Industry Insider: The Writers’ Strike, A Defining Moment In Hollywood’s History: Part 1
Momodu Mansaray
A defining moment in Hollywood’s history is the 2023 Writers’ Strike, brought forward by the WGA (Writers Guild of America) against the AMPTP (Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers), a trade association which represents more than 350 US production companies, including the major studios such as Paramount Pictures, Universal, Warner Bros., and Disney. Following six weeks of negotiations with the major Hollywood studios, on May 1st, 2023 the WGA called a strike of all its writers to ask for fair compensation and rights. The Strike Rules as outlined by the WGA are strict: deals with struck companies are prohibited (even any kind of negotiation) both on the writers and their agents’ part, and hyphenates that are involved in projects in more than one capacity cannot provide their writing services in any capacity. The Rules became effective immediately, including the return of any spec materials in possession of the struck companies. Presented here is the first article of a three-part series compiled by A Hot Set to describe and analyze the Strike.
The 2023 Writers Strike is not the first in Hollywood’s history, as there have been many other major WGA strikes, of which the latest happened in 2007-2008 to regulate compensation for content distributed on digital media. Most strikes focused on the writers’ creative rights and residuals – the payments that writers, actors, directors, and other professional figures receive through reruns, syndications, DVDs, and the sale of their work in other ancillary markets. Since residuals structures are tightly linked to the distribution models most common in a specific time, as distribution platforms and media change (such as the introduction of digital content in the early 2000’s) residuals structures should evolve accordingly. For example, until the advent of streaming, DVDs were a substantial income stream for those who owned the movies’ backend points; now, revenues from DVDs are scarce, and it is essential for industry professionals to be included in residuals coming from streaming services and based on viewership data. Moreover, a way in which streaming platforms have been cutting costs is by removing the least lucrative content from their library, thus further reducing residuals.
The WGA has already fought for writers’ right to compensation, with the latest result being the 2020 MBA (Minimum Basic Agreement), a collective bargaining agreement that outlines the details of benefits and payments of WGA writers. However, the rise of streaming has drastically changed the way writers are compensated, and residuals are one of the main points of the requirements on the WGA’s part.
The shift from traditional television networks to streaming gave way to also another phenomenon: that of the so-called “mini rooms”. In network television, the writing process is standardized. Seven or eight (or more) writers gather in the writers’ room to break down and draft scripts both during preproduction and production, sometimes writing new episodes while older ones are already shooting – a secured job, with season-long contracts and guaranteed pay. With the advent of streaming, the type of content written for television drastically changed from the very strict timeframes and rules that apply to network shows to a greater array of possibilities in terms of episode structure, number of episodes, series’ arc, and the duration of both single episodes and the whole season. This shift gave way to a more tentative approach to writing pilots or the first few episodes of new series, to understand the potential success of a new show (or its renewal) as quickly as possible, while using the least amount of financial and labor resources. In fact, mini rooms are writer rooms with only three to four writers who have a limited amount of time (usually four to six weeks) at their disposal to draft new episodes for an initial review, while being paid minimum wage. Issues arise in many aspects of this practice. Not only are the writers locked in with a project for weeks while being paid an unfair fee, but even if the show gets picked up, it is possible that the writers’ contract is not renewed for the later episodes and seasons. These contracts are unsecured and often referred to as “gigs”, with the introduction of lower and more precarious rates as time went by – going as far as establishing a “day rate” in comedy variety.
Another issue addressed by the strike is the excessive and unregulated use of generative Artificial Intelligence in creative work. The main difference between generative AI and pure creation is that the first is based on previous works: in the matter of seconds, it is able to analyze incredibly vast collections of data (in this case, scripts and audiovisual products) to then generate a new piece of work that imitates them. However, it is not able to create new ideas, styles, or genres. Thus, it fundamentally perpetrates the consumerism of audiovisual productions instead of breaking new barriers, simply adding to what is already (financially) working. The very human quality that makes movies art would be lost, and even a human polish of an AI-generated script cannot make up for a script entirely written by a screenwriter. While there is an obvious monetary advantage in using AI, especially now that the streaming war is almost entirely based on the output of huge quantities of original content rather than licensing, it is an opportunity for Hollywood to take a stance on a phenomenon that is impacting, in one way or the other, virtually every industry on a global level.
Following the WGA strike, many other union members have shown support to the cause, such as electricians and Teamsters, all heavily impacting ongoing productions or effectively interrupting them. In early June, SAG-AFTRA, the actors’ union, has voted in favor of a strike authorization, and have begun negotiating with AMPTP on June 7. SAG-AFTRA president Fran Drescher stated:
“Together we lock elbows and in unity we build a new contract that honors our contributions in this remarkable industry, reflects the new digital and streaming business model and brings ALL our concerns for protections and benefits into the now! Bravo SAG-AFTRA, we are in it to win it.”
SAG-AFTRA members have the right to strike starting from June 30, when their latest contract expires. Now, also a letter, signed by more than 300 actors – among which A-listers of the likes of Meryl Streep and Jennifer Lawrence – has reinforced the union’s demands regarding wages and creative freedom. The ongoing strikes are a pivotal moment in the industry, a chance to give artists the just recognition for their work.
