , Stargate Atlantis , Battlestar Galatica etc ?

 

[Zing79]

I'm not sure, but I think if SV and SN wanted to keep going they could. They shoot in Canada. WGA has no power up here as a union (again -- I think).

They could just hire Canadian writers to script the show and call it a day.

 

[Michael Corleone]

So does that mean

24 is delyed in january ?

No new episode of Heroes, House, Bones, Prison Break , Lost , Stargate Atlantis , Battlestar Galatica etc ?

It depends on how many scripts have been written for those shows. They can film up to what they have. If it's already on paper they can film it. Heroes and smallville for example may have to stop because the entire season isn't written out. Also I've read that they may delay the debut of shows like 24 and Lost. Now I don't know why exactly but I've also heard that other unions may follow suit to support the WGA. Now don't take my word for that, because it's just been WGA member talk on various blogs and such. But I've heard everything from SAG jumping in with their support to the Teamsters joining as well. This is all quite complicated right now.

By the way, it's official the strike started at 12:01 est

 

[triplet]

What's that mean? LOL Wouldn't they just reshoot the scene if the actor goofs? I don't understand.

Say an actor flubs a line so bad he fails to setup something for later and the director doesn't have time to reshoot. There's no one to write the changed looped dialogue...

They do that all the time. Someone's off camera, or facing away from the camera, and says something that sounds like its been looped (added in post), very often it can be an important line.

So how would the WGA know the difference? I mean, lets say they're shooting a scene, and actor John Smith realizes that his character Frank Jones says something that just doesn't work in context with the scene being shot. What's the difference between Smith ad-libbing a change or addition to Frank's dialog and the director saying, "hey John, have Frank say this instead?"

They'll know because the WGA has been given copies of all completed work. It's in the strike rules. The members must deliver copies of work they've done for hire (TV scripts are works for hire) or sold or optioned to the WGA.

If scripts are out at producers or agents (you know, haven't been paid for), they must write and ask for the copies of their work back. There's a form on the WGA site that dictates what the letter must say.

I wonder about this as well. DeKnight wrote that story. He took the blame for it being bad. How did the network exacerbate something that started out bad?

From what DeKnight said in his blog, they'd originally intended to do something entirely different than what ended up happening. He might have written it but he implied that the network notes were quite extreme and basically helped form what we saw, although he didn't give details.

And even though a certain writer's name might be on the script, they must make whatever changes the network dictates in their notes even if it doesn't always make sense. He's grumbled about that a time or two as well in his blog.

Are you talking about doing pick-ups or just cutting the episode differently than how the script flowed? For example, the content wouldn't change but the order of scenes would? The latter is done quite a bit. Once the stock hits editing, I didn't think the writers had anything more to do with it?

No, I'm talking about before it gets shot. Say, the budget's tight and need to cut scene X because it has, say, Lex as Zod blowing up a bunch of cars and invading the Pentagon and they can't afford it.

Well, if you cut scene X, then Y and Z won't make as much sense because scene X had one piece of important expository dialogue in it...

There's no writer to insert that vital dialogue into later scenes...

^^^ Same questions I've been asking myself. How the heck is the Writers Union (or whatever it wants to call itself) know when something is going to be changed? I mean cant a Director change the line of a scene if he thinks it sucks and how will the Writers Union determine if it was deliberate or not.

I think if a line is cut in post, that's different, or if an actor ad libs a line or flubs it, but because the WGA will have copies of all the scripts, they'll know if it's different than what the writer delivered.

That reminds me of the Ridley and Tony Scott SAG debacle:
http://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9F02EFDE133AF933A15756C0A9669C8B63

It also begs the question... what's to stop Hollywood studios from hiring scabs? Crossing a picket line seems rather easy if you never have to leave your house; writers could just e-mail their work, no?

Any writers that do scab work that are members of the WGA already could get expelled for life. Any writers not a member will get barred from ever joining... I talked about that up in a previous post.

The members likely won't break the strike themselves because they all appear to believe in it. If they're anything like Gough, they'll stay strong and won't write a word.

Any non-members would risk never being able to join the guild if they got found out. It might be a risk some might take...

So does that mean

24 is delyed in january ?

No new episode of Heroes, House, Bones, Prison Break , Lost , Stargate Atlantis , Battlestar Galatica etc ?

According to the list on the LA Times website, 24 will only have only about 8 episodes completed, same with Lost.

No word on Heroes on that page...

http://www.latimes.com/business/la-striketvgrid-html,0,7606966.htmlstory?coll=la-home-center

I'm not sure, but I think if SV and SN wanted to keep going they could. They shoot in Canada. WGA has no power up here as a union (again -- I think).

They could just hire Canadian writers to script the show and call it a day.

