Entertainment - Media News Watch originally published at Entertainment - Media News Watch
A Hollywood directors strike has been averted after Directors Guild of America (DGA) membership ratified the new collective bargaining agreement with Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) on Friday night (June 23) with an 87% vote in favour.
The deal, which concludes negotiations that ran from May 10 to June 3, approves a new contract that will last from July 1 of this year through June 30, 2026.
Meanwhile the writers are in the eighth week of their strike and Hollywood remains on tenterhooks as to the outcome of the SAG-AFTRA talks with AMPTP. SAG-AFTRA contracts expire on June 30 and should members go on strike – they have already voted overwhelmingly for strike authorisation – it would effectively close down Hollywood production and any US production in the world involving SAG-AFTRA members.
Multiple feature projects have been put on pause, scripted TV production in Hollywood appears to be grinding to a halt, and it emerged this week that several major Hollywood studios will not be presenting at Comic-Con in San Diego next month.
The DGA said on its website the new agreement brings “significant improvements for DGA members in all categories” with “extensive advances on wages, global streaming residuals, safety, diversity and creative rights”.
It also introduces new minimum terms and conditions covering non-dramatic programmes made for streaming and high-budget dramatic programms made for AVoD, and new provisions establishing that generative AI cannot replace the duties performed by members.
The Guild said 6,728 members voted out of 16,321 eligible voters, adding that the 41% turnout exceeded any prior DGA ratification vote.
DGA president Lesli Linka Glatter thanked her negotiating committee heads – chair Jon Avnet, co-chairs Karen Gaviola and Todd Holland, and national executive director Russell Hollander – and said: “I’m proud to report that DGA members have joined together to ratify a new contract that will allow every director, assistant director, unit production manager, associate director and stage manager to share in the success of what we create.”
She added, “I also want to acknowledge that the DGA didn’t bargain in a vacuum. We We
Entertainment - Media News Watch originally published at Entertainment - Media News Watch
