CHICAS PRODUCTIONS: DGA

Venezuela has the largest proven oil reserves in the world. It was once so rich that Concorde used to fly from Caracas to Paris. But in the last three years its economy has collapsed. Hunger has gripped the nation for years. Now, it’s killing people and animals that are dying of starvation. The Venezuelan government knows, but won’t admit it!!! Four in five Venezuelans live in poverty. People queue for hours to buy food. Much of the time they go without. People are also dying from a lack of medicines. Inflation is at 82,766% and there are warnings it could exceed one million per cent by the end of this year. Venezuelans are trying to get out. The UN says 2.3 million people have fled the country - 7% of the population.

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Saturday, October 13, 2012

Entertainment unions, groups hail state film tax credit extension...

A broad coalition of unions representing the entertainment industry hailed Governor Jerry Brown's decision to sign into law a two-year extension of California's film and television tax credit.

"We commend the legislature and Gov. Brown for recognizing that the motion picture business is an integral part of the economic and cultural powerhouse that has been California during the last 100 years," said a statement issued by a coalition of entertainment industry unions, including the Directors Guild of America, the Teamsters, the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees and SAG-AFTRA.

Brown approved legislation that was overwhelmingly supported by the state Assembly and the Senate. The bills provide $200 million for the state film tax credit, extending funding through 2017.

California offers a 20% to 25% credit toward qualified production costs, which employers can use to offset any business tax liability they have with the state.

Although the program is limited and not as competitive compared with what some other states offer, the bills were widely supported in the entertainment industry as a means of slowing the exodus of film and television production from California.

While the bills were expected to be approved, their support from the governor was not assured given the competition for scarce government resources. Backers originally pressed for a five year-extension, but that goal proved unrealistic.

"Unlike most other industries, ours is a highly mobile one -- film and television production can be shot anywhere," the coalition said in its statement. "Because of that reality, thousands of our members who live in California and want to work in California are dependent upon this state remaining competitive. We know firsthand that this program has created employment opportunities for them, and with that, health and pension coverage for them and their families."

The Motion Picture Assn. of America, which lobbies on behalf of the major studios, also praised the bills' passage.

"The state of California took a big step forward today, thanks to Gov. Brown and the legislature," said MPAA Chairman Chris Dodd. "The two-year extension of the state's production tax credit will keep California competitive for tens of thousands of production-related jobs. This is an important victory for California's economy, our national economy, and the hardworking men and women who comprise the film and television industry."

Thank you Los Angeles Times

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DGA report shows few strides for female and minority TV directors..

Female and minority directors have made few strides in getting jobs on leading television shows, according to a new survey by the Directors Guild of America.

The survey found that out of 190 scripted television series and 3,100 episodes from the 2011-2012 network television season, Caucasian males directed 73% of all episodes (compared with 72% from the prior year). Caucasian females directed 11% of all episodes (unchanged), minority males directed 13% (down from 14%) of all episodes and minority females directed 4% of all episodes (up from 3%).

"Our industry has to do better,'' said Paris Barclay, the DGA's first vice president and co-chair of the diversity task force of the DGA national board. He is also an executive producer of "Sons of Anarchy."

"In this day and age, it's quite disappointing that so many shows failed to hire even a single woman or minority director during the course of an entire season -- even shows whose cast and crew is notably diverse, Barclay noted. "And, 'We just don't know anybody' doesn't cut it anymore -- the pool of talented and experienced women and minority directors grows every year, and too many of these qualified, capable directors are still overlooked."

The DGA compiled the statistics for its report based on information provided by the production companies as part of its collective bargaining agreement. The DGA said it had made several changes to its methodology and data collection to improve accuracy. The changes included capturing more DGA-covered episodes and more accurately describing the diversity status of directors whose ethnicity or gender had previously been identified as "unknown."

Among the DGA's "Worst of" lists for TV shows - those hiring no women or minority directors or those that hired them for less than 15% of episodes -- were "Dallas," "Leverage," "CSI:Crime Scene Investigation" and "The Office."

