tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8022653905840889580.post6560146873643283106..comments2023-10-17T02:44:03.005-07:00Comments on Animation writers: Confessions of a Triplicate Mind: Day 1Stevehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17349670871562090251noreply@blogger.comBlogger13125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8022653905840889580.post-716910887231553632007-11-11T01:26:00.000-08:002007-11-11T01:26:00.000-08:00I can't get this thought out of my head that this ...I can't get this thought out of my head that this whole strike is just a smoke screen for the networks to dump bad deals that made and cut costs by breaking the writers union. I hope I am wrong... but i don't think I am.<BR/><BR/>TimTim ORourkehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06556073404656508177noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8022653905840889580.post-8005331652533662222007-11-03T19:42:00.000-07:002007-11-03T19:42:00.000-07:00one of the very first things our WGA cousins gave ...<I>one of the very first things our WGA cousins gave up in their last negotiation was their attempt to cover animation.<BR/></I><BR/><BR/>My prediction is that, when the dust settles, WGA will <I>again</I> give up its attempt to cover animation.<BR/><BR/>Patrick V. is passionate about the subject (I'm told), but passion only carries you so far.<BR/><BR/>By the by, I'm not anti-WGA. I'm anti the WGA claiming to control writers working under another union's jurisdiction. <BR/><BR/>Happily the WGA now agrees with that position. They've revised their strike rules so that WGA writers working under an IA contract are free to do so.Steve Huletthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05537689111433326847noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8022653905840889580.post-45514288717784564322007-11-02T18:55:00.000-07:002007-11-02T18:55:00.000-07:00Let's not forget that one of the very first things...Let's not forget that one of the very first things our WGA cousins gave up in their last negotiation was their attempt to cover animation.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8022653905840889580.post-33282267519922934142007-11-02T16:49:00.000-07:002007-11-02T16:49:00.000-07:00Uh, no, I wouldn't. How is 839 being adversarial?...Uh, no, I wouldn't. How is 839 being adversarial? TAG has done the same thing every other union in town has done -- clarify for it's membership what their contractual requirements are, and are not. Steve Hulett has expressed his hope that the writers get the deal they want on DVDs and internet/new media.<BR/><BR/>Is this like the Fox News and the Bush White House, where if you're not 100% behind everything happening in Iraq then you're a friend of Bin Laden?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8022653905840889580.post-38366208913739808392007-11-02T13:28:00.000-07:002007-11-02T13:28:00.000-07:00Jeez, I'd say right now, wouldn't you?Jeez, I'd say right now, wouldn't you?Stevehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17349670871562090251noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8022653905840889580.post-17363144134900723632007-11-02T12:58:00.000-07:002007-11-02T12:58:00.000-07:00I'm curious -- in what ways has local 839 been adv...I'm curious -- in what ways has local 839 been adversarial with the WGA?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8022653905840889580.post-64127901131714243952007-11-02T11:58:00.000-07:002007-11-02T11:58:00.000-07:00The above comment is absolutely correct. The titl...The above comment is absolutely correct. The title is "Story person/animation writer."<BR/><BR/>That being said, today's drama is brought to you by the debate about writing - be it animation, live action or otherwise.<BR/><BR/>Remember: I believe directors and storyboard artists qualify as writers, just like script folk do. <BR/><BR/>I wish IATSE / 839 wasn't so adversarial with the WGA. Because it's all writing. And where there is strength in unity, there's the opposite in acrimony.Stevehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17349670871562090251noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8022653905840889580.post-47085277203438691642007-11-02T11:50:00.000-07:002007-11-02T11:50:00.000-07:00they represent writers, but we're 8% of their 839 ...<I>they represent writers, but we're 8% of their 839 (am I right?) - and we're not even called writers. We're... "Story Persons" or something like that.</I><BR/><BR/>Or something like that? Even a cursory glance at the TAG 839 CBA shows that animation writers are labeled, get ready . . . animation writers! Ta da. <BR/><BR/>And while writers might be 8% or whatever, animators are probably just as small a percentage. Board artists are probably a bigger percentage. Character TDs are probably a smaller percentage. Clean up artists are now a small percentage. Checkers are a tiny percentage. And so on, for color stylists, layout artists, modelers, etc., etc. There's no one profession within animation that dominates 839.