I hear 3-6 months from various sites, interviews, etc. Fingers crossed!

Heath

The big problem is the longer the strike continues the more it hurts the crews working on the projects. Most people I know don't have things that they can really "fall back on"... I have a couple of degrees and can always find short term contract work doing something outside the film/video industry, but that's not the case with a lot of the crew members.

I certainly support what they want, but outsiders have a hard time understanding how things really are in this business. If they were asking for a lot more than they are, I might not be as supportive, but the writers are simply asking for what is fair.

Wayne

Yup. I'm down to one day of work this week, and I have perhaps 4 more days scheduled between now and early December and that may be it for a long time. And having been in this business since I was 18, I'm not really qualified to do much else. But believe me, I'm thinking long and hard about it!

I have talked to a number of my fellow crew members who were expecting to keep working full time through the end of TV season in early summer; an amazing number of them live paycheck to paycheck, so they will become early casualties.

Hey Charles,

I know a guy who makes $50,000 a year in TV out in L.A. That's barely enough to get by. I'm very worried about a lot of people out there.

With the housing market in Florida in the dumps, indie film production collapsed, plus TV and Video production haven't been doing great at all. I have a bad feeling that if the strike stretches on, many former Florida residents will move back from L.A., creating the classic supply-demand scenario. Huge supply, low demand=lower pay, fewer jobs.

Heath

Back in 2001 I was a "casualty", if you will, of the threatened strike and later 9/11. I had just moved out to LA from college so all I had was savings and some small stuff here and there for income. Needless to say I didn't last long and since then my perspective has changed about a couple of things. Namely, I always have a "rainy day fund" that is at least 6 months of living expenses and I'll take whatever work I can get (industry or not) to keep at least some money coming in if need be.

I've heard rumors that the studios might wait until the SAG contract is set to expire so they can "kill two birds w/one stone" and not give SAG a chance to say, "Well you gave the WGA X so we want X+Y". Has anyone else heard this?


-A

Honestly, I think if they wait that long, then the other unions (IATSE and others) will be putting a lot of pressure on the writers to settle. That's just too many months of not having work for people to go on. But, you're smart by having a rainy day fund. Sometimes that's simply hard for people to do especially in LA where the cost of living is through the roof.

Wayne

My friend's ex-girlfriend's parents bought her a 2 bedroom condo in West Hollywood. $750,000...cash.

It's funny, another friend makes $2000 a week and struggles in L.A. WOW!

heath

Wow! Is the cost of living in LA really that high? What drives it? Property/rental prices or is everything expensive? I had the impression that most things were quite affordable in the States (certainly food, cars, petrol and equipment are).

I think California counts as it's own country. :D

"To whom much is given, much is expected" as the old saying goes. The corollary being, "From whom much is expected, much SHOULD BE GIVEN".

It will become more apparent as the strike goes on, just how important writers are to the foundation of the industry. If the writers don't work, NOBODY does... should certainly illustrate how valuable their efforts are, and how they should be accomodated. No one thinks twice about paying studio 'heads' millions in severance compensation, but hesitate to give writers a bump, or even a PIECE of residuals in some circumstances.

I absolutely feel for Charles and other crew members, though we might benefit by seeing/hearing more from him on the forum! (His insights and opinions are always valuable.) And I certainly do hope that the whole thing is settled amicably and soon.

And living in California is damned expensive. Especially L.A or San Francisco. We are in the process of moving from San Mateo, to Foster City... and took a look at some 'starter' homes for $800,000... Not much and a 'handyman's dream'. We're still renting.

Real Estate is outrageously high, Gas prices are the highest in the U.S., rents are also high... food is a little higher than other parts of the country, but eating out is typicaly fifty percent higher than elsewhere. Services are also about fifty percent higer.

We had a big housing boom (my condo went from $70,000 to $250,000 back to $175,000), and homes are still expensive. A ranch-style house here in West Palm Beach, FL goes for around $300,000 on 1/4 acre. In Los Gatos, near Silicon Valley, it would go for 1.25 million.

heath

NYC is pretty pricey; I saw a story on the news two weeks ago that you need $200,000 a year to *get by.*

heath

How many weeks a year does your friend work? W/a roommate to split living expenses I've made $25k/yr before taxes and still had money after monthly expenses to squirrel away in the bank. Was I living the high life? Not anywhere close, but I was never left wanting at the end of the month either.

LA is a very expensive place to live, and I'm not making assumptions about your friends Heath, but some people aren't very good at managing money. I have friends here that pretty much go paycheck to paycheck, or have massive CC debt, and they still buy iPhones, big DVD collections, and PS3's/Xbox360's. And now w/the strike some are in real danger of going from "barely getting by" to "in over their heads" and they really have no one to blame but themselves.


-A

Andrew, unfortunately that is indeed the case with many people in our industry. There is a tendency towards "toys". Below-the-line salaries can vary widely, from a low such as Heath suggested to a really handsome amount at the top of the pile (especially if you rent gear as well as labor), but quite a few live beyond their means and have little tucked away for a "rainy day". We don't have much literal rain this season, but the metaphoric storm is settling in around us.

That's the case, for sure. I had to re-think after I read your post. Because another friend is doing better with $1,000 a week. But I think that's typical all over the place.

Okay, we're WAY off topic. I hear CBS news writers, who are unionized, are voting to strike tomorrow or so.

http://www.deadlinehollywooddaily.co...-known-monday/

I wonder, since most news writers don't get paid big bucks like major screen and TV writers do, how long they'd be willing to go without a check...

heath