Way to Go Guys!
I received the following email the other day, and was very proud of those actors in the story. And thus, thought I would share it with you. I have removed the names of those involved since it is not germane to the spirit of the story.
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TODAY, I went to a scheduled audition in Burbank for a feature called “—— —–”. When we (sixty plus SAG actors) got there, the casting assistants told us all that it would be a “five to six hour wait”! We were all pissed. The breakdown had said it was sig, AND at the audition there was a sign that said “This is a SAG ULB project. When we informed the producer, (name deleted) that after “60 minutes we’re all on payroll” he freaked, started telling lies. We caught him lying. I called the union they had NO RECORD of the project. It was not sig. He then changed his story claimed he had filed sig paperwork. We wanted to be paid at 61 minutes. ALL OF US. We also cornered the CD who had written the breakdown, (Name Deleted) . After questioning them and then calling the union discovering that they were not sig as they had advertised, and as the “truth” of their lie unfolded. The ONLY time anyone at SAG-AFTRA had spoken to them, the producers were given an “information packet”. They NEVER filed sig paperwork. NONE.
Expecting professionals like us (union actors) to allow them to mislead us, spend five hours in that room, denying ourselves other opportunities was too much. The blatant LIES were unacceptable. We eventually walked out enmasse. THAT my brothers and sisters is what a wildcat is. It worked. That production is shut down, at least for the day. And they had rented the Holiday Inn media center.
Pays producers to do things right. It’s costly and ruinous for them to try to screw with union regs and union members. I don’t expect to ever get a call from that CD or that producer again, but I will always stand up for and together with, my union brothers and sisters.
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Way to go guys!!! You exemplify what unionism is all about!
Arl
The Ol’ SAG Watchdog
* A thought: Your agent should have checked with SAG on the status of this production before sending you on this audition. Just a thought.
