Since my report to the general membership at the annual meetings in New York and Los Angeles, there have been several important developments that concern both our upcoming negotiations and the recent legislation in Congress about companies that edit our members' work without authorization.

Preparations are well underway by committees and Councils to develop our demands. There are a lot of issues to consider, among them ensuring the future economic viability of our Health Plan, jurisdiction in nonfiction television, and the formulas for DVDs and other sources of residuals revenue. We are also looking at new technologies and their impact on the work we do and how we can protect and increase DGA employment. In addition, we are preparing Creative Rights proposals for both feature films and television to protect and improve the artistic input of the director.

With Gil Cates as Chair of our Basic Agreement/Freelance Live and Tape Television Agreement Negotiation Committee and Bill Brady as Chair of our Network Negotiating Committee, I am confident that we are in good hands. Assisting these two veterans of previous successful negotiations are many of our most experienced members representing all of the categories from across the country and our dedicated professional staff led by DGA National Executive Director Jay D. Roth.

Most importantly, I want to communicate that the DGA leadership is committed to getting the best deal possible in our negotiations and is equally cognizant of the great value of stability in these troubled times. We have many problems to solve, but we intend to approach these issues in a responsible way. As in the past, we are evaluating an early negotiation. No one benefits from a de facto strike, as we were all painfully reminded in the last round of negotiations in 2001. We are going to do all we can to prevent a recurrence in 2005, but if we don't reach an agreement that accomplishes our central goals, we will take whatever steps are necessary to achieve them.

I also want to bring to your attention the Guild's strong opposition to the "The Family Movie Act of 2004." The legislation was recently introduced by Congressman Lamar Smith (R-TX) and, if passed, will erode the nation's copyright laws by allowing companies to market software that edits the content of films to make them "family-friendly." As the creators of films, we oppose giving anyone the legal right to alter in any way they choose, for any purpose, and for profit, the content of a film that a director has made and a studio has financed. We are fighting this battle in both Congress and the courts and I encourage our members to learn more about what the Guild is up against as we continue the fight in this tumultuous election year.

I look forward to updating you on the progress of these issues in the months ahead.

Sincerely,
Michael Apted
President
Directors Guild of America