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July 2004 Dear Member: The DGA is pleased to announce the roll out of our Model Reality TV Agreement for prime time reality programs produced for broadcast on the networks, syndication and Pay TV. This new agreement substantially modifies our existing contracts in this arena and will enable the DGA to sign many more reality television production companies to Guild agreements, therefore generating more jobs for our members. The attached document - DGA Model Reality Television Agreement for Network, Pay TV and Syndication: Key Provisions - outlines the basic terms and conditions under which DGA members must work when they are employed on reality TV programs. How did we come up with these contract modifications? They are based on extensive research, field investigations, and discussions with many directors (both Guild and non-Guild) as well as producers, agents and production company executives. Last year, DGA President Michael Apted formed a Reality Television Committee, composed of prominent DGA members who work regularly in the reality arena. The Committee was charged with developing contractual and practical recommendations that would allow the DGA to increase its penetration into this world. We believe the resulting Model Agreement will function more effectively for you as well as your employers. Our goal is to increase the number of reality TV programs (network, syndicated and Pay TV) produced under DGA agreements, so that you can take advantage of the economic protections, like minimum salaries and health and pension benefits, that DGA contracts offer. We'd like to underscore that when performing DGA-covered services, Guild members are required to perform work only for DGA signatory companies. This is an obligation of membership and a cornerstone of the Guild's ability to negotiate powerfully on behalf of its members. A small group of employers in the reality genre want to get Guild members to perform DGA work in reality television without providing health and pension benefits and other conditions of Guild agreements. Guild members' refusal to go along with them will prevent them from undermining the basic standards and protections that all Guild members enjoy. We know that some Guild members working in reality have found it difficult to convince employers to sign and abide by DGA agreements, or feel pressured by them to work under non-Guild titles such as producer. Our Model Reality Agreement will serve as a tool that both members and employers can work with to mitigate that difficulty. It is also important that you are aware that the National Board has just approved a moratorium on disciplining members who have performed or are currently performing DGA job duties (under non-Guild job titles) on non-Guild reality TV programs. By action of the DGA's National Board, that moratorium will end in twelve months – on July 9, 2005. So if you plan to work on a reality TV show, be sure to contact one of the Guild staff members listed below to discuss how to get the work covered under a DGA agreement. We will work with you and the employer to apply the contract provisions outlined in the enclosed document to the specific conditions of the show in question. The more lead time you give us, the more able we will be to work things out in a timely and useful fashion.
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