WGA/SAGAFTRA Strike Discussion Thread | SAG Ratifies Contract

[filmlover]

I suspect the October date is when these strikes will be completely resolved but with SAG being done first once they realize the big fall film festivals (and awards season) are in peril for real. Most (all?) of the movies these next few months like Challengers had already shot promo stuff ahead of the deadline in preparation so the box office shouldn't see much of an effect, if any.

[Jonwo]

Just now, filmlover said:

I suspect the October date is when these strikes will be completely resolved but with SAG being done first once they realize the big fall film festivals (and awards season) are in peril for real. Most (all?) of the movies these next few months like Challengers had already shot promo stuff ahead of the deadline in preparation so the box office shouldn't see much of an effect, if any.

I don't think Challengers would really benefit or gain that much. 

 

I'm surprised Sony hasn't decided to break ranks given they're the only studio with no streaming platform aside from Crunchyroll. Hell, why haven't indies like A24 done the same either?

[ZattMurdock]

3 minutes ago, filmlover said:

I suspect the October date is when these strikes will be completely resolved but with SAG being done first once they realize the big fall film festivals (and awards season) are in peril for real. Most (all?) of the movies these next few months like Challengers had already shot promo stuff ahead of the deadline in preparation so the box office shouldn't see much of an effect, if any.

Blue Beetle, TMNT and others also have press junket and promo material filmed:

 

 

 

Edited July 14, 2023 by ZattMurdock

[Celedhring]

Oh yeah, the VFX sweatshops have to end. It's shameful. Sadly, I don't think the studios will ever agree to an union contract for VFX.

 

Which is proof of why unions are important and need to be protected.

[MysteryMovieMogul]

7 minutes ago, FunkMiller said:

 

Not the case.

 

The Flash created CGI likenesses of the dead actors and thrust them up on screen as lifeless mannequins. It was horrific. Hell, they even did the same with people who are still alive like Helen Slater, just to avoid paying anything out, I'd imagine.

 

 

How did they think that was going to go over well?!? So glad I skipped that one.

 

Drew McWeeny has a lot of opinions I disagree and loves to editorialize as if everyone believes as he does (or he has in the past, I also quit Twitter) so I apologize for thinking this was him doing his McWeeny thing again, but no, The Flash really is that bad. Yikes.

[FunkMiller]

6 minutes ago, Celedhring said:

Oh yeah, the VFX sweatshops have to end. It's shameful. Sadly, I don't think the studios will ever agree to an union contract for VFX.

 

 

They will if the entire industry refuses to work. This is historically how unions are formed. 

 

The irony of this situation is that AMPTP have probably strengthened the need for, and the solidarity of, the unions that they have tried to divide and conquer. One wonders if they are getting their winning strategy advice straight from the Kremlin 🙄

Edited July 14, 2023 by FunkMiller

[AJG]

5 minutes ago, Celedhring said:

Oh yeah, the VFX sweatshops have to end. It's shameful. Sadly, I don't think the studios will ever agree to an union contract for VFX.

 

Which is proof of why unions are important and need to be protected.

 

They're in a sticky position because studios can also outsource VFX work internationally for cheaper rates than the US

[ZattMurdock]

1 minute ago, MysteryMovieMogul said:

How did they think that was going to go over well?!? So glad I skipped that one.

 

Drew McWeeny has a lot of opinions I disagree and loves to editorialize as if everyone believes as he does (or he has in the past, I also quit Twitter) so I apologize for thinking this was him doing his McWeeny thing again, but no, The Flash really is that bad. Yikes.

Drew is my all time favorite film critic lol. I think my biggest disagreement with him is that he unabashedly loved Man of Steel, and back of then that was my most hated superhero film of all time. Then BvS happened lol.

[filmlover]

9 minutes ago, ZattMurdock said:

Blue Beetle, TMNT and others also have press junket and promo material filmed:

 

 

 

I'm aware of that. Also wouldn't worry about the movies in the fourth quarter either (other than Ghostbusters, which is obviously headed to sometime next year since it had just finished filming) since they're either already finished/awaiting release or were the top priorities these past two months to get any actor-related work done (Patrick Wilson just said promoting Insidious the other week he had just finished additional stuff for Aquaman 2 that was likely done in preparation for a strike) so that they could meet their holiday release dates.

[Torontofan]

11 minutes ago, Celedhring said:

Oh yeah, the VFX sweatshops have to end. It's shameful. Sadly, I don't think the studios will ever agree to an union contract for VFX.

 

Which is proof of why unions are important and need to be protected.

 

I mean the VFX for Hollywood lately is really bad, there are rushing the VFX.

 

Transformers 3 looks better then many recent films in CGI

[DInky]

18 minutes ago, ZattMurdock said:

Marvel Studios need to pay their VFX artists better but it’s not just them, it’s Hollywood in general. There is a Neg VFX supervisor that is working on Oppenheimer pissed off at that whole "no CGI shots" bullshit stunt that Nolan pulled off on a Collider interview that is very vocal about this saying that VFX people should unionize and strike. I sincerely hope it happens, it’s a long time coming and I think that there is a lot of stigma with the profession that you ironically don’t see with stunt people. Their work is as vital to Hollywood as the actors and writers. I believe it would be as much impactful as the WGA’s strike, if not more.