I'm not sure about that... WGA might be an American union and the show might shoot in Canada but the is produced by a struck American company and the writers and producers all live and work in LA....

 

[OobeDoobBenubi]

The Heroes Season Finale will be on December 3rd.

http://digg.com/television/Confirmed_Heroes_Season_2_To_End_Officially_on_December_03

I hope it does not take to long for us to find out what happens to Smallville & the other shows.

 

[Gold Samurai]

I hope it does not take to long for us to find out what happens to Smallville & the other shows.

they'll most likely use their mid season cliffhanger as the season finale. I believe episode 16 is their cliffhanger.

 

[jr24tw]

Honestly in the case of Heroes I think it's a good thing. And even though they probably have way more written (judging by how early in the summer they started) they might be cutting it short due to the bad ratings compared to last year.

And to be really honest I'm relieved too. Heroes is so lacking this Season. I find myself falling asleep during almost every episode. Most of it was boring as hell for me. Maybe they will have their mojo back after the strike.

 

[The Caped Knight]

Honestly in the case of Heroes I think it's a good thing. And even though they probably have way more written (judging by how early in the summer they started) they might be cutting it short due to the bad ratings compared to last year.

And to be really honest I'm relieved too. Heroes is so lacking this Season. I find myself falling asleep during almost every episode. Most of it was boring as hell for me. Maybe they will have their mojo back after the strike.

Only three storylines are the problem

1. Hiro in Japan

2. Clarie & West

3. Peter's amnesia being streched out too long . (While his Brother, Mother, Clarie & his friends still think he's dead .)

 

[jr24tw]

Only three storylines are the problem

1. Hiro in Japan

2. Clarie & West

3. Peter's amnesia being streched out too long . (While his Brother, Mother, Clarie & his friends still think he's dead .)

Which was the main focus of the first 3 episodes. And I was so tired of it after the Season Premiere already.

Also the twins need to be killed off. The first 3 episodes we saw then do the same thing and they never got anywhere. They run. Maja cries, people die. Her brother reverses it. Really I got it after the first time aready. Once would have been plenty enough. Show them next when they are in the U.S.. But they had to cross paths with Sylar to make them semi interesting. Which it doesn't. Cause Sylar is so needless too. The guy is freaking powerless.

Don't have much love left for Matt either. He whines about being a nobody all the time. Then when he thinks he is important because of his father being in a photo he pushes Molly to something that put her in her current state. And then he cries like a baby because he did that. Geez.

 

[Syncos]

Syncos, just ignore him. It's easier that way.

Easier, yah. But where's the fun in that?

Um...the hypocrisy is that she calls her "Superbrat."

Isn't name-calling something a brat generally tends to do? And isn't a brat generally immature? And last I saw, name-calling was immature.

I'm not complaining about complaining, I'm complaining about hypocrisy. If you're going to tear down a character, don't attack them for qualities which you personally have.

No, sir. Ironic, maybe. But that situation is certainly not hypocritical.

For the moment i'll entertain your point (opinion), that Pat is indeed acting childish. Calling someone childish, even when being childish yourself, is not hypocritical. It most certainly -is- ironic, but not hypocritical.

If Patty were to flip flop her opinion, something like "I absolutely hate Supergirl, she's useless, and has no reason to be on the show" and then in the same, or consecutive posts said something like "Kara was great in episode ___", that would be hypocritical.

Incidentally, I don't believe calling someone a 'brat' is generally something a 'brat' would do. Name calling certainly is, but since when did children start using the term brat? I always thought that was a word that older people used to describe younger, immature people.

How about we get back on topic..anyone?

Please god, yes. Now that i've responded to where I left off yesterday, i'm more than happy to get back to the topic at hand.

Supernatural is not on that list so there might be hope for that t:

I hope to god you're right, boosey. Hrm, that meant to sound like Boosee, but when I re-read that, it sounded more like boozey in my mind. Maybe that was a bad choice. Oh well. I will severely miss SPN if it has to end it's season early. As much as, if not more than Smallville.

I feel really bad for Scrubs, though. After all, it's their last season, and they already started late. If they get cut off after like 5 episodes, it's going to be a huge shame.

What's that mean? LOL Wouldn't they just reshoot the scene if the actor goofs? I don't understand.

So how would the WGA know the difference? I mean, lets say they're shooting a scene, and actor John Smith realizes that his character Frank Jones says something that just doesn't work in context with the scene being shot. What's the difference between Smith ad-libbing a change or addition to Frank's dialog and the director saying, "hey John, have Frank say this instead?"

It's my impression that improvisation is fine, or ad libbing, as long as there are no actual changes made to the actual draft of the script. I could be very wrong, but it's pretty much understood that a script won't be followed 100% accurately, isn't it?

