WGA "No Writing Left Behind" campaign

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  • WGA "No Writing Left Behind" campaign

    https://deadline.com/2018/10/wga-wes...es-1202487960/

    I went to a Guild meeting here in NYC and I am glad that they are promoting this, but I am also very skeptical unless agents, managers and lawyers get behind it.

    To me that has been the #1 issue with sticking to guild rules: reps often HATE to bring this stuff up. They want to please the employer. they have MUCH more to lose by bringing up why you won't turn in a pitch document than just telling you to do so. Why? because there's 1000 other writers out there that wouldn't even blink at the idea of giving away free pages pre-contract. so the leverage on the employers part is... "everybody else does it" followed by "we'll get someone who isn't so difficult".

    if we had a strong buffer of reps who KNOW the MBA, and understand what this means for us writers (basically not getting ****ed over), then all of this hardline stuff would work.

    but it's doomed from the start when even our own representatives either go full Pontius Pilate on us ("it's up to you, buddy") or actively tell us to break guild rules ("all my other clients do it")

    what do you guys think?

  • #2
    Re: WGA "No Writing Left Behind" campaign

    It's difficult to say no when execs ask you to write something up for the boss. Every writer wants to please, to keep the momentum. But we have to put our foot (feet?) down.

    One thing I remind myself is that, in 15+ years of my career, never once has a leave-behind or pitch doc led to a job for me. Never. If the boss needs to hear the story, offer to go back in and pitch. No boss reads a writeup and says "We have to have this!"

    Resist the temptation.
    https://twitter.com/DavidCoggeshall
    http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1548597/

    Comment


    • #3
      Re: WGA "No Writing Left Behind" campaign

      It soooo depends. I'm the first writer one director turns to when he needs something. Work with him got me the majority of my income. I'm not going to refuse to write some minor thing for him, like additional outline or pitch or whatever, whenever he or his producer need that. He treats me like a part of the team trying to make the project possible, not a hired hand. And that, I guess, is what it boils down to. Don't write for free for strangers. But pouting and sending your long-time working associate away because of WGA rules just hurts everyone. Especially when you already have the green light.

      Comment


      • #4
        Re: WGA "No Writing Left Behind" campaign

        I think there's some confusion as to the rationale behind the "No Writing Left Behind" campaign. I've discussed it with some of those spearheading the campaign and feel that I'm on firm ground in offering some clarification:

        If you're a feature writer, a lot of your life involves pitching for assignments, which involves breaking an entire story (and writing and practicing a pitch) based on IP that YOU DON'T CONTROL. This can take weeks of your life-- for zero compensation-- and increasingly results in you being asked to do even more free work ("We'd love to see some pages on this!").

        There are almost always other writers up for the job-- anywhere from one other writer to ten other writers. And all of those writers are good enough that the studio asked them to come in and pitch. So you have lots of talented, even accomplished writers, working hard for zero money, in a competition that almost all of them will lose.

        This is bad for a million reasons, and I personally think that writers pitching for assignments should be compensated for their work, just like songwriters auditioning for jobs are compensated for their work. But that's probably not going to happen, so, if we can't stop the free pitching process, at least we can limit it to **actually pitching.**

        That's what this campaign is about-- saying no to written treatments, "sample pages," etc. This is about putting the breaks on a process that is, at present, careening toward becoming exploitative in the extreme.

        This isn't about whether you help out your director friend or whether you make a sick deck for that original pitch you're taking around. This is about what you can be asked to do by producers/studios in developing THEIR material for zero money.

        Comment


        • #5
          Re: WGA "No Writing Left Behind" campaign

          Thanks for this. Very helpful indeed.

          The pitching game/assignment triathlon is something that I have experienced firsthand but I have to be honest... I rarely pitch on big gigs that have hit the trades and are obviously very in demand. I have a feeling that a big writer has almost definitely been approached already - and that the smaller fish in the pond are brought in to a) keep the exec busy and b) farm ideas that he will most likely use or suggest as a "we think... " once the writer is hired. Obviously this varies from company to company. There are extremely ethical people out there, but this exchange of ideas is hard to protect and often people take advantage of that.

          I just wish there was real consistency across the board and that there wasn't this gray zone which the Writers Guild fails to control. I don't think it's for lack of trying. But as I mentioned I think it's a sort of institutionalized reluctance to protect writers that starts with agencies.

          Imagine if CAA, WME, and all the other agencies flipped out every time a company demanded pages or bullied a writer into doing free work. But they don't normally do that. They leave the decision up to us and we have much more to lose by saying NO than by appeasing the employer.

