Recent strikes among Hollywood’s writers are growing quickly, with the addition of Hollywood actors joining the already striking writers in early July. However, the problems of the common people (What if we don’t have any more movies to watch?) are far from the real problems for the economy that may and are already resulting from the strikes.
Last time Hollywood writers went on strike to get better funding, the lack of work being done cost California’s economy an estimated $2 billion. The $2 billion loss last time could be seen as a very minimal amount compared to the current strike, which is costing the California economy $30 million per day, even more now because actors have joined alongside the writers in protest. Todd Holmes, an associate professor of entertainment media management at Cal State Northridge, estimated the current cost of the strike to the California economy to be more than $3 billion.
Both unions are concerned about how they are going to be paid. With more and more focus on the streaming services and less people who go to the movies or watch cable TV, the writers and actors want more protection on how they are going to get paid.
Shaking her fists in anger, Fran Drescher, the president of SAG-AFTRA, the actor’s union, noted that “the entire business model has been changed” by streaming and that artificial intelligence would soon change it more. “This is a moment in history — a moment of truth,” she said. “At some point, you have to say, ‘No, we’re not going to take this anymore.’” These changes are effecting the writers and actors badly, who have to live with decreased funds and pay.
Not only are screenwriters and actors angry about pay, but screenwriters are saying artificial intelligence may wipe out their jobs. Instead of using humans to write scripts, movie studios may use AI, which is basically machines that have human cognitive capabilities, to write better and more streamlined scripts at lower costs.
Actors are afraid that technology will be used to create digital versions of themselves, and thus no longer requiring human actors who make human errors. Instead, they would use the AI images inside the screens to seamlessly do whatever programmers and directors wanted.
Before the talks that occurred between the movie producers and the two unions, the studios were feeling optimistic, but once they saw the 48-page list of proposals from the unions, they were taken aback.
Hollywood studios will now have to deal with two unions intermittently working together, two labor unions that studios will have to navigate through to get to a compromise in which the strikers will go back to work.
However, the strikers’ wants and reason for strike are very reasonable and should be considered at the very least. Otherwise, their lives will be worse than it should be, with bad pay and the potential threat of losing their jobs.
May predict that compromises will only happen in the early months of 2024. As of now, there is virtually no one who has the power and is respected enough by both sides of the strike situation to help the movie producers get back on track with the script writers and actors.
Until then, we have to cherish the movies that we already have.
Source:
https://www.nytimes.com/2023/07/21/business/media/hollywood-strikes-power-brokers.html
Last time Hollywood writers went on strike to get better funding, the lack of work being done cost California’s economy an estimated $2 billion. The $2 billion loss last time could be seen as a very minimal amount compared to the current strike, which is costing the California economy $30 million per day, even more now because actors have joined alongside the writers in protest. Todd Holmes, an associate professor of entertainment media management at Cal State Northridge, estimated the current cost of the strike to the California economy to be more than $3 billion.
Both unions are concerned about how they are going to be paid. With more and more focus on the streaming services and less people who go to the movies or watch cable TV, the writers and actors want more protection on how they are going to get paid.
Shaking her fists in anger, Fran Drescher, the president of SAG-AFTRA, the actor’s union, noted that “the entire business model has been changed” by streaming and that artificial intelligence would soon change it more. “This is a moment in history — a moment of truth,” she said. “At some point, you have to say, ‘No, we’re not going to take this anymore.’” These changes are effecting the writers and actors badly, who have to live with decreased funds and pay.
Not only are screenwriters and actors angry about pay, but screenwriters are saying artificial intelligence may wipe out their jobs. Instead of using humans to write scripts, movie studios may use AI, which is basically machines that have human cognitive capabilities, to write better and more streamlined scripts at lower costs.
Actors are afraid that technology will be used to create digital versions of themselves, and thus no longer requiring human actors who make human errors. Instead, they would use the AI images inside the screens to seamlessly do whatever programmers and directors wanted.
Before the talks that occurred between the movie producers and the two unions, the studios were feeling optimistic, but once they saw the 48-page list of proposals from the unions, they were taken aback.
Hollywood studios will now have to deal with two unions intermittently working together, two labor unions that studios will have to navigate through to get to a compromise in which the strikers will go back to work.
However, the strikers’ wants and reason for strike are very reasonable and should be considered at the very least. Otherwise, their lives will be worse than it should be, with bad pay and the potential threat of losing their jobs.
May predict that compromises will only happen in the early months of 2024. As of now, there is virtually no one who has the power and is respected enough by both sides of the strike situation to help the movie producers get back on track with the script writers and actors.
Until then, we have to cherish the movies that we already have.
Source:
https://www.nytimes.com/2023/07/21/business/media/hollywood-strikes-power-brokers.html
