Update: My cold is getting worse, so I’m going to sit out picketing this afternoon in hopes of rallying for another WGA commitment tonight.
Thursday picketing
I’ll be picketing at NBC this afternoon, 3:30 to 5:30 p.m. I’m fighting a cold, so if I don’t shake your hand, please take no offense.
Strike, day 93; Production, day 2
With all eyes on yesterday’s primaries, the announcement of the big, bi-coastal WGA membership meeting this Saturday was easy to overlook. But it’s certainly a welcome development. It’s widely expected that the WGA boards will discuss the status of the agreement with the AMPTP, and outline the steps needed to get back to work.
I anticipate some uncomfortable questions and awkward moments. That’s almost a given at a meeting with 1,000+ people and open microphones. But I can plead for a little decorum. Specifically:
- Dissent does not equal treason. You can disagree with anyone in the room or on the stage, but that doesn’t mean they’re a villain or a sell-out.
- If someone else asks your question, or makes your point, sit down. Yes, you waited in line 20 minutes to get to the mic. But let someone else say something new.
- The future takes precedence over the past. There are a lot of histories to be written about the strike, including alternate scenarios. These make interesting message-board discussions, but don’t play well as one-sided polemics.
In Los Angeles, the meeting is at the Shrine Auditorium — often home to awards shows, but also the stage where I got my USC diploma. I’m planning on working the phone banks at the WGA mothership on Friday, so if you’re a member, there’s a chance I may be calling you to encourage you to come to the pow-wow.
Much of yesterday’s shooting on the web pilot was constrained to a narrow kitchen, which reminded me again why traditional TV comedies have unrealistically-sized rooms. Another challenge: this show has a lot more characters in a scene than The Nines did, which inevitably slows down the work as you connect eye-lines and coverage. But it went smoothly, and we got our last shots just as the sun went down.
Today, we have a late call — 11:30 a.m. — and wrap production after dark.
Strike, day 92; Production, day 1
Instead of picketing, I spent today in production on the short-film-slash-web-pilot, details of which I’m keeping infuriatingly mum so that there’s some tiny bit of surprise when I can start showing it to people.
Today went really, really well. We’re shooting two cameras — the HVX-200’s I was all a-twitter over before they came out — with six actors in challenging sets. It’s a very different kind of shooting than The Nines, looser and less planned, with many departments and amenities absent but (largely) unmissed.
I’m tired, but happy tired, which is a huge difference.
Tomorrow, call time is 7 a.m. We’re wrapping early to allow cast and crew to vote in the California primary elections.
Added: I got the same email all WGA members got this evening, with word of important progress but significant points still to be resolved. So don’t pop corks just yet. But that’s not to say you couldn’t stockpile a few bottles. And get email addresses for those folks you met on the picket line.