DGA's "Best of" list -- shows that hired women or minority directors for at least 30% of episodes -- included "The Game," "Nurse Jackie" and "The Walking Dead."

Thank you Los Angeles Times

Judge Rules DGA Foreign Levies Reports Acceptable But Lawyer Claims They Don't '

The court finds that the guild is complying with a settlement agreement, dismissing plaintiff counsel's argument that more information should be required.

A California judge ruled Wednesday that the Directors Guild is complying with a 2008 settlement agreement requiring it to report certain data related to foreign royalties, brushing aside the motion of a lawyer who told the court that the DGA reports were all but incomprehensible.
RELATED TOPICS
•Labor
"We've engaged consultants," Neville Johnson of Johnson & Johnson LLP told The Hollywood Reporter. "But they say they can't make sense (of the DGA reports)." Johnson represents a class of non-DGA members who are entitled to receive foreign royalties paid out by the guild.
The DGA countered in a statement that it "has distributed more than $121 million in foreign levies, including over $13 million to more than 3,400 non-members." The guild added, "It was a hard-fought effort to attain these funds and we are very proud of our efforts."
Johnson's position is that even if the DGA is complying with the letter of the settlement agreement, it wasn't in tune with the spirit of the pact, and he urged Judge John Wiley to require more. The judge declined, notwithstanding Johnson's argument that since he maintained jurisdiction over the case, he should ensure that the information provided be clear and adequate.
But Wiley – in Johnson's words – said that "if you make a settlement agreement, that's all you get."
The judge's denial of Johnson's motion was "with prejudice," meaning that it can't be refiled. Johnson can, however, appeal, and said his office was deciding whether to do so. He has 60 days to decide and said it was likely that he would.
Foreign royalties are complex. Collection societies in certain countries collect the sums based on various government regulations, then remit a portion of the U.S.-destined payments to the DGA, WGA and SAG for payment to individual "authors" (i.e., writers and directors) and performers.
Another portion of the collected monies is paid to the U.S. studios or producers, who under U.S. law and customary entertainment contracts are deemed the authors of the movies, television shows and other audiovisual works at issue. The fact that monies are split between the studios and the individuals is a consequence of balancing the contrasting U.S. and foreign definitions of "author" and was arrived at in agreements between the guilds and studios in the early 1990s.
According to a geographic breakdown prepared by the WGA, 51 percent of the $147.5 million it's collected in the last 20 years came from Germany. Next, with 8 percent to 11 percent each, were France, Argentina, Switzerland and Spain. No other territory constituted more than 3 percent of the total.
More information can be found on the DGA, SAG-AFTRA and WGA West websites. The SAG-AFTRA royalties collected as of mid-2011 totaled under $21 million, or less than one-fifth of what the WGA and DGA collected. That's due in part to the fact that fewer countries provide for performers to receive foreign royalties than do for authors.
Foreign royalties are distinct from foreign residuals. The latter are computed according to the terms of the collective bargaining agreements between the unions and studios. As confusing as residuals – and especially foreign residuals – can be, foreign royalties are even murkier.
Whether the unions even have the right to collect such royalties, let alone on behalf of non-members and/or for movies and TV shows that aren't under their jurisdiction, was the subject of three class-action lawsuits – one against each union – filed in the mid-2000s.
Those lawsuits were settled, with the unions permitted to make collections and disbursements, subject to reporting. But for various reasons, the reporting requirements ended up being different for each union, notwithstanding the fact that all three lawsuits were assigned to the same L.A. Superior Court judge, Carl West. None of them is particularly detailed, however.
West ultimately retired and was succeeded on the case by Wiley. Johnson said that Wednesday's hearing was Wiley's first on the case and attributed his decision in part to not having been on the three cases for the more than half-decade that West was.
Johnson also failed to persuade the judge to award additional attorneys fees beyond what he had already received. Johnson told THR that he might seek to withdraw from the case as a result and have new counsel appointed.

