Posts by Pat Hackett
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Pretty impressive press conference, actually, and he resisted the urge to put the boot in. Good on ya John.
Cue the left wing outrage.
I am very happy that the NZ film industry still has a future. I hope we can soon see more film projects tabled to follow The Hobbit. I hope all involved do a fantastic job and restore confidence in the industry.
Thanks very much for the informative posts and threads, Russell.
Ciao folks.
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And this:
On Campbell Live last night, Simon Whipp was asked, “If The Hobbit doesn't get made in New Zealand, will you carry any guilt with you?”
“No,” he said. It was a brutally honest admission, but not one that should have come out of the mouth of anyone – Australian or otherwise – claiming to represent the interests of any section of the NZ industry.
NZ Equity members need to look long and hard at how well they are served by being a part – autonomous or otherwise – of an overseas-based union whose interests are not always in line with their own.
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A new post on Sceenhub today putting the boot in:
http://www.screenhub.com.au/news/shownewsarticleG.asp?newsID=35079
Yesterday, a Media, Entertainment and Artists Alliance newsletter was sent out to NZ members about The Hobbit. It went out on MEAA letterhead, directed attention and requested comments to the union's Australian site, email address and freephone number – which can't be called from NZ.
The newsletter contains a Q&A on the situation around The Hobbit. Its massage job on the facts is as good as could be purchased in any number of parlours here or in Sydney, but without a happy ending.
Ho Ho! Worth a read.
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Jane Campion would be better.
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I have always hoped that with his interest in military history, Jackson would one day do a NZ story from the World Wars. There are plenty of incredible tales to choose from.
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"...where we don't make films for NZrs anymore..."
What about Boy?
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Unbelievable. Is this the reason for the delay in dates? (e.g. CTU said Sunday, Warners said Thursday)
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In my opinion, Simon Whipp has been grooming Jennifer Ward'Lealand and the rest of the NZAE leadership for this fight, for a long time. Whipp and Ward-Lealand presented the NZ situation to the FIA conference in Marrakech in 2008; Ward-Lealand and Tandi Wright talk about NZ actors being on inferior contracts in the 2009 Annual Report etc. Whipp and Ward-Lealand must have presented the boycott strategy to the FIA at their July 2010 conference in order for them to sign off on the resolution, and the subsequent letter to the Hobbit producers.
I feel sorry for Ward-Lealand, and I think she was used by Whipp. I doubt she understood the complexities (or down-right impossibility) of trying to get a collective contract for self-employed contractors. I doubt she understood that the MEAA contract would give the MEAA rights to and control of all residuals, on all future productions in NZ. I suspect she thought the FIA resolution was a sign of support for NZAE to have talks with Jackson, rather than the heavy-handed blackmail that it really was. I doubt she understood that the NZAE losing their registration gave her no legal mandate. In short, she trusted Whipp and his advice and he left her hanging.
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Three massive threads, thanks to Russell. The most information on the dispute on any NZ blogs.
Yet...there are many things we still don't know:
1. How many members did/does NZAE have?
2. Whose decision was it to send the August 17 letter?
3. Why was Spartacus never targeted?
4. What percentage does MEAA take of residuals?
5. Does Simon Whipp get a bonus/percentage of residuals he brings in?
6. What are the terms of Jackson's residuals and how did they vary from MEAA residuals?
7. What conditions on the Hobbit were inferior to the guidelines in the PinK Book?
8. Who is telling the truth between Spada and NZAE about who wouldn't talk to who over the past 2 years?
9. Was Simon Whipp merely acting on instructions from NZAE, or was he driving it?
10. When Helen Kelly intervened, why did she not force Simon Whipp to front the media instead of owning the mess herself?
11. What was the real reason for the delayed announcement on the lifting of the boycott (what do the emails say)?
12. Why did NZAE impose a boycott BEFORE canvassing their membership on changes that they want to see in their contracts and/or the Pink Book? -
Things are going to get very bloody hard for NZ film technicians, if Key can't get a deal together.