          How much do we have to lose? A year's worth of income for many of us.

          And since we have already bent over backwards spending 3-4 weeks breaking story for free, of course we are going to hope that the final push (sending written material) finally secures the job.

          I even posted about working pre-contract because I got a job and it's taking forever for the contract to come in. It's a similar situation in that I would HATE to start on the wrong footing with the producers (who asked to chat about where I'm at and how my outline is shaping up). But I had to because GOD FORBID the deal falls apart and I send them stuff , I'll literally end up with a double negative.

          Anyway. I want to lock agents and managers in a room with a WGA representative and force them to read the MBA because they have NO CLUE. Zero. Zilch. So how are we supposed to protect ourselves when our closest collaborators don't even know what rules we are forced to follow, as guild members?o

          Originally posted by AnyOtherName View Post
          I think there's some confusion as to the rationale behind the "No Writing Left Behind" campaign. I've discussed it with some of those spearheading the campaign and feel that I'm on firm ground in offering some clarification:

          If you're a feature writer, a lot of your life involves pitching for assignments, which involves breaking an entire story (and writing and practicing a pitch) based on IP that YOU DON'T CONTROL. This can take weeks of your life-- for zero compensation-- and increasingly results in you being asked to do even more free work ("We'd love to see some pages on this!").

          There are almost always other writers up for the job-- anywhere from one other writer to ten other writers. And all of those writers are good enough that the studio asked them to come in and pitch. So you have lots of talented, even accomplished writers, working hard for zero money, in a competition that almost all of them will lose.

          This is bad for a million reasons, and I personally think that writers pitching for assignments should be compensated for their work, just like songwriters auditioning for jobs are compensated for their work. But that's probably not going to happen, so, if we can't stop the free pitching process, at least we can limit it to **actually pitching.**

          That's what this campaign is about-- saying no to written treatments, "sample pages," etc. This is about putting the breaks on a process that is, at present, careening toward becoming exploitative in the extreme.

          This isn't about whether you help out your director friend or whether you make a sick deck for that original pitch you're taking around. This is about what you can be asked to do by producers/studios in developing THEIR material for zero money.

          Comment


          • #6
            Re: WGA "No Writing Left Behind" campaign

            Thank you AnyOtherName, I didn’t think about that distinction. You’re correct

            Comment


            • #7
              Re: WGA "No Writing Left Behind" campaign

              Originally posted by TravisPickle View Post
              if we had a strong buffer of reps who KNOW the MBA, and understand what this means for us writers (basically not getting ****ed over), then all of this hardline stuff would work.
              What is the MBA?
              Know this: I'm a lazy amateur, so trust not a word what I write.
              "The ugly can be beautiful. The pretty, never." ~ Oscar Wilde

              Comment


              • #8
                Re: WGA "No Writing Left Behind" campaign

                Having worked mostly as a graphic/brand designer, this subject reminds me of the No!Spec campaign against speculative design work and spec-based design contests:

                https://www.nospec.com

                It also reminds me of two of the design competitions that I've entered over the years, and how the hosts of those competitions stole my 'losing' entries for their own commercial use.

                The first one is a UK/US drinks design and packaging company called Stranger & Stranger who held a design innovation competition but eventually declared that none of the entries were good enough to win, and then around eighteen-months later they announced a new bottle design, for one of their clients, which is fundamentally the same as my competition entry.

                The second one is the French international luxury/fashion brand Hermes who held bi-annual 'Prix Emile Hermes' competitions. Around a year after my entry - a usb pendant with unique geometry - failed to come anywhere in the competition, Hermes released a new perfume in a bottle/case that has the same geometry as my pendant.

                What did I do? Nothing. I can't afford to make legal challenges against big companies for intellectual property theft. Perhaps I should have contacted a 'no win no fee' solicitor.
                Last edited by Crayon; 10-28-2018, 10:48 AM. Reason: grammar
                Know this: I'm a lazy amateur, so trust not a word what I write.
                "The ugly can be beautiful. The pretty, never." ~ Oscar Wilde

                Comment


                • #9
                  Re: WGA "No Writing Left Behind" campaign

                  Originally posted by Crayon View Post
                  What is the MBA?
                  The Minimum Basic Agreement. It's what the companies are agreeing to when they become Guild signatories.

                  HTH,
                  Just my 2 cents, your mileage may vary.

