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Tentative Agreement on Commercial Contract
Back row (from left): Susan Panepento, Christina Lomolino, Fred Kastner, Steve Glanzrock,
Al Smith, Bob Karwoski and Dan Moore. Front row (from left): Jon Larsen, Stu Hagmann and David Welch.
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The Directors Guild of America and the Association of Independent Commercial Producers (AICP) have reached a tentative agreement for a new national commercial contract, DGA President Jack Shea announced recently. This new agreement, which includes a groundbreaking new provision covering internet advertising, is the culmination of negotiations that began in July, with sessions in August, September and October. The existing commercial agreement expired on October 31, 2000. The DGA National Board, which meets in New York on December 9, is expected to review the agreement and determine whether it will be sent to the membership for ratification. A ratification vote would be completed in late January, with the current agreement extended until then.
"This agreement has been unanimously endorsed by the Guild’s negotiating committee and has important new protections and benefits including internet coverage, new health and safety protections, improved wage rates and directors’ creative rights," said Shea.
The Guild’s negotiating committee was intent on expanding the rights and protections in the Guild agreement beyond TV commercials into spots for many other venues, including the internet," said Eastern Executive Director Christina Lomolino. "The agreement covers commercials regardless of the technology used to capture the image and regardless of where it is shown. Internet commercials produced in ways that are typical of TV ads are covered by the full commercial contract. At the same time, the negotiators on both sides of the table were aware that the signatory companies needed to be competitive in the production of internet spots that may be highly experimental in nature, so that is taken into account as well."
That was one of the biggest hurdles and most satisfying of issues to resolve," said DGA member and Clio Award-winning director Neil Tardio. "It took a lot of discussion and at first we had a difficult time making the DGA’s position understood. It’s helpful to both sides to try to understand this new medium, where it will go and to be sure that DGA people in the future will be covered in the internet and all its possibilities."
Tardio is proud of having been part of this negotiating team. "This reached very deeply into the concerns and cares because the people who were there are all actively working and have lots and lots of experience. There was no one-sided overwhelming tactic on either side and every issue was discussed on the basis of what’s best for the people doing the job. Each had their own point of view, but the outcome was for the benefit of both the DGA and the AICP, knowing full well that we need each other in issues like the internet."
John Lowe, an AD member who resides on the East Coast, had similar things to say. "It was a very good, extremely progressive negotiation between the AICP and the DGA and all sides tried to come to an agreement that somehow reflected the day-to-day activities in the production and generation of commercials. Both sides came out of it with a platform from which to operate for the next four years."
Lowe is especially pleased with one detail of the new agreement. "It’s a small thing, but I think the fact that East Coast directors and ADs now received unworked holiday pay - a small extra four percentage of their check - will mean something." In addition, the agreement provides a 24% increase to scale wages over the life of the agreement.
DGA Commercial Award-winning director Stu Hagmann is especially proud of the fact that the tentative new agreement will address the subject of directors’ creative rights in the commercial arena.
Director Neil Tardio.
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"I was very pleased because commercials are virtually the only arena in which a director has absolutely no creative rights," said Hagmann. "Thirty years ago when production companies released commercials on 16mm film, it afforded the director involvement in the cutting. Now the trend is to eliminate the director from this process entirely. Directors should have a statement saying that they have a right to display what they would do with a first cut."
"The DGA and the AICP will form a joint committee to expand the creative rights of commercial directors," Lomolino added. "Both sides of the table are to be applauded for these advances. And in a truly exemplary move, the producers have agreed to provide either an overnight hotel stay or a car service to the member’s home, following extended workdays."
All the DGA members were impressed by Eastern Executive Director Christina Lomolino and the DGA negotiations staff. "The staff that’s in place at the Guild at this time was the right combination of elements," said West Coast AD member Lee Blaine. "They were extremely supportive, phenomenally knowledgeable, listened to what we had to say and did everything they could to make sure it happened." Blaine was also moved by the solidarity shown by his fellow members. "To my knowledge this is the first time that members have taken part in any level of the AICP negotiations and I’m very pleased the staff made sure we were involved. Also we had some director members who were very passionate about taking a stand in support of the assistant directors - that spoke volumes."
"The efforts of the DGA Negotiations Committee: Neil Tardio, Stu Hagmann, Vince Misiano, John Lowe, Lee Blaine, Bob Karwoski, Steve Glanzrock, David Welch, Al Smith and Ron Rapiel - as well as the AICP negotiators - are to be commended," said DGA National Executive Director Jay D. Roth. "They have done an excellent job of negotiating some important new provisions that will both protect our members’ rights and improve commercial production."
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