DGA and AMPTP Sign 3-Year Deal

The Director's Guild of America and Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers have worked out a three year deal that put to bed any fears that Director's would go on strike this June. It also may provide a template to help the WGA work out an agreement. Looking at the below, I wish I could work out such deals with my bosses considering that "show rate" basically means per episode. Might actually be able to afford an HDTV then. They get paid more in directing two episodes of TV then I earn in a year. I think I picked the wrong career. Anycase, it might help end the WGA strike as a template to build an agreement now exists but I think the ego of the leadership on both sides may interfere with things for a few more weeks until pressure builds and someone (I think on the WGA side) is replaced.

So what this has to do with Transformers in general is it means that Bay can continue to work on the movie. With the writer's strike still going on they might not have a finalized script, but usually the big action and CGI heavy sequences get locked in very early in the scripting process (because of the pre-prep and time it takes to shoot) so he could film much of the movie and do the dialogue and actor stuff at a later date if plan carefully enough.

The agreement includes:
Wage Increases
- Compensation for all categories except directors of network primetime dramatic programs and daytime serials increases by 3.5%, each year of the contract.
- Compensation for directors of network prime time dramatic programs and daytime serials increases by 3%, each year of the contract.
- Outsized increase in director's compensation on high budget basic cable dramatic programs for series in the second and subsequent seasons:
- For 1/2 hour programs: 12% increase in daily rate and increase in guaranteed number of days to 7 days.
- Results in show rate increasing from $9,009 to $11,760.
- For 1-hour programs: 12% increase in daily rate and increase in guaranteed number of days to 14 days.
- Results in show rate increasing from $18,010 to $23,520.

Residual Increases
- Residual bases increase by 3.5%, each year of the contract, except for reruns in network prime time.
- Residuals for reruns in network prime time increase by 3%, each year of the contract.

Healthcare
- Employers continue to make health care contributions at specially negotiated rate of 8.5%, secured in the
2005 Basic Agreement to address the impact of the growing cost of health care on the DGA Plan. Provisions permitting decrease in contribution rate by employers removed.

Other Provisions
- Second Assistant Directors to manage locations in New York and Chicago.
- Establishes a wrap supervision allowance of $50/day for the Second Assistant Director who supervises wrap on local and distant locations.
- Increases incidental fees and dinner allowances for Unit Production Managers and Assistant Directors.

New Media
Jurisdiction over:
- All new media content that is derivative of product already covered under current contracts.
- Original content:
- All original content above $15,000/minute or $300,000/program or $500,000/series, whichever is lowest.
- Original content below the threshold will be covered when a DGA member is employed in the production.

Electronic Sell-Through (Paid Downloads)
- More than doubles the rate currently paid by the employers on television programming to .70% above
100,000 units downloaded.
- Below 100,000 breakpoint: rate will be paid at the current rates of .30% until worldwide gross receipts reach $1 million and .36% thereafter.
- Increases rate paid on feature films by 80% to .65% above 50,000 units downloaded
- Below 50,000 breakpoint: rate will be paid at the current rates of .30% until worldwide gross receipts reach $1 million and .36% thereafter.

Distributor's Gross
- Payments for EST will be based on distributor's gross instead of producer's gross, a key point in our
negotiations. Distributor's gross is the amount received by the entity responsible for distributing the film or television program on the Internet. We would not have entered the agreement on any other basis.
- Companies will be contractually obligated to give us access to their deals and data, enabling us to monitor this provision and prepare for our next negotiation. This access is new and unprecedented.
- If the exhibitor or retailer is part of the producer's corporate family, we have improved provisions for challenging any suspect transactions.

Ad-Supported Streaming:
- 17-day window (24-day window for series in their first season).
- Pays 3% of the residual base, approximately $600 (for network primetime 1-hour dramas), for each 26-week
period following 17-day window, within first year after initial broadcast.
- Pays 2% of distributor's gross for streaming that occurs more than one year after initial broadcast.

Clips
- Provides the companies with limited windows where they can distribute clips of feature films and television programs in new media to promote a program. Provides for payment for all other uses in New Media.

Sunset Provision
- Allows both sides to revisit new media when the agreement expires.