SAG is starting to grant waivers to indie productions, but many questions remain, including whether actors will show up
By Andreas Wiseman, Jill Goldsmith
July 16, 2023 3:32 p.m.
EXCLUSIVE: As independent producers and financiers in Hollywood and beyond, look forward to waivers from SAG-AFTRA - leaving them to continue their projects despite the strike - some are starting to get the green light.
A confirmation letter sent instead of an actual waiver, which is not yet ready , notes that the "interim agreement" will include the terms of the last SAG-AFTRA counter in the negotiations - including an 11% salary increase at the minimum rates of the 2020 film / television agreement [we hear that it could be less than 11% with low budget movie deals].
Upcoming independent film Bride Hard, due to star Rebel Wilson, and to at least half a dozen other movies now have clearance to go forward [waivers largely apply to film, given that most American series involve a studio], and the The stream of so-called "non-interference agreements", and ultimately waivers/interim agreements, is expected to ramp up in the coming weeks for projects unrelated to a studio or streamer.
It was a complex process, many say. There are few recent precedents for a waiver model given that the last SAG strike for theater and television actors was in the 1980s. The guild's website promised weeks ago that when a strike was allowed, waivers would be granted, but he did not reveal the conditions, or how or when. Things are speeding up now with waivers – or, more accurately, equivalent letters certifying that one is on the way. The typical procedure would be for a producer to directly sign an agreement. But for now, they can move forward if they promise to confirm they will abide by his terms when he becomes available.
This is a sensitive topic. Over the weekend, in a now-deleted tweet, a crew member working on Simon West's upcoming action-comedy Bride Hard posted that the film had been cleared by SAG- AFRA to continue filming in the United States via an interim agreement. “Very grateful to SAG-AFTRA for allowing BRIDE HARD to continue production in Savannah. We are an independently funded and produced feature film with no studio or ties to AMPTP. Thanks to the SAG-AFTRA Interim Agreement , productions like ours can continue,” read the cleaned up tweet.
We confirmed the same update from another source on the movie - making it the first known film or television project to be granted a waiver. We have contacted SAG-AFRA for confirmation and any official update on the number of waivers it may grant in the coming days.
Deals are granted to "truly independent producers" as long as they are not affiliated with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers and agree to be bound retroactively to any contractual terms entered into with the AMPTP when the strike is settled.
However, there are still a number of questions, which means that the path to production will not be simple. Among them: will the actors want to participate in a project that obtains an exemption when many other actors cannot or do not want to work? It is a risk that still has c...
By Andreas Wiseman, Jill Goldsmith
July 16, 2023 3:32 p.m.
EXCLUSIVE: As independent producers and financiers in Hollywood and beyond, look forward to waivers from SAG-AFTRA - leaving them to continue their projects despite the strike - some are starting to get the green light.
A confirmation letter sent instead of an actual waiver, which is not yet ready , notes that the "interim agreement" will include the terms of the last SAG-AFTRA counter in the negotiations - including an 11% salary increase at the minimum rates of the 2020 film / television agreement [we hear that it could be less than 11% with low budget movie deals].
Upcoming independent film Bride Hard, due to star Rebel Wilson, and to at least half a dozen other movies now have clearance to go forward [waivers largely apply to film, given that most American series involve a studio], and the The stream of so-called "non-interference agreements", and ultimately waivers/interim agreements, is expected to ramp up in the coming weeks for projects unrelated to a studio or streamer.
It was a complex process, many say. There are few recent precedents for a waiver model given that the last SAG strike for theater and television actors was in the 1980s. The guild's website promised weeks ago that when a strike was allowed, waivers would be granted, but he did not reveal the conditions, or how or when. Things are speeding up now with waivers – or, more accurately, equivalent letters certifying that one is on the way. The typical procedure would be for a producer to directly sign an agreement. But for now, they can move forward if they promise to confirm they will abide by his terms when he becomes available.
This is a sensitive topic. Over the weekend, in a now-deleted tweet, a crew member working on Simon West's upcoming action-comedy Bride Hard posted that the film had been cleared by SAG- AFRA to continue filming in the United States via an interim agreement. “Very grateful to SAG-AFTRA for allowing BRIDE HARD to continue production in Savannah. We are an independently funded and produced feature film with no studio or ties to AMPTP. Thanks to the SAG-AFTRA Interim Agreement , productions like ours can continue,” read the cleaned up tweet.
We confirmed the same update from another source on the movie - making it the first known film or television project to be granted a waiver. We have contacted SAG-AFRA for confirmation and any official update on the number of waivers it may grant in the coming days.
Deals are granted to "truly independent producers" as long as they are not affiliated with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers and agree to be bound retroactively to any contractual terms entered into with the AMPTP when the strike is settled.
However, there are still a number of questions, which means that the path to production will not be simple. Among them: will the actors want to participate in a project that obtains an exemption when many other actors cannot or do not want to work? It is a risk that still has c...
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