Thank you Hollywood Reporter

More info: www.hollywoodreporter.com
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Senate Committee Votes to Make Illegal Streaming of Movies, TV a Felony...

The Commercial Felony Streaming Act is supported by AFTRA, the DGA and other Hollywood unions.
Moving to close a possible loophole in the laws against the pirating of movies, TV shows and other intellectual property, the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee on Thursday approved making illegal streaming of video over the internet a felony in most cases. The proposed law will now go to the full Senate for consideration.

The Commercial Felony Streaming Act (S. 978), introduced by Senators Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and John Cornyn (R-TX), reconciles a disparity between the current law and streaming of content and peer-to-peer (P2P) downloading.

This legislation is supported by the Obama administration and a broad entertainment industry coalition, including the American Federation of Musicians (AFM), AFTRA, Directors Guild of America, IATSE and SAG. Others who have pushed for passage include the MPAA, the Independent Film & Television Alliance and the National Association of Theatre Owners.
"We commend the Committee for moving this important piece of legislation for consideration by the Senate. It will close a gaping hole in the law and go far in protecting the livelihoods of theater employees from the threat posed by illegal streaming," says NATO President John Fithian. "To the technicians, designers, construction workers, and artists who support their families through their work in entertainment, there's no difference between illegal downloading and illegal streaming – it's all theft that hurts their work, their wages and their benefits.
"This bill will help ensure that the punishment for these site operators fits the crime," says Michael O'Leary, Executive Vice President, Government Affairs for the MPAA.

"The illegal streaming of motion pictures and television programming is as financially devastating for our industry as is illegal downloading," says IFTA President Jean Prewitt. "Stealing is stealing, regardless of the means in which the product is being received.

The bill makes it illegal to stream video for commercial purposes. The penalty is increased to up to five years in prison when it involves 10 or more instances of streaming over a 180-day period. The retail value of the streamed video must exceed $2,500, or the licenses to the material must be worth more than $5,000.

The bill follows the suggestion made two months ago by the White House Office of U.S. Intellectual Property Enforcement which urged Congress to make illegal streaming a felony.

Thank you Hollywood Reporter

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Unions Speak Out Against Piracy...

Joining federal lawmakers at a piracy press conference, the labor organizations denounced "profiteers" who traffic in illegally obtained content.
Representatives from the DGA, AFTRA, IATSE and SAG joined Congressional lawmakers at a press conference today on Capitol Hill to discuss fighting copyright infringement and Internet theft.
RELATED TOPICS
•Labor
The unions released a statement decrying "Illegal downloading and streaming of the content made by our members" and stating that those practices "pose a devastating threat to the future of the hundreds of thousands of working men and women who make up the American entertainment industry."
The release noted that those guilds and unions represent 300,000 creators, performers and craftspeople who create films, television programs and sound recordings. The Writers Guild was not part of the press conference, but both the WGA West and East have spoken out against piracy as well.
The union statement argued that "Professional content is a driving force behind the massive popularity of the Internet" and blasted "profiteers who knowingly traffic in content they have obtained illegally and played no role at all in creating or financing."
The press conference did not appear to be connected to any new legislative efforts to address unauthorized downloading or streaming.

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Industry News: Key Provision of the DGA 2011-14 Contract

While the new DGA contract waits for likely member ratification, these changes will impact our budgets:

* HEALTH PLAN. Employers will contribute an additional 1.5% of compensation to the Health Plan, for a total of 10%. Together with the 5.5% contributed to the Pension Plan, Employers will now be contributing 15.5% of total compensation to the Health and Pension Plans. ***** Employers will make contributions to the Health Plan on Vacation Pay and Completion of Assignment Pay. ***** The cap on Health Plan contributions for Unit Production Managers employed on theatrical motion pictures will increase from $250,000 to $350,000.

* WAGE INCREASE. The standard rate increase for minimum salaries and residuals bases will be 2% in each year of the contract.

