Standing Together with an Eye on the Future

The reactions to the DGA deal and the resumption of the WGA-AMPTP negotiations have been coming fast and furiously. For a survey of the wide range of opinions, we've posted links at the end of this entry.

Personally, I've written about the need for WGA members to remain strategic in their thinking. Now I'm struck by another realization. When the strike is over, all of us in the industry will, gradually, go back to what we were doing before. As difficult as the strike has been, we should keep in mind that a strike isn't a divorce, where you never have to see the other person again, and you can let it rip and vent all that accumulated rage. This is a mediation between partners in an on-going relationship.

Strike TV and other initiatives like it will provide a venue for filmmakers to exploit independent, New Media platforms, but the majority of WGA members will find themselves working on conventional movies and television shows. Even if those jobs can be impossibly difficult and stressful, we do them because we like it. It's a good sign that in recent days the "fiery rhetoric" on both sides has cooled down.

As importantly, WGA members shouldn't turn on one another as negotiations resume. Guild solidarity was important at the beginning, and it will be just as important all the way to the end. After the 1988 strike there were groups within the WGA membership that hated one another. It took years to smooth over those fractures. In 2007, we've all seen how the Guild rallied together and remained unified. When the closing moments come, we should focus on the fine points of the deal and debate them, but not at the expense of unity.

We all know this is not our last contract negotiation. In 3 years, we'll be sitting down again with the AMPTP. The way we conclude the 2007 negotiation will set the stage for our ability to pursue our interests in 2010.

Reactions in the wake of the DGA deal
Red Sox Fan
Robert Elisberg
Alfredo Barrios
Michael Seitzman
Thania St. John
Paul Haggis
Jonathan Tasini
Mark Evanier
Jonathan Handel
John Wells
United Hollywood's First Glance