Welcome to the first post on Divided Hollywood. In the days, weeks and months to come (and the strike will be MONTHS, if the WGA is left to its own devices), we will be posting news, notes, stories and videos about the WGA strike and how it affects Working Hollywood -- the "below-the-line" crew members who did not choose the financial turmoil that has been foisted upon us by the Writer's walkout.
This strike is good for no one, least of all the "little guy." Much was made of the 90.3 yea vote for a strike by the Writers during the last week of October. But if you had opened up the vote to all of Hollywood, that number would have been WAY lower.
The creators of this site want to make very clear one fact -- we actually SUPPORT the WGA and its Membership in their pursuit of fair compensation in the form of higher residuals and a fair percentage of for-profit internet content delivery. We just FIRMLY believe that a strike, at this time and in the current manner, is dangerously short-sighted and ill-advised.
Gazing into the crystal ball, we fear that this strike will not be resolved for months, and only when the Writers eventually accept a deal that could just as easily been reached without a work stoppage. Maybe we're wrong. We'll see.
Finally, we ask that picketing writers stop claiming that their strike will eventually benefit all of us. These claims are, at best, delusional and, at worst, flat out lies. This strike hurts everyone in the short term. And in the long term, we working-class crewmembers will not receive any benefit. In all likelihood, we will find that our next bargaining session will gain nothing, as too much of the pie will have been handed out to the above-the-line guilds.
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8 comments:
"Strike victims" ?
It's the studios who are throwing you under the bus.
They've been caught in any number of bald faced lies.
You tolerate their dishonesty, their corruption while you attack the writers for having the nerve to stand up to that corruption.
Don't worry! The guy that posted the comment above..."odocoileus"....he's a total jackass. I linked over from your post at UnitedHollywood and I found it to be very fair and totally diplomatic. This guy is one of the many people who are not smart enough to understand you when you say that you believe that the writers should be fairly compensated but that you don't think that they have taken the best approach possible. So who cares what he thinks? I'll visit you again if you promise to be nice to me if I make a grammer or spelling error. I'm a well educated girl...but I have a broken wrist and it's HARD to type these posts!
cj,
I don't believe you have much in the way of an education. If you were educated, you could make a better argument. Juvenile name calling as a first resort is not the sign of an educated woman.
I'll ask you directly:
Have the studio heads been caught repeatedly lying about their profits from downloads, as well as their overall profits?
This is a factual question with a yes or no answer. Either you don't know, or you don't care.
Hey guys,
Let's try to keep it civil.
As to Odo's remarks...
"Strike victims?" You seriously question that term? Below the line crew members have zero say in these negotiations, or the decision to strike (or lockout, obviously). Our very livelihood is threatened because WGA and AMPTP can't figure this out.
Yeah, dude. We're the victims here.
The studios haven't thrown us under the bus. Have they lied? Sure. But they didn't shut down production.
Which is NOT to say that I'm on their side.
There are smart ways to deal with corruption, and there are emotional, knee-jerk ways to deal with it. The WGA walked out almost immediately.
You would be at the negotiating table TODAY if you weren't on the picket line.
No one thinks the AMPTP are the innocent victims.
But the (formerly) working crew members certainly are.
Odocoileus
1. I do believe you threw the first punch. Your saracastic post regarding we "Strike Victims?" was designed to provoke an angry and emotional response. So, I gave you one.
2. I have enough self confidence that I don't feel the need to provide you with my credentials.
3. If you would like for us all (yourself included) to check our emotions at the door and have a productive, respectful discussion of the issues, then I'm game. In fact, I prefer it that way.
ang li cru,
You're right, we should behave better. It is a challenge to maintain one's composure in the face of such profound insensitivity. The threat of financial ruin and destitution is bad enough...but to be mocked while you're doing it?
I feel like your site is a place to commiserate with others who experiencing the same thing. Or, a place for a civil discourse on the issues. A person who would come here and say something like that must surely be looking for an argument. Still, I'm a big girl and I can take the high road.
Oops! That last comment was actually me, Curious Jill.
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