* BASIC CABLE. A new, higher compensation tier will be established to compensate DGA Directors working on high-budget basic cable dramatic programming.

* TRAVEL. The DGA will have the same changes in its travel provisions as SAG and AFTRA.

* TERM. The agreement is for three years, from July 1, 2011 to June 30, 2014.

In order to avoid all the SCAMS, we decide not to publish all the info of the recruter in the job postings. You'll find this info in our Daily Newsletter.

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Industry News: DGA Approves Three-Year Film and TV Contract...

January 19, 2011

SAG and AFTRA approved their contract last week, but the WGA, with a May 1 expiration, has not yet set talks.
The DGA membership on Tuesday ratified a new motion picture and television deal with the AMPTP. Percentages and the number of ballots returned were not disclosed. The tentative deal was reached last month and endorsed by the union's board.

DGA Board Approves Tentative DealDGA and Studios Reach Tentative DealDGA Negotiations Go Into Overtime, Then PauseRelated Topics
•LaborThe 3-year pact takes effect July 1. As previously reported, it includes 2% annual wage increases, a one-time 1.5% increase in employer contributions to the pension and health plans and as a shift from first-class air travel to new rules favoring business class and coach.

The agreement also provides for a new, higher compensation tier for directors working on high-budget basic cable dramatic programming. The tier builds on an improvement the DGA received in the previous round of negotiations, when it achieved an outsized increase in director's compensation on high-budget basic cable for series in the second and subsequent seasons.

In a statement, DGA president Taylor Hackford said: "The extraordinarily positive response by DGA members demonstrates their support for the new contract. I'm proud of what this guild has achieved and pleased to see the strength and unity of our membership as illustrated by this vote."

As with the SAG/AFTRA deal, there were no significant changes in new media. SAG/AFTRA achieved a revision in the definition of "covered performer," but this was a minor and actor-specific modification.

Negotiations chair Gil Cates underscored the guild's focus this negotiating cycle on health insurance issues. "Protecting the health benefits of DGA members, retirees and their families was our top negotiating priority and remains one of the most important things we do as a guild. The new contract will provide for a more equitable, sustainable way of providing health benefits for our members."

Negotiations with the AMPTP began Nov. 16 and concluded Dec. 7. Talks were led by Cates and DGA national executive director Jay Roth.

For the first time, the DGA deal also includes residuals for associate directors on multicamera primetime dramatic series. Those ADs were previously known as technical coordinators.

The DGA said the agreement also includes provisions addressing diversity. creative rights and issues arising from changing production patterns including development services, long hours for assistant directors and the employment of unit production managers.

The current SAG, AFTRA and DGA contracts expire on June 30. The WGA contract expires two months earlier, on May 1, but no talks have been scheduled yet.

That's generating concern that the WGA may not schedule negotiations until March and engage in a brinksmanship strategy in order to seek improvements in areas that SAG/AFTRA did not, such as certain new media and basic cable provisions. The WGA has identified both those areas as priorities as well as pension and health improvements and workplace issues such as "a deteriorating pitching process."

An ambitious "Pattern of Demands" – an outline of negotiating priorities – is out to WGA members for their approval. It's due back by Jan. 24.

Thank you Hollywood Reporter

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Saturday, October 13, 2012

Entertainment unions, groups hail state film tax credit extension...

Friday, October 12, 2012

DGA report shows few strides for female and minority TV directors..

Monday, August 27, 2012

Judge Rules DGA Foreign Levies Reports Acceptable But Lawyer Claims They Don't '

Thursday, June 23, 2011

Senate Committee Votes to Make Illegal Streaming of Movies, TV a Felony...

Tuesday, April 5, 2011

Unions Speak Out Against Piracy...

Tuesday, February 22, 2011

Job: Crew in San Diego

Industry News: Key Provision of the DGA 2011-14 Contract

Tuesday, February 8, 2011

Industry News: DGA Approves Three-Year Film and TV Contract...