Tag: SAG

SAG UpDate

A campaign by the Screen Actors Guild to persuade members of a smaller rival union to vote down a new contract has foundered, an outcome that could weaken SAG’s leverage in its negotiations with the Hollywood studios.

Members of the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists on Tuesday approved a new three-year, prime-time TV contract, dealing a blow to SAG leaders who had gambled heavily on defeating a contract they blasted as bad for actors.

The AFTRA vote — widely viewed as a barometer of support for SAG negotiators — doesn’t eliminate the prospect of a strike, but it leaves the guild with fewer alternatives. The protracted negotiations are causing uncertainty throughout Hollywood, holding up feature film productions and casting a pall over the upcoming fall TV season.

SAG leaders could still seek a strike authorization vote from members, but that option is considered risky given the deteriorating economy and strike fatigue after the 100-day Hollywood writers walkout that ended in February.

AFTRA leaders countered that broadcasters accounted for less than 10% of the union’s 70,000 members, 52,000 of whom are actors. AFTRA did not report how many of its members voted. The 120,000-member SAG represents the vast majority of those working on prime-time TV shows and, unlike AFTRA, actors who work in feature films.

AFTRA President Roberta Reardon called SAG’s actions “an unprecedented disinformation campaign” and praised actors for displaying “courage in the face of potential retribution by taking a stand against disunity.” She called on the unions to revisit the possibility of merging and jointly negotiating an upcoming commercials contract.

The contract ratified Tuesday was modeled after similar pacts negotiated by directors and writers. Although the accord includes pay hikes for actors and establishes payments for programs streamed on the Internet, SAG contended it didn’t meet such key bargaining goals as increasing residuals from DVD sales and ensuring that all Internet programs were covered by its contract.

SAG Will Not Strike–Asner

Ed Asner, who played TV newsman Lou Grant in the seminal 1970s sitcom The Mary Tyler Moore Show, told reporters Tuesday that a strike is unlikely.

Asner, a lifelong political activist, served as president of the Screen Actors Guild from 1981-1985 and played a prominent role in the union’s strike in 1980.

Asner’s remarks carry significant weight because they come at a time when his former union has reached an impasse in contract talks with the Hollywood studios. The results of a contract ratification vote by the rival American Federation of Radio & Television Artists union were expected today.

SAG Gets “Final” Offer

US entertainment conglomerates organized in the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) made their “final offer” to the Screen Actors Guild on Monday, only hours before the expiration of the present contract at midnight. SAG has not asked its 120,000 members nationwide to authorize a strike.

In a message posted on its web site, SAG told its members that “work will continue and all SAG members should report to work and to audition for new work past the expiration date until further notice from the Guild.”

The AMPTP issued a statement asserting “Our final offer to SAG represents a final hope for avoiding further work stoppages and getting everyone back to work.” Members of the Alliance include Time Warner, Disney, Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp., General Electric’s NBC Universal, Viacom, CBS, Sony and Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer, among others.

AMPTP and SAG representatives were scheduled to meet Wednesday. The conglomerates arrogantly announced that they would answer questions on their ‘final’ proposal, but would not entertain any counter-proposals.

In line with general economic trends, the entertainment giants are determined to cut costs at the expense of the bulk of the industry’s workforce. A piece on “middle-income working actors” in the New York Times June 30 painted a grim picture: “Reality shows have crowded out scripted programs, comedies in particular. The studios are making fewer movies, and the ones they are making are less actor-driven. [Two of the current box office top ten are animated films; most of the others are simply ‘cartoonish.’] Networks like NBC have virtually stopped filming pilot episodes, meaning they are hiring fewer actors. Voice-over work, once a staple for less-known actors, is outsourced to other countries or given to A-list stars.”

If it is not accepted then look for more boring crap on TV–geez that means more Reality TV–oh goody!

Screen Actors Guild Moves Toward Strike

Hollywood is preparing for another crippling strike after the largest actors’ union failed to agree on a new contract with the US entertainment industry’s key studios and networks.

The 120,000-member Screen Actors Guild has been locked in talks with the studios for several weeks, with both sides working towards a deadline of midnight last night.

But it became clear yesterday that the deadline would not be met, paving the way for a repeat of the strike by Hollywood screenwriters that began last November and paralysed the industry for three months. That strike cost the California economy more than $2bn in lost revenues, according to the Milken Institute, a think-tank.

Any strike by actors could potentially cause as much damage to the state’s economy and also hit other US states that rely on the entertainment industry, such as New York, Louisiana and New Mexico.

SAG is also at loggerheads with the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists, a rival acting union, which has accepted a contract offer from the studios.

Aftra, a smaller union with about 70,000 members, has agreed to a contract that would guarantee its members a bigger share of revenues from the airing of their work on new media platforms.

Meanwhile, the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, which represents the studios, said the industry was “shutting down” because “SAG’s Hollywood leadership insisted on 11th-hour negotiations and dragging these talks into July so they can continue attacking Aftra”