<BR/><BR/>The fact is, animation is the most collaborative artform yet invented, and we rise or sink together.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8022653905840889580.post-89359735705991935732007-11-02T11:43:00.000-07:002007-11-02T11:43:00.000-07:00I have to admit it's strange seeing the news cover...I have to admit it's strange seeing the news coverage on the impending strike - all those writers. Television Writers. How can I not feel a kinship? These are "my" people... well sort of. Yes, we are all television writers, but these are WGA writers on primetime shows (and the like) and that's a significant dividing line. <BR/><BR/>I hope the WGA takes a firm stand – they are fighting the good fight here and I hope the greedy studios make a reasonable concession. <BR/><BR/>I believe that, while the WGA strives to increase their share in the success, the studios are looking for a day when all manner of residuals and profit sharing is pretty much abolished. To that end, I can understand why they'd be willing to stonewall over a measly .08 of the money they're practically printing with DVD sales. And in the digital age, why would they even want to let the genie out of the bottle for ANY kind of profit sharing on downloads and the like? Right now the door's closed and locked - the last thing I expect them to do is invite in the thin edge of the wedge. Of course, if that door remains locked now, we will all be left out in the cold in a world of digital distribution.<BR/><BR/>Some of you already have one foot firmly planted in the land of WGA representation. I am not one of those people. I imagine that, like many of the rest of you, I've spent the duration of my career slowly edging my way up the ladder as a writer and, one day, I expect (hope?) to grab a rung with WGA status. Should that day come for any of us tomorrow, we will obviously benefit from the stand that the WGA is taking today. Until then, I'll just keep pushing my career and go where the employment leads take me.<BR/><BR/>For me, this strike feels like I'm sitting at the "kids’ table" of this industry feast and over there, on the adult table with all the adult portions, Aunt Betty is refusing to pass the turkey until she's assured a reasonable share of the gravy. More power to Aunt Better – she’s not just protecting her own portions, but her strike is also paving the way for future diners. I just get uneasy when I'm told that, in the meantime, she might get hungry and start eyeing our own meager ladle.<BR/><BR/>Here’s hoping we can all toast to a successful resolution sooner rather than later.<BR/><BR/><BR/>www.swenlin.comAnonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8022653905840889580.post-48036613307011847972007-11-02T11:34:00.000-07:002007-11-02T11:34:00.000-07:00Unless I'm reading this wrong, it's terrifying to ...Unless I'm reading this wrong, it's terrifying to think that one possible outcome of this strike -- however unlikely -- is that the reality writers could emerge with Guild coverage, while animation writers remain exactly as they are now.Alexhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/07356339189535449441noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8022653905840889580.post-45415876211573016122007-11-02T10:31:00.000-07:002007-11-02T10:31:00.000-07:00I hope it's shorter this time around. The 80's st...I hope it's shorter this time around. The 80's strike lasted -- what was it? -- twenty-two weeks.<BR/><BR/>I heard the Teamsters union is encouraging its members to honor the picket line. If that happens, it could really grind the studios to a halt. How you gonna shoot that reality show with no one to drive the cameras over?<BR/><BR/>-Eric-Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8022653905840889580.post-89104786120595675372007-11-02T09:12:00.000-07:002007-11-02T09:12:00.000-07:00What is your guess on the "over/under" on how long...What is your guess on the "over/under" on how long the strike will last? My guess is 4 to 6 months.<BR/><BR/>TimTim ORourkehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06556073404656508177noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-8022653905840889580.post-51566413684026046112007-11-02T08:39:00.000-07:002007-11-02T08:39:00.000-07:00I so glad I have standup to fall back on. From wha...I so glad I have standup to fall back on. From what i gather the DVD sticking point is over 6 cents per DVD sold. Right now the writers get only 2 cents per unit and are asking for that to be raised to 8 cents per unit sold. <BR/><BR/>YimTim ORourkehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06556073404656508177noreply@blogger.com