What Worries Directors: AI, Peaked TV, and Baldoni-Gate
Feb 5, 2025
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Lesli Linka Glatter, President of the Directors Guild of America and director of acclaimed shows like Mad Men, joins Russell Hollander, the DGA’s National executive director, to discuss pressing issues in the entertainment industry. They explore the evolving dynamics of AI and its impact on director roles, the decline of television production affecting creatives, and the complexities of union negotiations. They also dive into the drama surrounding director-actor conflicts and share insights on the significance of creative rights and director's cuts.
The DGA emphasized the importance of managing relationships with other guilds while securing favorable contracts for its members during strikes.
The podcast discussed the role of AI in film production, highlighting the need to embrace it while ensuring job security for directors and their teams.
Deep dives
The Importance of Guild Solidarity
The podcast highlights the complexities of guild relationships in the entertainment industry, particularly focusing on the Directors Guild of America (DGA) and its decisions during recent strikes. Despite some tension with the Writers Guild and SAG-AFTRA, the DGA prioritized securing favorable deals for its members, emphasizing that each guild has unique responsibilities. The DGA leadership defended their approach by discussing how they structured their negotiations to ensure substantial wage increases and improvements in residuals, especially for foreign distribution. This illustrates the delicate balance between advocating for members and maintaining solidarity among the different unions.
Navigating AI in Filmmaking
The podcast covers the evolving conversation around artificial intelligence (AI) in film production, especially how it was addressed in the DGA's recent negotiations. The leadership expressed the need to embrace AI as a tool rather than a replacement for creative roles, emphasizing that control should remain with the directors and their teams. With AI's potential benefits and risks, it was crucial to establish that AI cannot replace the positions of directors and their teams, safeguarding jobs within the industry. This proactive approach reflects the guild's commitment to adapting to technological advancements while protecting the core functions of its members.
Current Challenges in Employment Opportunities
The discussion also sheds light on the significant challenges faced by directors and the DGA regarding employment in the fluctuating landscape of television and film production. Since reaching peak production years, many factors, including strikes and tax incentives, have negatively impacted job availability, with declines reported up to 40% in certain areas. Directors are witnessing a reduction in episodes created per show, further straining employment opportunities for episodic directors who rely on these roles. The DGA is actively seeking to counteract these trends through collective efforts and strategic negotiations to bolster job security and future opportunities for their members.
Matt is joined by Lesli Linka Glatter and Russell Hollander, the president and director, respectively, of the Directors Guild of America, to talk about some of the most important topics for directors in the entertainment industry. They discuss how the DGA manages its relationship with SAG and the WGA; how the AI landscape has changed since its last CBA, including AI's use in the film ‘The Brutalist’; why the TV market is hurting directors; and what the DGA's role is in the Justin Baldoni–Blake Lively lawsuit (02:34). Matt finishes the show with a prediction about Super Bowl commercials (24:10).
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