Writers Strike 2K23: The Beginning
"Let's a-go!" - Mario (*written* by... probably Shigeru Miyamoto, idk)
As you’ve likely read by now1, the Writers Guild of America (WGA) is striking against the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) over a fair writing contract and, by extension, the hope of a livable working future for screenwriters. Recent years have seen the profession inch closer and closer to the sort of “gig economy” made popular 400 miles north in Silicon Valley: on-demand writing, minimal protection, and the overall devaluation of work (or, dare I say, art) to the point that they’ve successfully gotten most of us to call it “content.” In hindsight, that was sort of the canary in the coal mine!
I’ve spent the past two days with fellow WGA members picketing outside the Los Angeles offices of Netflix (whose co-CEOS made over $75 million in salary last year) and will continue to picket, for as long as it takes, outside the many studios who still call LA home2. If you look closely to the bottom left of this photo, you can see me:
I don’t believe writers’ demands are unreasonable here! I’m biased, obviously, but even the most cursory look at the WGA’s proposals — and the AMPTP’s responses, or lack thereof — should reveal a startling lack of investment in writers’ lives.
Hell, it reveals a startling lack of interest in the the thing writers do. Which is, you know, write. Which is, you know, the thing that generates untold billions for these companies, all of whom keep claiming poverty. In the almighty words of Logan Roy — a character who, wouldn’t you know it, started as a piece of writing! —
I’ll write more when I have something interesting to say, but if you’re interested in ongoing strike commentary from a better-funded, better-brained source, I encourage you all to subscribe to THE STRIKEGEIST.
For a few years now, The Ankler has offered a voice-y, no-bullshit alternative to the likes of Deadline, Variety, and The Hollywood Reporter; this is their strike-focused offshoot. And it’s free! You’ll feel like you’re right there marching in front of CBS Television City, if that’s a fantasy of yours.
via words penned by a writer!
Unconfirmed of yet, but I’m told that if you get your WGA card punched at every location, you get a free copy of Nora Ephron’s ‘Heartburn’