In the final few days of my junior year at my university, I got a Twitter notification saying that the WGA strike was happening on May 1. I had been following along on the negotiation updates quite frequently throughout the month of April, whether I was getting ready for finals week or walking to my classes in the morning. As a third-year film student, I wasn’t shocked by the fact that the WGA (Writer’s Guild of America) was striking, but more so the stories behind why screenwriters were choosing to go against the AMPTP (Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers) as their three-year contract expired on May 1.
To explain the WGA strike in a simple way, I’ll use an example that I’m sure we have all experienced. Do you remember when you were in a class, and there was that one project you were excited to work on? You get the opportunity to express your creativity and work on this project eagerly, until your teacher assigns you a partner who decides to put no effort in. You work long hours making this project look good, even as your teacher moves up the deadline and increases your stress. On the day of the presentation, your teacher gives a round of applause — except it’s for the student that did nothing. You, on the other hand, feel confused as to why you spent so much time and energy to only be given a “Good job!” from your teacher, yet this student that put only their name on the project is raking in all of the high grades.
This is a brief analogy for what has been occurring in the entertainment industry for the last few years.
Screenwriters are left not being able to make a livable wage while massive corporations rake in large amounts of money. Writers’ rooms across the United States are being cut, and while writers were typically given 40 to 50 days to write an entire season during the ‘90s and 2000s, that timeline has been cut down to seven to eight days. It’s getting harder for writers to find work as a result of this, especially when shows get canceled after one season repeatedly. With the threat of AI taking over, many media companies (such as the AMPTP) are leaning towards the concept of having AI write professional scripts in place of hiring screenwriters.
Typically, writers get residual checks sporadically if the show they write on plays on TV throughout a full year, but with streaming taking over as a replacement for primetime TV, many are left to only getting $300 checks for the entire year. With no real protection from AI, no job security for a year, and streaming lessening residual checks, it’s no surprise that the WGA is frustrated. And then there’s me, three years into studying film and screenwriting, who feels the anger coming from the writers and relates to it.
I’ve been thinking a lot about my degree and the pathway that I have stuck with all throughout college. In my last three years of college, I realized that there has never been a moment where I wanted to go a different route. Many people have questioned why I want to write scripts. Many look at screenwriting as a passion project and encourage me to only focus on it as a hobby. There’s always been something inside of me that has gravitated towards telling stories and writing scripts, and I don’t think that will ever change.
I have had this driving force in me since I was a teenager, and I feel a sense of relief knowing that the WGA is striving for a better future. Seeing the writers on the picket lines gives me hope that there’s a sense of protection from them — protecting me and others across the world who aspire to be writers. There is a future generation of screenwriters that needs to be treated fairly, and that’s who this strike is for.
I’m sure you’re reading this and questioning how this affects you as a reader. If you’re a fan of some of the shows we cover on Her Campus, such as XO, Kitty or Yellowjackets, or just any show or movie on a streaming service, this strike affects you as well. In order to consume and discuss our favorite movies and TV shows, we have to first realize that the backbone of our favorite projects is the writers. If we have no writers, we have no films or shows to watch. There will be heavy delays, cancellations, and more until writers are paid fairly. You may not see the ripple effects right now, but in the upcoming fall season, you’ll start to see it with different shows that were scheduled to play at the end of the year.
As we near the end of week nine of the strike, I can’t help but feel scared for the future. Being so close to graduating and wanting to be a screenwriter feels so far away and out of reach, especially if you are not being financially compensated in the way that the WGA is. But when I see photos and tweets from the writers at the picket lines, I know that there is a group of people fighting for my future as a writer and fighting for the next generation of creatives to get the credit that they deserve, and fighting to protect the art of screenwriting in the entertainment industry.
Even in the midst of all of this, there is a bright, hopeful future for writing creatives. I have never been prouder to be a film student, and I will continue to hope that someday, screenwriters will get the credit that they have long written about.