Page 2 - Writers

The Hollywood writers strike is over after guild leaders approve contract

Hollywood's writers strike was declared over after nearly five months Tuesday night when board members from their union approved a contract agreement with studios, bringing the industry at least partly back from a historic halt in production. The governing boards of the eastern and western branches of the Writers Guild of America and their joint negotiating committee all voted to accept the deal, two days after the tentative agreement was reached with a coalition of Hollywood's biggest studios, streaming services and production companies. After the vote they declared that the strike would be over and writers would be free to start on scripts at 12:01 a.m. Wednesday. Late-night talk shows the first to go dark when writers walked out on May 2 are likely the first shows that will resume. Scripted shows will take longer to return, with actors still on strike and no negotiations yet on the horizon. The writers still have to vote to ratify the contract themselves in early October, but .

Writers Guild reaches an agreement with Hollywood studios to end strike

Union leaders and Hollywood studios reached a tentative agreement Sunday to end a historic screenwriters strike after nearly five months, though no deal is yet in the works for striking actors. The Writers Guild of America announced the deal in a joint statement with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, the group that represents studios, streaming services and production companies in negotiations. WGA has reached a tentative agreement with the AMPTP, the guild said in an email to members. This was made possible by the enduring solidarity of WGA members and extraordinary support of our union siblings who joined us on the picket lines for over 146 days. The three-year contract agreement -- settled on after five marathon days of renewed talks by WGA and AMPTP negotiators that was joined at times by studio executives -- must be approved by the guild's board and members before the strike officially ends. In a longer message from the guild shared by members on social

Hollywood writers' strike continues: Here's what you need to know

Hollywood writers strike differ in terms of streaming show residuals, AI use, the number of writers required for shows, and employment durations

Hollywood strikes pose credit risk for $113 million municipal bond deal

Seller of debt, group affiliated with Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences, is familiar to muni-market participants because it has issued bonds several times for its LA museum

Author Amitav Ghosh on poppy fields, shifting mountains and eco-anxiety

A prolific writer, Ghosh talks to Chintan Girish Modi about ec0-anxiety, his passion for cooking, and Waheeda Rehman

Hollywood actors set to join writers' strike for a pay hike amid AI threat

Hollywood actors will join writers' strike over low pay and threat posed by implementation of artificial intelligence, actors will join the protest from Thursday midnight

Hollywood actors may join screenwriters on strike soon: Here's why

Hollywood actors may be days from joining screenwriters in what would be the first two-union strike in the industry in more than six decades, with huge consequences for film and television production. Here is a look at how it could play out, and why it's happening. WHAT'S HAPPENING WITH ACTORS' NEGOTIATIONS? The contract between the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Radio and Television Artists and the studios, streaming services and production companies that employ them had been set to expire Friday night at midnight Pacific time. But hours before that the two sides said they had agreed to extend the current contract, and talks on the next one, through July 12. Unionised actors have voted overwhelmingly to authorize their leaders to call a strike if no deal is reached. Talks also went past the deadline in 2014 and 2017, and agreements resulted both times. Reports have said the talks have been productive. But some actors have expressed worry that their leaders may not be

National Geographic lays off last writers, will not be sold in US anymore

National Geographic layoffs: Job cuts by Disney, the publication's parent company, were the second over the past nine months

1,000 Hollywood writers rally in Los Angeles for new contract with studios

Fifty days into a strike with no end in sight, about 1,000 Hollywood writers and their supporters marched and rallied in Los Angeles for a new contract with studios that includes payment guarantees and job security. Speakers at the Writers Guild of America's WGA Strong March and Rally for a Fair Contract on Wednesday emphasized the broad support for their cause shown by other Hollywood unions including actors in their own contract negotiations and labor at large. We're all in it together, we're all fighting the same fight, for a sustainable job in the face of corporate greed, Adam Conover, a writer and a member of the guild's board and its negotiating committee, told a crowd at the end of the march at the La Brea Tar Pits. We are going to win because they need us. Writers are the ones who stare at a blank page. We are the ones who invent the characters, tell the stories and write the jokes that their audiences love. They'd have nothing without us. Talks with the Alliance of Motion

