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Casting is Back - 50 New Projects - Emmys - Hollywood Unions Reach Deal - Save Our Stages Bill

By Abigail Hardin, September 22, 2020

Eye594

Let me tell you, boy was it a bad move to take a few days off for a mini-vacay last week! Roughly 50 projects released updated filming schedules and resumed casting! This is in addition to the 50 new projects announced last week. We try to condense all of the information in these weekly emails as much as possible, but definitely sit back and get comfortable - this email is chocked full!

Last week we lost a trail-blazing legend with the passing of Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg. She left this country better for all and has paved a path for us all to follow. Read Hollywood's response to the news of her passing. 👑

The Emmys

The 72nd Annual Emmy Awards were this past Sunday and there were some major shockers. For one, the virtual production, which many people had expected to fail, actually was a huge success! I have to say, I enjoyed it much more than then normal fan fair. Here are some highlights:

Tyler Perry accepted the TV Academy’s Governor’s Award with a heartfelt speech.  The Governors Award is a distinction reserved for individuals or organizations whose achievements the organization deems "either of a cumulative nature or so extraordinary and universal in nature as to go beyond the scope of the Emmy Awards presented in the categories and areas of the competition." Perry is the first individual to receive the honor since 2014. Read more on Perry and this esteemed award.

Streaming Wars

The top media analyst at big credit rating agency Moody’s said the Streaming Video On Demand (SVOD) world is splitting into two tiers and that smaller players like Discovery, AMC Networks, and Lionsgate are "probably going to need to partner up in some fashion or be acquired … to achieve the girth necessary." If not, said Moody’s Neil Begley, Senior VP, Corporate Finance Group, "They’ll be relegated, and that might be fine, to being a Tier 2 provider."

Taking heed to Mody's advice, newcomer Quibi announced they are looking to sell and other "strategic options." The possible sale of Quibi comes as it has had a tough time signing up subscribers following its launch six months ago, which came just weeks after the COVID-19 pandemic began sweeping across the U.S.

ViacomCBS is hoping to become a bigger player in the global streaming business. They announced this week that CBS All Access will rebrand as Paramount Plus early next year. The new name will coincide with another expansion of its original programming efforts and its archive of programming drawn from the newly combined Viacom and CBS Corp. archives.

Film Festivals & Gold Statues

For the past several years, the fall festival circuit (Venice, Telluride, Toronto, NY) has been the quartet that sets the template for the movie awards season, leading all the way up to the Oscars. The Venice Film Festival wrapped earlier in the month and several films are standing out of the pack such as NOMADLAND starring Frances McDormand and Regina King's directorial debut ONE NIGHT IN MIAMI (King just won her fourth Emmy for her performance in WATCHMEN on Sunday).

The New York Film Festival kicked off last Thursday in a non-conventional format - the drive-in is back! With locations in the Bronx, Brooklyn, and Queens, if you are one of the lucky few with a car check out the line up through October 11th. There is also virtual programming and a series of free lectures & talks.

The Hamptons Film Festival just announced their line up which runs October 8-14 and includes some major contenders. The festival will be virtual with some drive-in screenings as well. One small positive from this pandemic is that now, more than ever, we have equal access to content from across the globe regardless of where we live. Some people think virtual conventions could thrive long after the pandemic ends.

NewFilmmakers Los Angeles (NFMLA) and the Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences (AMPAS) have teamed once again for the annual NFMLA Film Festival InFocus: Latinx & Hispanic Cinema Festival, and like everyone else, it’s virtual. The fest is set for September 25-26 which aligns with Hispanic Heritage Month which kicks off September 15 and continues through October 15.

With the new Best Picture Inclusion Standards for the Oscars, many people have questions, and some have strong opinions. On September 8, the AMPAS dropped a bombshell: Starting with the 2024 Oscars, any film that wanted Best Picture consideration would need to reflect inclusion standards both on-screen and behind the camera. The move immediately drew both avid supporters and detractors.

ROMA director Alfonso Cuarón has mixed feelings about the Academy’s recent inclusion standards, two years after his own movie was nominated in the category. "Everybody is trying to figure out ways of making more diverse cinema," Cuarón said by phone last week. "The interesting thing is that it’s not coming naturally."