 

[triplet]

Here's an interesting commentary on the strike:

http://kingofbreakfast.livejournal.com/67646.html

I haven't gotten permission to post it here, so I'll just link it up but the commentary posted there was originally posted on a WGA members only forum so there's no way I'd ever be able to see it directly.

The producers are all bastards and I think if that poster is any indication, the writers are entrenched and will not back down this time, unlike 88.

*sigh*

That guy who posted that is Paul Dini, a writer with a long CV over on IMDB in comic related catagories:

http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0227704/

 

[OobeDoobBenubi]

Hollywood Greed will ruin good TV & reality TV will take over. Enjoy your current shows seasons folks & it wont be good when the Actors & Directors guilds go on strike when their contracts expire & they have agreed to help out the writers guild when their contract is done. Watchable TV is dead

 

[Prison Mike]

Dini? The guy who did B:TAS and S:TAS? Him along with Timm were awesome.

 

[triplet]

Dini? The guy who did B:TAS and S:TAS? Him along with Timm were awesome.

Yeah, that's him.

The post he's reposting isn't something he said but he's in with the WGA members on the strike.

I didn't realize the reason the animation writers are under IATSE are because it was a strong arm tactic by the producers to avoid paying residuals....

Bastards.

 

[M.O.Steel]

well considering how bad the dialogue, i'm not sure where it's gonna end up

 

[triplet]

Okay, he said lower down in the thread that he wanted to have this cross-posted to as many places that people might care so here is the entire post from that WriterAction board.

This was in response to another poster who didn't understand the WGA's position:

Well this is ONE angry Horad that’s confused about your stance. The AMPTP clearly never intends to pay us one single cent for internet delivery. The music business model clearly indicates that internet delivery for most, if not all content is the future. What then were we supposed to do when faced with rollbacks and refusals to bargain in good faith? Pray? Or just swallow the bull**** they were trying to shove down our throats, and forget about not only what we’re making, but also what every person who ever follows us into this union will ever make?

People like you keep *****ing about the DVD negotiating point, and yeah, you’re right: DVD was lost 20 years ago, but there’s no magic rule which says we can’t reopen that topic. More importantly, though, DVD didn’t take off for almost a decade after the ‘88 strike… the Internet is here NOW, and it’s here FOREVER, and if we give in and allow them to pay us ZERO on Internet delivery, we can just kiss the idea of ever getting paid residuals goodbye forever.

It’s not self-righteousness which is driving this negotiation… it’s quite simply the greed of the AMPTP, which clearly sees this as the year in which they intend to break the WGA on the rack once and for all. But you don’t see that… you seem unable to get it through your head that the AMPTP doesn’t want to ever pay us anything. If you think these people are so reasonable and that they deal in good faith, then try talking to writers who work in Animation and Reality… THAT is the future that the AMPTP has in store for EVERY WRITER IN THE WGA. Because if they don’t have to pay residuals to the woman who wrote The Lion King, then why should they ever have to pay one to YOU? Or anyone else?

Oh, and before you give me some ****ing sob story about the disastrous strike of 1988, let me bring you up to date with a more RECENT story: mine.

I came to this guild having had a “successful” career writing Animation for $1400/week for five years. During that time, I wrote on several of Nickelodeon’s highest-rated shows. My writing partner wrote and directed 1/4 of the episodes of “SpongeBob SquarePants” and I was responsible for 1/5 of the episodes of “The Angry Beavers.” The current value that those shows have generated for Viacom? $12 Billion dollars. My writing partner topped out at $2100/week. In the year 2001, tired of not receiving residuals for my endlessly- repeating work (even though the actors and composers for my episodes do), I joined with 28 other writers and we signed our WGA cards.

So, Nickelodeon quickly filed suit against our petition for an election, and set about trying to ferret out who the “ringleaders” were. In the meantime, they canceled the show that I had created 4 episodes into an order of 26. Then they fired the 3 writers who’d been working on my show. Then they fired 20 more of my fellow writers and shut down three more shows, kicking almost their entire primetime lineup for 2002 to the curb, and laying off 250 artists.

Then, once the WGA’s petition for election was tied up in court over our illegal firings, Nickelodeon called in the IATSE Local 839 “Cartoonists Guild” — a racket union which exists only the screw the WGA and its own members — and they signed a deal which forever locks the WGA out of Nickelodeon, even though we were there first. Neato!

Then Nickelodeon’s brass decided —out of thin ****ing air— that myself and two other writers had been “the ringleaders” of this organizing effort, so they called around to Warner Bros. Animation, the Cartoon Network, Disney Animation, and Fox Kids, effectively blacklisting the three of us out of animation permanently.