Writer Arundhati Roy receives European Essay Prize for lifetime achievement

Writer Arundhati Roy has been awarded the 45th European Essay Prize for lifetime achievement, the Charles Veillon Foundation has announced. Roy has been awarded the prize for the French translation of her compilation of essays titled "Azadi" (2021). "The jury of the Prix Europeen de l'Essai wishes to highlight an enriching work in terms of reflection on the construction of the world and the relationship with language. Arundhati Roy uses the essay as a form of combat, analysing fascism and the way it is being structured. This is an issue that is increasingly occupying our lives. Her essays offer shelter to a multitude of people," the Foundation said in a statement. The jury also acknowledged Roy's "commitment to political action". In "Azadi", Roy has reflected on the meaning of freedom in a world of "growing authoritarianism". The essays include meditations on language, public as well as private, and on the role of fiction and alternative imaginations in current times. The Delhi-ba

As Hollywood fights AI, Indian screenwriters struggle for pay, credit

Minimum basic contract and a fair deal for their stories remains an ongoing battle

Hollywood directors ink deal with studios, writers still on strike

The tentative agreement includes improvements in wages and guardrails around artificial intelligence

Writers' strike hits Hollywood as members of the Writers Guild protest

The impact of the Hollywood writers strike was felt as major television networks began their annual week of sales presentations to advertisers on Monday, with news personalities like Willie Geist and Stephanie Ruhle left to hawk comedies and dramas for NBC Universal. Fox declined to announce a fall television schedule on Monday, citing uncertainties created by the strike. Some 11,500 members of the Writers Guild for America, saying the rise of streaming has hurt their earning power, walked off the job two weeks after talks on a new contract broke down, and haven't returned to the negotiating table since. Network late-night shows immediately shut down. Picketing writers targeting some of the few shows shooting episodes forced the shutdown, at least temporarily, of programs including Showtime's Billions, Severance on Apple TV+ and the new Marvel show, Daredevil: Born Again on Disney+. The network sales presentations, known as upfronts because TV executives use them to convince ...

WGA strike: Writers association appeals to stop working on US-based shows

Extending their support to the ongoing strike by Writers Guild of America (WGA), India's Screenwriters Association (SWA) has requested its members to halt their work on US-based films and web series. Members of the WGA went on strike early this week demanding better wages, higher minimum pay, more writers per show, and shorter exclusive contracts among other things. The SWA General Secretary Zaman Habib said the WGA is making legitimate requests on behalf of the writers' fraternity and they stand in solidarity with them. "We have appealed to our SWA members, whosoever is working on international shows and films, they should not be writing for now. It is a blanket request... appeal to them. We have great rapport and association with Writers Guild of America (WGA), Writers Guild of Israel, Great Britain, we are also affiliated with International Affiliation of Writers Guild (IAWG), we are one of the members, so we keep supporting each other," Habib told PTI. He said Guilds of other f

Explained: Why are Hollywood writers on strike?

Why are writers of popular Hollywood films and shows picketing outside major studios? What does this protest mean for viewers and the economy? Watch the video to find out

'Plagiarism machines': Writers, studios battle over future of AI

The Writers Guild of America (WGA) is seeking to restrict the use of artificial intelligence in writing film and television scripts

Hollywood writers go on strike for better pay amid Guild, studios deadlock

The Writers Guild of America, which represents more than 11,500 Hollywood scribes, said its strike is effective Tuesday morning Los Angeles time

British writer, historian, academician Patrick French died in London at 56

British writer, historian and academician Patrick French died in London after battling cancer for four years on Thursday, his family said. French, best known for his biography of VS Naipaul, "The World Is What It Is", and "India: A Portrait", died at 8 am (London time), his wife Meru Gokhale said. "At 8.10 am this morning my beloved husband Patrick French passed away in London after a brave battle with cancer. He was an exceptional father, friend, husband, teacher and mentor to many. His kindness and love will stay with us forever. He went in peace, without suffering," Gokhale, former publisher at the Penguin Press Group, said. Among those who sent in their tributes were Congress MP and author Shashi Tharoor, and historians William Dalrymple and Ramachandra Guha.

Coffee with BS: Meet Sudha Murty, the technocrat-turned-children's writer

Murty, who was awarded the Padma Bhushan last week, tells Chintan Girish Modi why she thinks kids connect with her as a grandmother

Author Kuldeep Jakhar is keen to try scriptwriting, wants to write a script for the non-fiction genre

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