Indie producers craft letter: "We aren't the ones"

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WGA STRIKE CENTRAL DAY 11


A group of 85 independent producers, many of them with credits on studio and independent films, signed a joint statement that ran in The LA Times asking the print and broadcast media to quit referring to the strike between the Writers Guild of America and the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers as between "writers and producers."

"Actually, the Writers Guild is negotiating against an entity that represents studios, networks and multinational conglomerates," said Linda Goldstein Knowlton, whose producing credits include the film "Whale Rider."

Julie Lynn, whose producing credits include "The Jane Austen Book Club," said: "In many of the publications we read and [broadcast] stations we listen to, it almost always is viewed as a dispute between the writers and producers. While the AMPTP has ‘producers’ in its name, that’s not really what it is."
In their statement, the producers say that "it serves the studios’ interests to pretend to represent individual producers instead of corporate entities."
They also noted: "Creative producers are not directly involved in this dispute: We do not receive any residuals, nor are we stakeholders in the studio profits (excepting where some powerful producers do have back-end holdings in particular studio shows and films, just as do powerful actors, writers and directors).
"We do not dispute the need for residuals, including those from DVDs and new media. Residuals are important and significant revenues. It is only fair that the creators of films and television share in the proceeds from all of the ways the product they create may be exploited.

"We support our wonderful writers, directors and actors. We are also happy to pay benefits to the fantastic tradespeople on our films."
Among the producers signing the statement were Susan Cartonis ("What Women Want"), Effie T. Brown ("The Station Agent"), Caldecot Chubb ("Eve’s Bayou"), Richard N. Gladstein ("Finding Neverland"), Lynette Howell ("Half Nelson"), Eva Kolodner ("Boys Don’t Cry"), Janet Yang ("The People vs. Larry Flynt") and Clark Peterson ("Kinsey").