The Hollywood Strike - PT D

VIDEO seen in class:

QUESTIONS:

1° How do you think AI might change the way movies, shows, and other popular media are made?

2° Who has been on strike as described in this story?
3° What were the demands of the striking writers?
4° When did the strike begin?
5°  Why are writers and actors concerned about artificial intelligence?
6°  How might this agreement change the entertainment industry going forward?

7° Do you think that writers and actors are right to ask for protections, and if so what protections do you think would be appropriate?

USEFUL VOCABULARY:

AMPTP - Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers. The AMPTP is a trade association that represents over 350 American film and TV production companies in negotiations with labor unions, including the WGA, the Screen Actors Guild (SAG-AFTRA), and the Directors Guild of America (DGA).

Strike (n) – a period of time when workers refuse to work because of an argument with an employer about working conditions, pay levels, or job losses.

Studio (n) – a building or place where films are made, or a company that makes them.

To walk out (phrasal v) – to stop working or leave your job because of a disagreement with your employer.

Script (n) – the words of a film, play, broadcast, or speech.

Union (n) – an organization that represents the people who work in a particular industry, protects their rights, and discusses their pay and working conditions with employers.

Compensation (n) – the combination of money and other benefits (= rewards) that an employee receives for doing their job.

Residual (n) – a payment made to an actor, singer, writer, etc. for repeated uses of their work.

Season (n) – one of several series of television programmes with the same title and the same characters.

Residuals check - a payment made to a performer for a later broadcast of their work after their payment for the initial performance = the compensation earned from reuse of material.

Writers’ Room - An office where TV writers develop and break a story. Writers brainstorm and pitch ideas, outline episodes, and workshop seasons. Writers’ rooms vary in size and duration based on the needs of the show and financial decisions made by studios. Rooms are staffed, on average, by around seven writers with extended contracts.

Staff writer - An entry-level TV-writing position.Staff writers develop and break a story in a writers’ room. They are not often assigned to write an episode’s script, so their work is unlikely to result in a “teleplay by” credit. As a staff writer moves up in the writers’-room ladder, the next role is story editor, followed by executive story editor, co-producer, producer, supervising producer, co–executive producer, and then showrunner.

EXTRA READING MATERIALS:

extra-reading-materials.pdf (89.86 Ko)

HOMEWORK:

The writers strike is just one of many significant labor actions that have taken place this year. Read this article on CNN and explain why so many strikes are happening now? What are some common demands of the strikes?

https://edition.cnn.com/2023/09/16/business/strike-uaw-writers-actors-america/index.html