On July 31, 2025, President Lesli Linka Glatter and National Executive Director Russell Hollander addressed the 70th Quadrennial I.A.T.S.E. Convention in Honolulu, Hawaii.
Glatter spoke to the “extraordinary partnership” we’ve built over the years between the I.A.T.S.E. and the DGA and how critical that collaborative relationship is between Directors and crews, reflecting that “we are all part of the same family, working on the same sets, facing the same challenges, and fighting the same fights.” She noted that over the past five years with the pandemic, strikes and production downturn, that truth has only grown more urgent as “our members, yours and mine, are struggling… but what gives me hope is solidarity. That’s our community’s superpower, and that’s how we’re going to weather this storm: together.”
She continued, noting “When I look at the incredible work we’ve done from organizing, negotiating, and showing up for one another I see proof that solidarity is more than a slogan. It’s a strategy. It’s survival. It’s the reason that even in difficult times, we’ve made meaningful gains. Now, more than at any time in recent memory, we need the power of our unions and guilds to look out for the interests of our members. It is at times like these, times of disruption and change, that we unite and rise, are when we are at our best… That’s what unions do. We fight to make sure the contributions of workers are honored, and that their livelihoods are protected. And we fight to make sure that when the industry rebuilds, it rebuilds with all of us at the table.”
Hollander also reflected on the importance of solidarity and the strong and lasting relationship between the DGA and I.A.T.S.E., noting that it “goes back decades, and it has grown into a partnership built on respect, trust, and shared passion for storytelling. When Directors and crews stand together, it elevates not just the art form, but the working conditions, the pay, and the basic respect and dignity of everyone involved.”
Hollander focused in on the key concern facing both DGA and I.A.T.S.E. members right now – the loss of work and working together to bring work back to the US noting that “recently, we have been working side by side in state capitals from Sacramento to Albany, from Austin to Springfield, to update and expand state film and TV incentive programs. We have helped pass numerous state-level incentives to maintain and grow production in the United States, and in doing so, we’re protecting thousands of jobs and creating new opportunities for workers. It is a testament to what labor collaboration looks like. Working with lawmakers, studios, and industry leaders, our efforts led to an incentive that prioritized the protection and creation of union jobs.”
Hollander further noted that these wins didn’t happen by accident. “They happened because of us … because labor worked together … across guilds and unions, across crafts and disciplines. We saw it in the way [we] came together around a shared vision. We saw it in the coalition-building, the organizing, and the collective voice raised loud enough to be heard in state houses across the nation. Now, we’re taking this collaboration to Washington DC, where we see a federal incentive as the next important step to keep production from going abroad.”
Hollander ended on a note of gratitude for this special partnership: “I want to say thank you all for your collaboration, to honor the incredible history of our relationship, and to celebrate the recent victories that show just how powerful labor unity can be. Together, we built an industry that’s admired worldwide. Together, we have fought for fair treatment and respect. And together, by standing united, we will continue to protect our work, our livelihoods, and our future.”
At the convention, I.A.T.S.E. International President Matthew Loeb was re-elected without opposition to a fifth term.
