If you are an independent filmmaker in the UK or you’re an actor involved in low budget films you need to mark March 18th 2010 in your diary.
A meeting is taking place in London which could potentially revolutionise the way low budget and indie films are made in the UK and change the landscape forever.
The following text is reproduced from the TV Watercooler website:
In the wake of the recent London Dreams case, which retrospectively awarded an unpaid intern the National Minimum Wage for the hours she worked on a feature film, there has been much debate within the industry about the effect this decision will have. Does the verdict represent the long-overdue protection desperately needed by the industry’s most vulnerable workers, or the death of creativity and collaboration which often provides a stepping stone for those who are new to the industry? Should it be viewed as a victory or a disaster..?
In order to discuss both sides of the argument, BECTU’s Writers Producers and Directors’ branch brings you:
A Debate about Low Budget Collaborations and the National Minimum Wage
Please join us on Thursday 18th March at 7pm, at The University of London Union, Malet Street, London, WC1E 7HY (nearest tube stations: Goodge Street & Russell Square), and make your voice heard!
The proposition:
Working for free is the only way for new entrants to get a foot in the door of the film and television industry but… are you shooting yourself in the foot?
The meeting will be Chaired by Steve Overell of The Work Foundation. Jess Search from Shooting People; Martin Spence, Assistant General Secretary of BECTU; Chris Jones, author of The Guerilla Film Makers Handbook
and Benetta Adamson of the TV Wrap campaign, will be among the key speakers to address these issues. The event will take the form of a parliamentary-style debate with prearranged speakers setting out their point of view in support of, or opposition to, the motion. The audience is invited to actively participate throughout the debate.
The aim:
We hope that this event will kick off a process leading to an industry wide charter endorsed by BECTU, Shooting People and other interested parties setting out how microbudget films can flourish while staying on the right side of the law. We really hope this will be the beginning of an end to the confusion and misunderstandings surrounding what does and does not constitute a collaboration.
I’ve covered my thoughts on the subject in two previous posts - National Minimum Wage To Kill UK Low Budget Films and NMW & Low Budget Films - A Solution? so I won’t go over old ground. Sufficed to say that I will be there and, if you have any interest regardless of which side of the fence you sit on, I urge you to be there too.
* Mind you, he also said “I am the walrus, goo goo g’joob” so maybe he was something of a mentalist
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I was going to write a follow up post but Chris Jones has pretty much covered everything on his blog post - BECTU debate and the National Minimum Wage… Let’s all throw stones at each other.
Want to see the other sides view? Well here it is. High on creative energy, low on ethics? Indie film-making in the frame.
I came away from the meeting drained. The anger and hatred displayed by some, but by no means all, BECTU officials was astonishing and I know of a couple of union members who were considering resigning as a result.
Hopefully we can still work together and find the common ground and a way of working but I’m less certain than I was.
It’s not all about union people versus non union people Mikey, and I understand the hatred, anger and invective was pretty fierce on both sides. But I agree, let’s hope a way of working can be found that deals with the issue.
Maybe it was the rose tinted glasses I was wearing but I didn’t see the same levels of outright aggression from the indie crowd as I did from someone who is a “supervisory official” for the union. I was genuinely shocked by his outburst.
I’d hoped, naively perhaps, that the “us and them” mentality wouldn’t dominate the meeting in the way it did. I’d hoped that the clear and obvious common ground which all 4 of the speakers discussed would allow a more constructive approach but I came away pretty demoralised by the whole thing.
Ask Benetta about the outburst I’m referring to. She winced when I mentioned it to her after the meeting.
This is part of the problem. The mistrust a lot of the indie crowd have of the unions and, judging by the rather antagonistic headline used by BECTU, the disdain the unions have for the indie scene.
What could have been the opportunity to build bridges and work towards a common goal actually did the opposite.
BECTU say in the article that they will release extracts of the meeting online. I’d like the entire, unedited version posted online so that everyone who couldn’t attend can see exactly what happened but I can’t imagine that will happen.
You’re right. It’s not about union v non-union but BECTU are the ones who are being perceived as the orchestrators of this and that perception is not helped when the official in question was heard to say “Yes! We beat them” at the end…
Mikey, I’m sure there was similar kind of “inappropriate” behaviour on all sides - everyone is heated about this issue, look at the Shooting People poll postings, look at Phil Hobden’s site, you can’t fairly take one view of one union official and extrapolate from that! Yes BECTU organised the event but if Shooting People had done so you can hardly believe it wouldn’t have had the same flavour from the other side.
Well, as I have just posted on Chris’ blog in response to the BECTU communications officer, if they upload the full, unedited version of the meeting people can make their own judgements. I’m not holding my breath, though.
It would be interesting, but before the conspiracy theorists start building a case, there may be reasons why they can’t or won’t post the whole thing. Did they get permissions etc?
No but I overheard two of the BECTU organisers before the meeting raising the issue and their response was that if people didn’t want to be on camera then they should move.
Oh and the conspiracy theories have already started so don’t worry about that
Ah yes, so I see!
I think it demonstrates that most of the casting and crewing websites have no real interest in the issue, their ethical stance or responsibilities to their subscribers or the impact they ‘take’ from.
Shame on them.
Where were Casting Call Pro, Mandy, Talent Circle?
A good question and one I don’t have an answer for. As I’m sure you probably know, I publicly asked the CCP admin if they were attending and got no response.
I think you have to wonder if they want to give back to the industry or take from it? Do they have any long term commitment to the industry that pays their rents?
I am now closing off comments on this and my various NMW/Indie Film threads.
If you genuinely want to participate in the debate, join here: Indie Film Forum
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