Lastly, we are always encouraging you to research and connect with budding writers and directors - check out these 15 short student films that are eligible for an Oscar. Past student Oscar winners include Spike Lee, Trey Parker, Patricia Cardoso, Pete Docter, Cary Fukunaga, Patricia Riggen and Robert Zemeckis.

Production Starts & Stops

SAG-AFTRA has told Hollywood’s talent agents that return-to-work talks with management’s  Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) have stalled because the companies are refusing to spring for COVID-19 quarantine pay for series regulars and other film and TV performers. The topic of discussion, at a recent, union hosted, zoom "emergency" meeting of agents and effected clients, was "the refusal of the AMPTP companies to agree to quarantine pay for series regular performers (and some Schedule F performers as well) as part of Industry-Wide Safety Protocol negotiations that are presently being conducted."

*** UPDATE *** Hollywood unions have reached an agreement with the major studios on protocols to allow the industry to safely restart production amid the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. The agreement was announced Monday, three and a half months after the unions issued their "Safe Way Forward" guidelines on June 12 following a June 1 "white paper" by the Industry-Wide Labor-Management Safety Committee Task Force comprised of the unions and studios.

FOR LIFE, which had resumed production in NYC at the end of August, suspended filming Friday due to conflicting coronavirus test results on set. Multiple people involved with the production first tested positive for COVID-19, then received negative results upon subsequent testing, sources tell Variety. It is unclear just how many people received such test results, and whether the affected individuals were cast or crew.

Cynthia Nixon just had her first fitting for the upcoming HBO series THE GILDED AGE, which is set to start filming next week. She shared the changes she noticed on set with all of the safety protocols in place. "I think there are a lot of things that are being CGI-ed that previously would have been background actors," Nixon said.

Speaking of Background work, last week we called Central Casting and Grant Wilfley Casting, both major background casting companies, to see what changes they were experiencing. We're delighted to report that both companies are actively looking for background talent, and seem to be weathering the storm.

Lionsgate and Starz have been ramping up film and television production in Atlanta, Los Angeles, New York, and Bulgaria.

Here are some other articles of note:

Calling All Female and Non-Binary Filmmakers of Color

Now in its second year, Wavelength Productions is opening submissions for its annual WAVE (Women at the Very Edge) Grant which supports women and non-binary individuals of color with a $5,000 grant and mentorship from Wavelength, the production company behind 2020 Sundance titles Feels Good Man, Spaceship Earth, and Farewell Amor. Submissions will be open until December 1.

The WAVE Grant looks to help a first-time filmmaker with the production of their first short documentary or narrative film. In addition to the grant, Wavelength will provide mentorship in the producing, development, and post-production of the filmmaker’s story as well as fundraising and distribution strategy.

Diversity & Inclusion
Commercials

The Association of Independent Commercial Producers has launched an Equity & Inclusion Committee "to help the industry cast a wider net for talent, create opportunities for mentorship and advancement for people of color, and establish hiring practices that more easily facilitate a means of entry to the industry." The committee is chaired by Tabitha Mason-Elliott, who is head of production and a partner at the Bark Bark commercial production company in Atlanta.

TV

ReFrame has unveiled the TV and streaming shows from the 2019-2020 season that have earned the coveted ReFrame Stamp. The shows on the list have demonstrated success in gender-balanced hiring based on an in-depth analysis of IMDbPro data on the 100 most popular scripted shows. The coalition looks to increase the number of women of all backgrounds working in film, TV, and media. This year's winners include WATCHMEN, BIG LITTLE LIES, THE MORNING SHOW, EUPHORIA, and many other major broadcast and streaming series.

The Black List and WIF (Women In Film, Los Angeles) have unveiled the participants who have won spots in their fifth annual Episodic Lab as well as the annual Feature Lab. The Episodic Lab provides mentorship and career opportunities to six rising women television writers over the course of a year. Read more and find out how you can submit next year.

