The unions stated that they stood “alongside their sisters, brothers, and kin” in the DGA’s pursuit of a fair agreement, referring to its ongoing contract negotiations with Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers. “A fair contract does not only benefit directors; it also benefits all workers in the film and TV industry, and acknowledges our interconnected nature. As the world’s attention turns to the AMPTP, we send a strong message: Our solidarity cannot be underestimated. SAG-AFTRA will begin contract renewal talks with AMPTP on June 7 and like the DGA, its agreement expires on June 30.
Meanwhile the WGA strike that started on May 2 after the Guild and AMPTP negotiators failed to reach a resolution has entered its fifth week.
Many Hollywood sources including executives, producers and agents believe the strike could run into September, by which time studios, streamers and networks will have been able to activate force majeure clauses to terminate their least productive overall deals with writers.
The calculation is that the cost-saving measure by the Hollywood companies, which have been undergoing belt-tightening and laying off thousands of staff – while continuing to compensate their senior executives handsomely – may make them more amenable to meeting the WGA’s compensation demands.
The strike has shut down most scripted US TV production and is bleeding into the feature production schedule, with a number of films already postponed.
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