National Vice President Steven Soderbergh and Third Vice President/Leadership Council Co-Chair Taylor Hackford welcomed the Senator. Soderbergh noted that since its inception, the Leadership Council has held 44 meetings with members of Congress from both sides of the aisle, and that these meetings are an important way to build working relationships.

Hackford added that runaway film and television production, copyright protection and media consolidation have been the DGA’s key issues in Washington since the Leadership Council was created seven years ago; he also noted that the Guild recognizes that while new media offers many new opportunities for DGA members, it also magnifies the complex issue of how members’ works get protected.

After the Senator’s opening remarks, a lively discussion ensued on topics ranging from runaway production and tax incentives to piracy and how the Internet is affecting copyright protection. In reflecting on piracy, the Senator said “Cyber-terrorism is a growing threat facing many businesses and governments around the world. The theft of copyrighted works and other kinds of information can have a devastating impact and more must be done to help prevent it.” Soderbergh added that one of the problems with defeating piracy is that the ease of access makes it difficult to convince people that they have to pay anything, and that the industry must figure out how to harness rather than attack instigators.

First elected to the Senate in 1984, Rockefeller currently serves as chair of the Intelligence Committee, second most senior member of the Commerce Committee and member of the Finance Committee. Both the Commerce Committee and the Finance Committee have jurisdiction over a range of issues of high importance to the Guild.