 

They were peddling similar nonsense during the marketing campaign of Top Gun Maverick.

[Celedhring]

8 minutes ago, AJG said:

 

They're in a sticky position because studios can also outsource VFX work internationally for cheaper rates than the US

 

Yeah, that's my rationale. VFX is very easy to outsource (and they do so already) so they could easily see out a strike.

[Jonwo]

1 minute ago, filmlover said:

I'm aware of that. Also wouldn't worry about the movies in the fourth quarter either (other than Ghostbusters, which is obviously headed to sometime next year since it had just finished filming) since they're either already finished/awaiting release or were the top priorities these past two months to get any actor-related work done (Patrick Wilson just said promoting Insidious the other week he had just finished additional stuff for Aquaman 2 that was likely done in preparation for a strike) so that they could meet their holiday release dates.

Studios would have ramped up things because of the WGA strike anyway which is why the idea of a Covid style exodus of films in 2023 suggested by some is very unlikely.

 

Anything currently undated will stay undated for now unless it's already been filmed. WB has Salem's Lot on the shelf which wasn't written off for tax credits as well as Coyote Vs Acme which was filmed last year. 

 

 

[filmlover]

9 minutes ago, Jonwo said:

Studios would have ramped up things because of the WGA strike anyway which is why the idea of a Covid style exodus of films in 2023 suggested by some is very unlikely.

 

Anything currently undated will stay undated for now unless it's already been filmed. WB has Salem's Lot on the shelf which wasn't written off for tax credits as well as Coyote Vs Acme which was filmed last year. 

 

 

There's a lot of movies already made but are still undated that will likely end up as insurance for 2024. The Bikeriders (Jeff Nichols drama with Tom Hardy, Austin Butler, and Jodie Comer), for instance, is in the can (has its rating and everything) and could be dated for the fourth quarter but they won't release it until the actors are allowed to promote it.

[WittyUsername]

56 minutes ago, ZattMurdock said:

Marvel Studios need to pay their VFX artists better but it’s not just them, it’s Hollywood in general. There is a Neg VFX supervisor that is working on Oppenheimer pissed off at that whole "no CGI shots" bullshit stunt that Nolan pulled off on a Collider interview that is very vocal about this saying that VFX people should unionize and strike. I sincerely hope it happens, it’s a long time coming and I think that there is a lot of stigma with the profession that you ironically don’t see with stunt people. Their work is as vital to Hollywood as the actors and writers. I believe it would be as much impactful as the WGA’s strike, if not more.

When was this, exactly? 

Edited July 14, 2023 by WittyUsername

[Jonwo]

19 minutes ago, filmlover said:

There's a lot of movies already made but are still undated that will likely end up as insurance for 2024. The Bikeriders (Jeff Nichols drama with Tom Hardy, Austin Butler, and Jodie Comer), for instance, is in the can (has its rating and everything) and could be dated for the fourth quarter but they won't release it until the actors are allowed to promote it.

I keep stressing to people that the SAG and WGA strikes only impacted Hollywood which is still a big deal but the film and TV industry exists outside of Hollywood and the other actors and writers unions in other countries can be supportive but as has been pointed by British Equity, can't strike in solidarity because in many cases depending on where you are it's illegal. Even American Equity which covers theatre is supportive but they aren't going to ask their members to strike because they don't want to harm Broadway over a fight that they're not involved in. 

Edited July 14, 2023 by Jonwo

[ZattMurdock]

11 minutes ago, WittyUsername said:

When was this, exactly? 

 

He has been talking about this a lot on his Twitter account.

 

 

It isn’t just him that is directly working on Oppenheimer, the whole VFX community on Twitter and Threads have been very vocal about this. First I think he gave Nolan credit and was going with the whole theory that Collider Frosty misconstrued what Nolan said, but this pissed off tweet in Spanish was  posted minutes afterwards the video interview with Nolan was posted. Frosty didn’t lie, Nolan straight up said that "there is no CGI shots" on his film. He is reacting to that there. 
 

 

[Jonwo]

I do like Nolan but he does come across as a bit of a luddite. Physical effects are cool and all but I don't think it gives him the right to dismiss CGI as a lesser form of VFX.

[ZattMurdock]

10 minutes ago, Jonwo said:

I do like Nolan but he does come across as a bit of a luddite. Physical effects are cool and all but I don't think it gives him the right to dismiss CGI as a lesser form of VFX.

I love Nolan. But he needs to drop the auteur crap a tad bit. It would be much more pleasant to the people that work with him and get him extra points as a director if he educated people on how CGI helps his films, not keep banking on the whole mister analogue schtick. It isn’t cute when it comes at the expense of the visibility of people that work on his films. He already has my money, going out of his way to invisibilize the work of people that work on his films isn’t cool.

[WrathOfHan]

What the fuck does Nolan's use of CGI have to do with either strike at hand?