                  -Steve Trautmann
                  3rd & Fairfax: The WGAW Podcast

                  Comment


                  • #10
                    Re: WGA "No Writing Left Behind" campaign

                    As a very busy (working) writer told me over the weekend (at AFF), only heavy hitters (August and the like) can pull this. If you are not at their level and you try this, you will merely get passed over: i.e., you just screwed yourself out of possible work; won’t even be considered (because, who the F___ are you??). This is a guy with some big spec sales, has powerful reps, and is VERY busy, and even *he* doesn’t feel big enough to pull that ‘tude. This is the reality. Take it or leave it.

                    Comment


                    • #11
                      Re: WGA "No Writing Left Behind" campaign

                      Originally posted by nativeson View Post
                      As a very busy (working) writer told me over the weekend (at AFF), only heavy hitters (August and the like) can pull this. If you are not at their level and you try this, you will merely get passed over: i.e., you just screwed yourself out of possible work; won't even be considered (because, who the F___ are you??). This is a guy with some big spec sales, has powerful reps, and is VERY busy, and even *he* doesn't feel big enough to pull that 'tude. This is the reality. Take it or leave it.

                      That "very busy writer" is a complete and total ******* who's utterly and pathetically failing to show solidarity with his colleagues in the Guild. If writers stopped doing this as a group, it would stop-- the only people preventing that from happening are contemptible little twits like your AFF buddy who's cast himself as the sniveling dipshit in a prisoner's dilemma.

                      True story: I'm far from a "heavy hitter," and I (politely) said no to writing pages on an assignment pitch just a couple of weeks ago. Guess what? Everyone understood! I got the job! No one was screwed, and I didn't eff over my union in a display of pitiful, useless cowardice. If you're good, you don't have to cheat to work. THAT's the goddam reality.

                      Comment


                      • #12
                        Re: WGA "No Writing Left Behind" campaign

                        Well it’s the reality as long as people don’t follow the rules and think about their own asses
                        Which is why I go back to my original point:
                        Our reps need to get on our side more and erect a firewall of NO BS
                        We shouldn’t be the first line of defense and neither should the Guild



                        Originally posted by nativeson View Post
                        As a very busy (working) writer told me over the weekend (at AFF), only heavy hitters (August and the like) can pull this. If you are not at their level and you try this, you will merely get passed over: i.e., you just screwed yourself out of possible work; won’t even be considered (because, who the F___ are you??). This is a guy with some big spec sales, has powerful reps, and is VERY busy, and even *he* doesn’t feel big enough to pull that ‘tude. This is the reality. Take it or leave it.
                        Last edited by TravisPickle; 10-29-2018, 06:57 AM.

                        Comment


                        • #13
                          Re: WGA "No Writing Left Behind" campaign

                          Originally posted by AnyOtherName View Post
                          That "very busy writer" is a complete and total ******* who's utterly and pathetically failing to show solidarity with his colleagues in the Guild. If writers stopped doing this as a group, it would stop-- the only people preventing that from happening are contemptible little twits like your AFF buddy who's cast himself as the sniveling dipshit in a prisoner's dilemma.

                          True story: I'm far from a "heavy hitter," and I (politely) said no to writing pages on an assignment pitch just a couple of weeks ago. Guess what? Everyone understood! I got the job! No one was screwed, and I didn't eff over my union in a display of pitiful, useless cowardice. If you're good, you don't have to cheat to work. THAT's the goddam reality.
                          [Insert Citizen Kane slow clap gif]

                          Comment


                          • #14
                            Re: WGA "No Writing Left Behind" campaign

                            All this raises the question: Why join a union and then work for free and betray your comrades like a worthless scab?
                            Know this: I'm a lazy amateur, so trust not a word what I write.
                            "The ugly can be beautiful. The pretty, never." ~ Oscar Wilde

                            Comment


                            • #15
                              Re: WGA "No Writing Left Behind" campaign

                              Originally posted by AnyOtherName View Post
                              I personally think that writers pitching for assignments should be compensated for their work
                              Agreed. I've written entire movies and pilots in 5-10 page treatment format for potential assignment gigs, where I'd then be chosen as "the one" to land the opportunity according to my thrilled team... only to then watch the project go down the crapper due to a rift between the producers stopping development altogether, or a gig go to someone's buddy at the last second instead, or a network buy a similar tv concept and producers give up, etc.

                              All for zero bucks. And these were MAJOR producers/companies, by the way. All I could do was chalk it up to "experience" and making great connections by impressing with my writing and work ethic.

                              Writers spend a lot of time working to prove themselves worthy of being paid to work, lol. It's an unfortunate downside to trying to be successful in a highly competitive industry.
                              Last edited by Lahlowen; 10-29-2018, 09:04 AM.

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