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Help Build the Future of United Hollywood

One day, hopefully very soon, the WGA strike will end. But the technological changes that sparked it will continue.

Over the past three months, we realized that in covering the dispute between writers and media conglomerates, we were also covering the evolution of the entertainment industry. Digital technology is changing how music, television, films and games are created and consumed. Old

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  • United Hollywood is proud to announce that FairDeal4Writers has become the first annual United Hollywood Short Film Contest.

    Unlike Strike TV, films in this contest will tackle the issues that are roiling the entertainment industry right now. The winner of the contest will receive an authentic WGA strike poster with over 175 signatures by writers, actors, actresses and directors who autographed

  • On Monday, February 11 from 2-6pm, United Hollywood and Strike Swag invite all members of the United Hollywood community to be photographed for a PR campaign to promote the new United Hollywood site.

    The concept of the campaign is to show writers, actors, directors, crew, staff and fans standing united to meet the challenges of the digital present. That's right, the challenges of now.

  • Will 1+1 someday = 2?

    The WGA, the Teamsters and California State Senator Sheila Kuehl have just announced the introduction of the "Fair Market Value Bill." The bill seeks to prevent studios from selling programming to sister companies for below market value. This particular strain of Hollywood accounting is designed to shift profits away from the studios (where they must be shared with talent and producers and serve as a basis for pension and health contributions) to networks, where they may be enjoyed without the pesky need to pay one's "partners."

    Press release below. We'll have more soon on the bill in particular and Hollywood skulduggery in general.

    And if you're a studio accountant or lawyer looking to go all Michael Clayton on the Big Six, send us a tip or a post.

    NEW BILL TAKES AIM AT HOLLYWOOD ACCOUNTING

    California State Senator Sheila Kuehl Introduces Bill to End the Practice of Selling Television Series and Films for Less Than Fair Market Value

    Los Angeles and Sacramento – California State Senator Sheila Kuehl (D-Los Angeles) has introduced Senate Bill 1765, the "Fair Market Value Bill," to end the practice by some major studios and networks of “underselling” television series or movies.

  • Will 1+1 someday = 2?

    The WGA, the Teamsters and California
    State Senator Sheila Kuehl have just announced the introduction of the
    "Fair Market Value Bill." The bill seeks to prevent studios from
    selling programming to sister companies for below market value. This
    particular strain of Hollywood accounting is designed to shift profits
    away from the studios (where they must be shared with talent and
    producers and serve as a basis for pension and health contributions) to
    networks, where they may be enjoyed without the pesky need to pay one's
    "partners."

    Press release below the break.  We'll have more soon on the bill in particular and Hollywood skulduggery in general.

    And if you're a studio accountant or lawyer looking to go all Michael Clayton on the Big Six, send us a tip or a post.

    NEW BILL TAKES AIM AT HOLLYWOOD ACCOUNTING

    California
    State Senator Sheila Kuehl Introduces Bill to End the Practice of
    Selling Television Series and Films for Less Than Fair Market Value

  • At today’s Los Angeles City Council meeting, over 300 writers and supporters came to hear Councilmember Eric Garcetti speak to the City Council about the writers strike, and the need to bring the AMPTP back to the table so negotiations can resume.
    <>
    The AMPTP did not bother to send a representative, apparently feeling that the $20 million a day damage to the Los Angeles economy is more the City Council's problem than theirs.

    Garcetti introduced an emergency motion asking for both parties to resume bargaining, and to come to a just and fair deal as quickly as possible. He also pointed out that the writers are still at the bargaining table, ready to negotiate, and called specifically on the AMPTP to return as well.

  • Over at HuffPo, writer-director John Sayles gives an interview with Bob Eisele about unions, the entertainment industry, the strike and how the changing world of Internet delivery is intersecting with the consolidation of huge corporations:What we have today are fewer unionized workers, especially if you don't count public service workers, than you've ever had before. And the movie industry is

  • Former WGAw board member Michael Russnow has been covering the strike on his personal site and recently began blogging "The Writers Strike for Dummies" on the Huffington Post. In his most recent entry, Russnow discusses the importance of setting precedents for compensation on the Web. We believed the AMPTP when they cajoled us to accept the cable deal in 1981 with the understanding that when they

  • Strike TV is an Internet fundraiser. It's an online "channel" featuring original video shows created by working professionals in the TV and Film Industry. These shows are self-funded and owned by their creators. Funds raised by ad revenue will go toward the Writers Guild Foundation Industry Support Fund, assisting union directors, actors and below the line members who are affected by the strike.

  • As the Industry Support Fund and The Actors Fund (which administers the ISF) continue to help industry workers who lost income and health care coverage during the strike, we offer this helpful post from freelance journalist and United Hollywood lover Becca Bryan. -TES

    DON'T GET CAUGHT WITH YOUR PANTS DOWN! THE ACTORS FUND IS THERE FOR EVERYONE.

    by Becca Bryan

    As someone who has lost a few

  • The strike is over and our hosts are back to work. But as soon as they get settled in, they'll be returning with a new post-strike incarnation of United Hollywood Live. Details to come.

