Posts by Jonathan King
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@ Kyle
it would be possible to have a contract which didn't mention pay at all, but simply conditions
Over 30+ years of filmmaking in this country, very clear guidelines of 'standard', 'reasonable' and expected conditions have been established. And -- already -- woe-betide the production that doesn't meet them.
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From latest Stuff article:
Auckland agent Graham Dunster – who represents local actors including Lucy Lawless, Pio Terei and Antony Starr – believes the actors are seeking a mutually agreed standard contract.
He said that, at the moment, every time a film was made new contracts had to be drawn up from scratch for every member of the cast and crew.
"Which means the wheel has to be reinvented every single time for every single actor, which is an incredibly inefficient way of doing business," he said. "Because of that there is always a chance things are not as well documented or done."
Why are they insisting they meet The Hobbit producers if this is about "every time a film is made"?
And how can a standardised contract possibly be drawn up that would work for a $200 million studio film AND $4 million NZFC funded local film (that will have no worldwide release and will be sold off territory by territory) AND an under-$1 million completely independent film (of which we'll be seeing a lot more)?
"Which means the wheel has to be reinvented every single time for every single actor, which is an incredibly inefficient way of doing business," he said.
Is this really just about making the paperwork more efficient?!? If the actors think there are too many contracts to look at, they've never produced a film!!
I think this article just shows that really no-one has any idea what these people want! (Other than some 'face time' with PJ!)
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Why do the actors keep ignoring (and refusing to even address or acknowledge) the calls, most recently today's from Peter Jackson, to meet SPADA to negotiate an industry-wide set of guidelines -- as has been the policy for the past few decades?
Is it because their "entirely reasonable" demands won't, in fact, look that reasonable when seen through the lens of all of the different sized productions that might come under SPADA's purview, but require the scale and reach of The Hobbit to seem "reasonable"?
Surely, if precedents are set on The Hobbit, they will be applied to everything else?
It is, after all, the actors who keep saying "this isn't just about The Hobbit."
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The venerable Pattrick Smellie seems to have a level head on the matter.
Hey, COOL -- I think I got called a "local film industry baron". Sweeet.
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"Went splot?" Black Sheep sold 50,000 DVDs in the UK in its first month of release there.
But getting NZ films out there? It's really hard ... and getting harder ...
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No, they haven't directly helped get the films out there ... But, after the help they have given me, I don't really think that is something I could expect from them. (And, other than Peter Jackson, say, "presenting" one of my films, I don't know what they can actually do.)
I'm not sure where you're going with the other stuff ... Yes, my films are out on DVD. Yes, they are accessible as downloads -- a lot more illegal, but easily available, ones than legal. We don't have Google scanning our books, but we do have people ripping our DVDs and putting up torrents of the films. Not controllable, not a revenue stream.
But this aspect is an issue that I -- and lots of other filmmakers -- are thinking ( having to think ) about ... but the problem is grave for independent film and the answers still hard to find.
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Well, I've just told you they do help NZ films in significant ways ... so would that change your perception?
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What do you mean 'and they did'? What business did they do?
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@Islander " we dont see him as actually *helping* ANZ films/film projects."
As someone who has made two feature films in NZ that would not have been made if not for support from Peter Jackson (and, for that matter, Richard Taylor) both in indirect ways -- service from Weta Workshop, Park Road Post, Stone Street Studios at dedication and rates FAR below their international 'worth' -- and in some extraordinary direct ways FAR, FAR above and beyond the call of duty I can categorically say that is complete bullshit.
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PS: Though "ordinary rate" will be up for negotiation!