And why did Nickelodeon do this? Why were they so eager to decimate their own 2002 schedule, fire 24 writers, break multiple federal labor laws, sign a union deal, and to even bring back the ****ing blacklist? They did all of that to prevent us from getting the same whopping $5 residual that the actors & composers of our shows get.

For five lousy ****ing bucks, they destroyed three people’s careers and put 250 artists out of work and ****ed up their own channel for a year.

Ahh, but my episodes run about 400 times a year worldwide, though, so obviously Sumner Redstone (Salary in 2001: $65 million dollars) and Tom Freston (2001 salary: $55 million) were right to do what they did… myself and those other 23 writers might have broken the bank, what with each of us going to cost them another TWO THOUSAND DOLLARS each! OH NO! That… that’s… FORTY EIGHT THOUSAND DOLLARS!

A YEAR!

So don’t come crying to those of us who have EXPERIENCED what the AMPTP plans for all of the rest of you, that people who are deciding to stand up to bully-boy tactics like that are the crazy bunch of “horads” lustily marching “throught” the streets searching for blood. The AMPTP are the barbarians sacking Rome in this scenario.

The AMPTP and their glittering-eyed weasel lawyers are a bunch of lying, blacklisting, law-breaking scumbags, and the fact that they haven’t budged off of ANY of their proposals in the last three months proves that what they have in store for EVERY SINGLE ONE OF YOU is exactly what they did to us at Nickelodeon, and what they can do any day of the week in daytime animation. Or reality.

Strike or no strike. That’s their plan: to winnow down your membership, to snip away at your MBA, to chew away at your health & pension plans until there’s just nothing left of the WGA. Why? Because they’ve had a good strong drink of how much money they make off of animation when they don’t have to cut the creators in for any of the cash, and now they want to extend that free ride to all of live action as well. THAT is why they have pushed for this strike at every step, with their insulting press releases, with their refusals to negotiate, etc. — because they’re HOPING we go on strike, and that enough cowards and Quislings come crawling out of the woodwork after six weeks that they can force us to accept the same deal that Reality TV show writers have.

If you doubt me, go read their contract proposals again… there’s not ONE of them which isn’t an insult and a deal-breaking non-starter.

So can we PLEASE stop hearing about how it’s the current WGA management which is the ****ing problem here? Because, frankly, that canard is getting a little stale.

Or perhaps you prefer presidents like the President of the Guild back in 2001 who just threw up her hands when we were fired and blacklisted out of our careers and said, and I quote, “oh well, it was a good try”?

Amazing...

Greedy bastards.

 

[avidreader]

Hey, this strike will give the Smallville writers ample opportunity to bust open their previous Season Box Sets, and try to work on tying up some of those loose ends that they've forgotten about.

 

[Gold Samurai]

Jon Stewart to pay writers out of own pocket
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2007/11/05/stewart-to-pay-his-writer_n_71164.html

In a show of solidarity with his fellow scribes, the Daily Show host has told his writing staff that he will cover all their salaries for the next two weeks, according to a well-placed source. He has also vowed to do the same for writers on The Colbert Report. Stewart's intention, says the source, is to ensure his writers will face no financial hardship should the strike, which kicked off at 3 a.m. local time, conclude within that time frame.

 

[OobeDoobBenubi]

Jon Stewart to pay writers out of own pocket
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2007/11/05/stewart-to-pay-his-writer_n_71164.html

That is nice of him but are they allowed to accept that ? Writing during a Writers Strike takes away the whole idea of a strike & will make the others look bad

 

[SsM]

that's it either you two calm down or i 'll call in the mods. Then, no one can write an episode. LMAO.t:

Cmill is a mod ._.

 

[jr24tw]

If you click on the guy's 'Friends' page you can see some more writers voicing their opinions on blogs. One of who is stuck choosing between a 9-year dream and the strike.

This really sucks on all fronts.

 

[triplet]

That is nice of him but are they allowed to accept that ? Writing during a Writers Strike takes away the whole idea of a strike & will make the others look bad

Sounds like he's just trying to ease their financial woes, he's not paying them to write.

 

[Prison Mike]

wow, that's really nice of Stewart. He's even paying Colbert's guys? Wow.

 

[triplet]

Wow, I was just going through Paul Dini's friends list and one guy had a lot to say about the respect writers get in Hollywood.

http://coppervale.livejournal.com/110986.html

He sums it up best in the last line:

The reason the comparison between our compensation and the cost of the packaging is so compelling has much less to do with the numbers and economics than it does with the fact that it sends a clear message: you are worth less to us than packaging.

If the execs can figure out how to change that message, the numbers will become much easier to discuss.

Wow.

Unbelievable. They spend more on the packaging than they pay the writers.