Hopefully this won’t come as a disappointment to the tens of fans I have out there, but I only have time this morning to dash off a quick note before applying myself to a little work I’ve picked up.
Don’t worry, the strike police aren’t going to break down my front door and haul me up in front of the Star Chamber down at Guild headquarters. They do have very strict rules about working during the strike, but they only cover guild signatory companies, and companies owned by signatories.
In fact, I had to turn down work, or to be more precise, I was offered work, but once I called it into the Guild, and was given the specifics on just what I was allowed to do, my friend withdrew his offer. Here’s how it breaks down:
- My friend had asked me to direct some wraparound segments to be used as promos;
- The company is not a Guild signatory, but is owned by Viacom;
- They had a script already, and just wanted me to shoot it and post it with packaging.
This is not acceptable to the Guild, since I would have to go into a building that is owned by a Guild signatory, even though the company I would be working for was not. Also, while I would be allowed to edit the bits, I would not be allowed to make cuts for time, which is a weird distinction since, well, aren’t all cuts for time?
So, even though my friend had gone the extra mile to figure out something for me to do to tide me over during this mess, the Guild decided that they would rather have someone else make that money.
Further, I was informed by the Guild that I did not have access to the Strike Fund until I was completely out of funds and could borrow no more money from the bank. Here’s the relevant excerpt from the anonymous Strike Loan Assistance Guy:
It means that, since I started preparing for this strike in April and actually thought it would happen, I get to spend my savings and borrow from the bank. Now, if I had blown it off and been broke right away, thenthe Strike Fund would have been there for me. I wonder if the Letterman writers know that their “special contributions” they are making as the only (shall we say, “legally”) working writers out there are going to writers who probably needed it before the strike even started.
Hey wait a second, Letterman is on CBS, and CBS is owned by Viacom, and Viacom is… oh, forget it.
Lucky for me, I’m now involved with writing some marketing documents for a company that has absolutely no ties with any broadcast entity whatever. And I get to work from home, so even though I would be allowed to set foot on their property, I ain’t gonna. And who knows, if Jay’s ability to win the night without writers prompts NBC to fire me when the strike is over, maybe I’ll have a job…
But not unless I start working. Gotta go.