    And to all the listeners, guests and volunteers who made UH Live - Version 1.0 such a big success, a sincere and heartfelt thank you.

  • (From WGA Member Ed Decter.)

    I was walking the picket line with a young television writer who worked on THE UNIT. He was explaining to me that David Mamet always asks three things about a scene:

    1. What does each character want?
    2. Why now?
    3. What happens if they don't get it?

    Since I don't have an MBA, CPA, JD or any other degree my father wanted me to get, the only way I can look at our current labor situation is through the eyes of a screenwriter. If I was writing a screenplay, let's call it "The Big Strike of 2007," and the two main characters were the WGA and the AMPTP, before I would start writing I might ask myself the three Mamet questions. When thinking about the WGA "character" things seem very clear:

    What does the WGA want?

  • This introduction was written by director Peter Hyoguchi. - JA

    A portrait of a Writer's Guild picket line.
    Each year, Hollywood produces a spate of network TV shows and a couple dozen feature films. With over 12,000 Writers Guild members, clearly not everyone is employed in a given year. While the mainstream media barrages us with images of red carpet and caviar success stories, the reality is that most professionals working in the entertainment industry are middle-class at best.

    "Who's On The Line" features interviews with screenwriters Michael Tabb, Wendy Mericle, Zack Stratis, Monica Henderson, Matthew Goodman and Damon Lindelof.

  • MONDAY DECEMBER 17th:

  • STRIKER’S STUDIO WALK-A-THON: A 7 mile walk beginning at Disney’s main gate at 9:00 am. For more information, please contact Josh Singer at jsinger10@gmail.com
  • DAYTIME UNITED: The writers of Daytime Dramas, Telenovelas, and Internet Serials are hosting a special picket event on Monday, December 17th, from 10:00 am - 2:00 pm at CBS Television City, on the Fairfax side. This will coincide with a similar event in Manhattan, organized by WGAE. With the enthusiastic support of AFTRA, the actors from our favorite Daytime Dramas -- plus directors, staff and crew -- will join the picket line in solidarity with the writers. For more information, please contact Karen Harris (poainc@sbcglobal.net) or Sara Bibel (sarab@earthlink.net )
  • The shameless double talk by the conglomerates' top management could well be what loses them this strike. Our message resonates with the nation, while the CEOs lose ground each additional day they let this painful situation drag on. But could their double talk also cost them their jobs?

    In today's Variety, Dave McNary's article "Writers Are Winning Over the Public" puts it in simple terms:"On one hand CEOs of major media congloms are selling Wall Streeters on the fact that their digital offerings are growing like gangbusters and driving the bottom line. On the other hand, those same execs are holding out their hands and saying, a viable business model just doesn't exist and profits just aren't rolling in yet to give striking scribes what they want.

  • Below is an op-ed piece from Wednesday's Los Angeles Times.

    Stopping the cash flow will strengthen the writers' case, not cutting deals.

    January 9, 2008

    We get the impression, in this third month of the Hollywood writers strike, that morale on the picket lines and in the coffee shops isn't so hot. That's odd, given how strong the writers are looking right now.

    With the downfall of the Golden

  • (We want to welcome SAG Member Justine Bateman as a regular contributor to United Hollywood. We hope to continue opening the site up to more voices from SAG and other unions. Justine reminds us that this fight belongs to all of us. We're all on the same page.)

    Attention all SAG Actors:

    I believe it's appropriate at this time to call all actors into action in support of the Writer's Guild on strike.
    I know many of us have been walking the picket lines and attending the rallies, but I want to challenge ALL SAG members to see if they can commit an HOUR-A-DAY to walking the picket lines.
    The AMPTP has been jerking the Writer's Guild around.
    1. They offered nothing but insulting Roll-Backs to the WGA in the negotiations that caused the strike.

  • We're told that the long strike of 1988 had two far-reaching consequences: the audience discovered cable and reality shows grew in popularity.

    What will be the legacy of the 2007 strike?

    Hard to say. The negotiations are still ongoing. But one fact is abundantly clear even at this point.

    Writers love the internet.

    Given that the AMPTP was trying to control the internet, there is something ironic about the way writers have taken to the web as the place to try out ideas or vent or be funny about issues that can seem simultaneously enraging and arcane, like the DVD formula with its string of percentages: 1.5% (or 1.8%) of 20% of the studio’s gross on DVD sales.

    By various accounts, after only a few weeks, striking writers and their supporters have put between 750 and 1,000 videos on YouTube.

  • FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

    February 26, 2008

    Writers Guild Members Overwhelmingly Ratify New Contract

  • Tune in for another edition of the only show in Hollywood that actually hopes every broadcast is its last, United Hollywood Live (12 pm Pacific/3 pm Eastern).

