After the agreement with the screenwriters, what timetable will the strike be released in Hollywood?

A step in the right direction to end the paralysis that blocks Hollywood. Sunday evening, the Screenwriters Guild (WGA) and the studios, via their joint organization the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP), announced that they had reached an agreement in principle on a new collective agreement valid for three years. But this does not yet allow the resumption of filming, suspended from the return to the sets of the actors mobilized since July 14.

The content of the advances was not made public or communicated to the 11,000 subscribers. The wording of the agreement was still being finalized. “We have reached agreement in principle on a minimum basic agreement on all points of the agreement, subject to final contract wording,” the WGA said. “We can say, with great pride, that this agreement is exceptional – with significant gains and protections for screenwriters across all member industries,” promises the WGA. The organization asked for safeguards regarding the use of artificial intelligence, better remuneration, better sharing of streaming-related revenues and a mandatory minimum number of screenwriters in the writing room. The more episodes the program has, the more the number of authors increases.

However, the screenwriters cannot resume writing this Monday. They remain on strike for the 146th day in a row, even if the pickets in front of the studios are lifted. The agreement must be ratified by the officials of the WGA East Coast and West Coast. The text will then be submitted to the votes of all members. During the 2007-2008 strike, an agreement was reached on the 96th day of the strike but the strike was lifted 4 days later.

You will then need to decide on a return to work date. The specialized press believes that the first to return to the writing rooms will be authors who work for talk shows and late shows. Programs, where the actors do not intervene. Solidarity since the beginning of the movement, flagship presenters Jimmy Kimmel, Stephen Colbert and others want to restart together at the beginning of October.

On the feature film and series front, the restart will take longer. Studios have started to inquire about the availability of workspaces. It is estimated that it will take two months, from the ratification of the contract, for production to resume normally. But the cameras will not be able to work until the AMPTP resumes its negotiations with the actors' guild, the powerful SAG-AFTRA which represents 160,000 talents.

The WGA agreement can serve as a source of inspiration and discussion but cannot be duplicated. SAG-AFTRA and AMPTP will have to negotiate. Their demands are similar but not identical. The actors are demanding an 11% increase in fees, better residual remuneration which reflects the number of views on the platforms.

The dangers posed by artificial intelligence regarding image rights and the use of extras also differ. Certain concerns, such as the supervision of audition practices, are specific to actors. Because of confinement and Covid, the norm is now to film your audition yourself and send the link. Which requires having the right equipment and assembly knowledge. Which puts many candidates at a disadvantage.

Once an agreement is found and ratified by the members of SAG-AFTRA, the AMPTP will not be at the end of its long summer of social protest. In 2024, they will have to renegotiate the collective agreement linking it to the International Alliance of Stage, Theater and Cinema Employees (I.A.T.S.E) which brings together costume designers, makeup artists and set technicians. So many artisans and intermittent workers in the entertainment industry have been hit hard by the movement of screenwriters and actors. Forced unemployment, many had to leave Hollywood and New York or find food jobs.