Writer Strike NYC

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Today is the third day of the Writer’s Strike. Things are ugly, filthy, and cold here in New York City.

If you made your way from the E train to Rockefeller Center you would see the entire road between the Skating Rink and NBC Studios completely blocked off by picketing writers. You would see Tina Fey, and Aaron Sorkin among the New York writers that you may or may not immediately recognize.

Accounts are coming in from all over on what the situation is. Craig Mazin, screenwriter of the Scary Movies, has been doing amazing coverage educating the lay man on what the writers have been through, as well as educated those millions of spec monkeys as John Rogers [Transformers]would call them. Joss Whedon wrote in from the front lines yesterday, James Gunn [Slither] reported that The Office is shut down as Steve Carrell refuses to come to work instead walking the pickets with many of his cast members who double as writers. Veteran screen writer John August explains why they’re striking way better than I could.

The Lost producers have been especially vocal. Damon Lindelof was quoted on last night’s NBC Nightly News. Javier Grillo-Marxuach, has put his two…ahem…four cents in. Neophyte Lost co-producer Brian K. Vaughan and Y: THE LAST MAN creator have been giving us day to day updates.

These guys are striking not only for their future, but for the future of the aspiring. The people who are un-produced, un-registered, and cannot benefit from being a WGA writer. Yet. These guys are fighting for them, the future, (me, one day?). Those episodes of Battlestar Galactica, Night Stalker and Blade: The TV Series that I downloaded off iTunes; writers see no money from that. Nothing. Even when the Writer’s Guild of America dropped their demand for a four cent raise per DVD sold, the studios still refused to negotiate. They don’t want the writers to see any money from downloadable new content, they don’t want them to be rewarded for putting in the long, hard hours, just so you sitting on that couch could be entertained. That’s all they want to do is be rewarded fairly (their idea of fair is eight cents per DVD) for busting their asses so you can be entertained by a good story, and compelling characters.

Even when they take away that DVD proposal, and ask to be rewarded what they currently make on DVD sales for the new media, the studios still walked away. What the fuck? Something stinks like Bigfoot’s dick. The studios just did a reach around and did the ol’ knuckle shuffle on the piss pump to the faces of the people who create what they make money off of.

This is inexcusable. Anyone who works and does what he or she loves and expects adequate compensation should be with the writers on this. Doesn’t matter if you’re aspiring, or Shane fucking Black. People who are not writers should be on the lines fighting with them making the studios realize that they should be rewarded appropriately for doing the work they love. Four cents a DVD? Four cents a download? Come on, now you are displaying what Billy Walsh would say on Entourage: you’re a fucking suit.

Though there is some light: Lisa linked a story I sent her regarding Jon Stewart covering the salaries of his Daily Show and Colbert Report writers. I really, really, wish, that guy would do something to make me hate him. Just please, please, stop being a straight up good guy. If only the studios could see his good graces and see how wrong they are.

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