    On their tech extravaganza today, guests include Oscar, HuffingtonPost.com columnist Robert J. Elisberg about his experiences at C.E.S. and why the future is now, Kent Nichols, co-creator of AskANinja.com, and David Simkins, aka Tech

  • Last week a coalition of WGA members went to NYC to talk with the seven largest media buyers on Wall Street.

    These ad buyers are the large corporations (like Proctor & Gamble, Johson & Johnson, etc.) who advertise on TV and pay the networks' bills.

    Our WGA crew, lead by Matthew Weiner, showrunner of "Mad Men," laid out our position to the advertisers -- who for some reason might not be getting entirely accurate forecasts from their corporate customers like CBS.

    The event was a success. The coalition of media buyers agreed that our demands are reasonable and that it was "irresponsible on the part of the networks not to settle this dispute immediately."

  • This was submitted by WGA member Christopher Trumbo, member for 40 years, and son of WGA member Dalton Trumbo. His insights into the history of the guild are especially valuable now, as the strike continues and the AMPTP tries to divide us.

  • (This was emailed to Captains by the WGA.)
    California State Senator Sheila Kuehl (D-Los Angeles) introduced Senate Bill 1765, the "Fair Market Value Bill," to end the practice by some major studios and networks of “underselling” television series or movies. Since the major media networks in the United States have come to own many cable channels, the practice of selling TV series or movies for less than the fair market value of the content has become more and more prevalent.

    "The WGA West wholeheartedly supports this bill and we applaud Senator Kuehl for authoring it," said Patric M. Verrone, president of the Writers Guild of America, West. "This important piece of legislation will help ensure reliable accounting among the major Hollywood studios so that creative talent and all entertainment employees that rely on residuals will be fairly compensated for the contributions they make to the industry." Read entire press release here.

  • United Hollywood Live (12pm Pacific/3pm Eastern) will be joined by Robert J. Elisberg, whose excellent article on The Huffington Post questions why the AMPTP - made up of competitors - is allowed to negotiate as a single entity against the WGA. The show will also feature a live remote from the Trekkie Day rally at Paramount Studios where the writers of all Star Trek Incarnations will join us on the picket line.

  • With all the arguments about what constitutes fair compensation for writers in New Media, not enough attention is being paid to the more fundamental issue that Thom Taylor talks about in his article in Forbes Magazine from January 17th:

    But the media has been wrong to suggest the current battle is simply over cash. While the debate does affect how to divide pieces of the digital media pie (for

  • Forbes.com has featured consistently balanced coverage of the WGA strike, rightly (in our minds!) pointing out that in a time of great uncertainty and digital transformation, Hollywood's unions and companies need to be working collaboratively to build new revenue streams.

    In a piece posted on Newsweek.com, Forbes journalist Lacey Rose writes, "[T]he agreement legitimizes the new medium within

  • We had a great response from members of the community who want to be a part of the United Hollywood / Strike Swag T-shirt photo shoot tomorrow. The response was so great that the schedule is full. As a result, we will not be able to shoot anyone without a confirmed time. But we will announce a new shoot date later this week.

  • United Hollywood received two video testimonials from supporters in the German entertainment industry.

    Actor-director Andreas Stenschke. (WARNING: Schwarzenegger joke)

    And actor Detlef Behr. (WARNING: Ruddy-cheeked, huggable German man)

  • Due to the lack of power outlets and pathetic battery life of my iBook, my blogging from the Futures of Entertainment 2 at MIT will be rather delayed.

    The day started with opening comments from Henry Jenkins, director of the MIT Program in Comparative Media Studies (CMS), and Joshua Green, research manager for the Convergence Culture Consortium (C3).

    The Future of Television:

  • The strike is over. The WGA contract has been ratified. SAG and AFTRA are now center stage and there is still a lot of work to do before the town gets back to normal. At this moment it's useful to look back at our own history. There are lessons to be learned about how the process can move forward even against what seems like overwhelming odds.

    There are many who labored behind the scenes to support the writers' strike. At United Hollywood we worked with people who put their energy on the line but wanted to stay off the media's radar. Not content to just talk a good game, these are members and supporters who knew that if they wanted to make a difference, they had to work at it.

    One group in particular came of age during the early part of the strike: the writer-directors. Nicknamed the WD-40, forty writer-directors met to search for ways they could help facilitate the negotiation.

    From the beginning of the strike, most journalists accepted the AMPTP's lead and described the DGA and WGA as antagonistic to one another. Nicholas Counter was frequently quoted in the trades as preferring the DGA as a negotiating partner. The writer-directors objected to that characterization and felt that the AMPTP was doing what it always did in positioning the Guilds against one another to diminish each union's power.

  • I hope everyone has started back on the path to "normalcy". I, for one, was happy to see writers embraced on The Daily Show and The Colbert Report. And both shows were the better for being written by their writing staffs.

    When the strike started we heard a lot of talk about writers writing specs during the strike. But I actually don't know anyone who wrote a script during the past 3 months. Some