39 Indie Projects Will Shoot During Strike
This is super important news.
A few people asked me if I was going to talk about the SAG-AFTRA strike and initially I said no, not because I didn’t want to, but because I’m not based in the States, and although I keep informed on everything going on, I’m not the right guy to shed light on this.
Long story short, my personal opinion is: of course I undoubtedly support the strike. Actors and writers are 100% in their right to ask for everything they’re asking for, it’s honestly shocking they even need to ask for some of these things, and I think this is one of the most impactful movements in Hollywood in recent years (even more-so because of this recent news that came out, I’ll get to that). It’s time the studio system remembers who it is that makes their movies.
The news in question is this. I encourage you to read the article, but if you’re feeling lazy, here’s the sum up: SAG-AFTRA allowed 39 independent projects to continue filming during the strike (two of them being A24 projects as A24 is not part of AMPTP). This is incredibly important and very very good news for a number of reasons:
It goes to show that this strike is not necessarily against the way the entire film industry is structured, but against the studio system. It’s against the Majors, studios like Universal, Warner, nowadays Netflix, etc., which make a lot of money are not agreeing to pay their creatives a little bit more money (I need to mention this is by the way a crazy oversimplification of a very complex issue and dynamic, but having said that, pay us more - no, we won’t - is the general sum up of the situation). So the strike is not against all films, just the ones that pay too little.
Smaller production houses, like A24, which are not a part of the AMPTP, are willing to meet the SAG-AFTRA terms and pay their creatives what they ask for. This proves that the strike terms are very much reasonable and the production houses can afford to cover them. The Majors are not meeting the terms not because they can’t, but because they don’t want to (again: this is an oversimplification, and the issue is not that simple to resolve, but that’s more of less the bottom line).
It’s a brilliant SAG-AFTRA strike technique. Basically what they are saying is: you’re not willing to meet our terms? No problem. We’ll go to these guys, who are.
An indie takeover. By far the most important point: if all writers & actors strike to not work for all AMPTP studios, and SAG-AFTRA allows them to work for any non-AMPTP houses, this means that all studio production stops and only independent productions (such that pay well & fair) continue. This means an influx of only independent cinema for a while. Of course not all independent films are good, believe me, but at the end of the day, indies are what’s pushing the industry forward. This would, for better or for worse, almost force the regular moviegoer go see indies - because that’s the only thing available - and expose them to a world of overall better and more influential cinema. Which leads to a world of more better and influential cinema. This might just be an invaluable chair reaction in the making.
Bonus point: I’m actually not sure on the specialities of this, but if SAG-AFTRA allows A24 productions to shoot, theoretically can they / have they allowed actors to promote previous A24 films they have worked on? If yes, this could intensely shape marketing campaigns in this upcoming awards season as indies would be the only features allowed to receive promotion from actors. This could shape the awards season which could in turn, again, shape the future of the industry.
Lots of good things going on. Lots of important things going on. I feel an immense sense of pride to be a part of this industry right now, even from across the pond, and admire all those thousands and thousands of creatives who have put their lives on hold to fight to a better and fairer future. I’d be right there are the picket lines if I could. This strike has the power to shape a new era of film - as powerful as that sentence is, it’s the truth - so keep a close eye on things and help where you can. For all our futures and for keeping the magic alive.