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Originally posted by: odifiend
My question is: "If you are willing to take a risk, why shouldn't you reap the benefits?" There is a huge risk in entering the entertainment industry in the first place. Not everybody makes it. Not every pilot is well received. Not every show lasts forever. A writer who gets picked up should be compensated for the entertainment they provide. That is how it works for actors. The difference is that an audience can physically see an actor and actress - naturally they can garner more support for themselves. Not true for the writer. You are right in that writers don't do it alone - but they aren't as replaceable as a best boy especially once the audience has gotten a taste for them. Nor is the risk of being a stage hand as great as that of deciding to write.
I think you would be surprised how replaceable many of the writers can be, and if this strike drags on long I think we may find out. You are right it is not easy to get in the business, but once you are there, if you are talented you can and do succeed. Though I wouldn't really call trying to get into something a "risk" it is more of a goal, because most people do something else if they cannot achieve that goal. There are different things that a decent writer can do, and sure it may not be their dream job but they can still utilize their talents. Heck with writing you can write your scripts bits and pieces at time with good time management, that is not a big risk IMO, all they are dedicating is a few hours a day (Or whatever) and when it is ready they can start shopping it around which perhaps requires the biggest dedication but it still can be done and if it gets rejected you move on with life.
On the flip side if you are a corporation with shareholders, your assets are physically invested in a company and you cannot just move on and try again, if you do you may be filing for bankruptcy depending on how much you have invested. Whether people wish to admit it or not, the corporate heads have many people to worry about, the writers just have themselves so they may not care or really see the big picture. With that said, I do support some residuals to the writers but I think it should be dependent on merit, not what the guild dictates. Though on the flip side I have trouble caring about a group of people are doing relatively well, perhaps not rich, but at the very least middle class who get paid thousands of dollars for a 30 minute script. Now if they were coal miners or some dreadful job with poor wages and working conditions, I could be more sympathetic. As it stands, I hold them in slighly less contempt than I do professional athletes who go on a strike. Let's just say, if I could get into the script writing business I would be more than happy with what compensation is now.
But, let me just say you are definitely a fun person to debate odified! I think we'll just have to agree to disagree here. One area I think we can agree on though is that it is hard to get the full story from these negotiations, both sides are throwing pot shots at each other and you have no idea who did what because each side is blaming the other! It would be great if they could sit down like civilized adults and politely negotiate without slinging mud at each other in front of the media.
Topic: Fox makes Family Guy without Seth MacFarlane (Read 13942 times)