The U.S. is not the only place where representation and inclusion are being fought for. Sky in the U.K. has released its latest Diamond diversity data, reporting progress towards diversity targets for original U.K. productions. Updated numbers show that 25% of Sky’s on-screen talent now comes from Black, Asian or Minority Ethnic (BAME) backgrounds, surpassing the broadcaster’s initial 20% target. Sky has also reported improved minority representation in senior production roles, reaching 10% for the first time ever. Among writing positions, BAME representation in drama and comedy reached 17%, 9 points up from Sky’s full-year report shared earlier this summer.

Back home in the states, two in three Black Americans don’t feel they see their stories represented on-screen, according to a new study from National Research Group (NRG). The study, entitled “#RepresentationMatters,” also found that 67% of Americans across political ideologies and ethnicities feel there is a greater need on-screen representation of all of the following: mixed race individuals, Black men, Black women, Black children, Black teenagers, Black gay men, Black gay women, Black transgender men, Black transgender women, Black non-binary or genderqueer, Black men with disabilities and Black women with disabilities.

Here are four articles of interviews with actors and their experience with representation, authenticity, and the importance of this moment:

Theatre Financial Relief

New York Senator Chuck Schumer took to Times Square September 18 to advocate for the Save Our Stages Act, a bill he has co-sponsored that would provide relief to live venues across the United States that face severe losses of revenue and potential permanent closures due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The bipartisan Save Our Stages, authored by Amy Klobuchar and John Cornyn, would provide a total of $10 billion in grants over the next six months to live venues across the country.

Actors' Equity Association is also demanding supplemental arts funding by partnering with hundreds of producers across the country to demand billions in emergency funding for arts institutions. "Emergency arts funding means a healthier arts scene, and a stronger overall local economy for cities and towns across the country that depend on the arts," said Actor's Equity Association President Kate Shindle.

The Alliance of Resident Theatres/New York created the A.R.T./New York Relief Fund for NYC Small Theatres. The fund is intended to create an accessible relief fund for small theatres with annual budgets under $250k who are based in or primarily produce in New York City.

Pulitzer Prize for Drama

In a year that has seen live performance upended by the extended COVID-19 pandemic, the Pulitzer Prize Board has announced new eligibility rulings for the Pulitzer Prize for Drama. Recognizing work for the 2020 calendar year, the new rules will also include full-length dramatic works that had scheduled productions postponed or canceled, as well as shows that premiered virtually or outside. Works that were able to open before theatres shuttered across the country in March 2020 will remain eligible.

Treading the Boards
NYC

Judy Kaye recently revealed some details about the upcoming filming of the Broadway production of DIANA. The musical, which played for nine previews at the Longacre Theatre before Broadway shut down on March 12, will premiere on Netflix next year ahead of the Broadway opening.

New York City Center announced the musical productions in development as part of the next chapter of the longstanding Tony-honored Encores! series, all of which will be explored in-depth as part of the 2020-2021 season in a new digital series Encores! Inside the Revival. In-development productions include: THE LIFE, adapted and directed by Tony Award winner Billy Porter; and THE TAP DANCE KID, directed by Tony Award winner Kenny Leon; A third title, to be announced, will reflect Mayor La Guardia's founding mission that New York City Center present the best of music, theater, and dance for the people of New York.

Regional

The Actors' Equity Association, Stage Directors and Choreographers Society, and United Scenic Artists, the three major theatrical artist unions, have approved Northern Stage's production of IT'S FINE, I'M FINE by Stephanie Everett to run live, in-person on stage at the Barrette Center for the Arts October 7 - 25, making Northern Stage the first member of the League of Resident Theatres and the third professional theater in the country to be approved for live programming since the start of the pandemic.

The Gateway Playhouse in Bellport, Long Island's oldest professional theater, has filed suit against Actor's Equity Association and the union's pension and health fund on behalf of the theater and some of its' employees, after the fund demanded that Gateway pay $212,014 to the fund while also denying pension and health benefits to some of Gateway's employees. Gateway's Executive Artistic Director, Paul Allan says that despite attempts to reach a settlement prior to filing the lawsuit, the union left the theater no alternative.

Tidbits & Odds-and-Ends

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COVID

Education

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