On Tuesday, September 9, DGA President Michael Apted, National Executive Director Jay Roth, CEO of the DGA Pension & Health Plans Mack Clapp, Eastern Executive Director Russell Hollander and Assistant Executive Director for Government & International Affairs Kathy Garmezy attended the London Coordinating Committee’s second annual general membership meeting in London. Open to any DGA member living in the UK and Ireland, the meeting offered DGA members in those countries the opportunity to socialize with one another while getting an update about Guild activities and efforts to improve the economic and creative rights for members who reside and work outside the United States.
In his opening remarks, Apted stated, “The Guild has a serious responsibility to address your needs. And that’s why we’re here.” He then announced that the DGA has developed an International Agreement to provide basic economic and creative rights for directors who work outside the United States and Canada. The first version of the International Agreement addresses specific issues related to film production in the UK and Ireland.
Apted noted that this agreement is especially important because the jurisdiction of DGA agreements have historically not extended to DGA foreign-resident directors working outside the U.S. Directors outside that jurisdiction have not been entitled to mandatory coverage by a DGA Agreement, leaving them to negotiate effective economic and creative protections for themselves. The International Agreement, which is a much-shortened version of the DGA Basic Agreement, incorporates provisions on initial compensation, working conditions, creative rights, credits, residuals, pension and grievance and arbitration.
As part of this effort, DGA staff will work to introduce, explain and promote the International Agreement with agents and production companies in the UK to help it gain broader and quicker acceptance. LCC Committee Chair Michael Caton-Jones added, “We know from our early experience with the International Agreement that its acceptance will require a substantial effort, both on the part of the DGA and each of us as individuals, if we wish it to succeed. We must impress upon our agents and producers how strongly we feel that our films be covered under a DGA Agreement and demand that they support our creative and economic rights.”
The London Coordinating Committee was established last year by the National Board. With nearly 300 DGA members in the UK and Ireland, the DGA recognized the need to create a coordinating committee in the same way it already has with similarly-sized populations of DGA members in San Francisco and Chicago. In addition to Chair Caton-Jones, the committee’s members include Jim Gillespie, Peter Kosminsky, Richard Loncraine, Roger Michell, David Yates, Mike Newell and Jim Sheridan.
In addition to supporting economic and creative protections for members, the LCC is actively planning a number of seminars, screenings and other events to take place in London and is also working with the studios so awards screenings in London are open to DGA members. In January, the LCC will screen the five films directed by the nominees for the DGA Award for Outstanding Directorial Achievement in Feature Film.
