CFTPA

deal

nears

The Canadian Film and Television Production Association and the Directors Guild of Canada, Ontario District Council, are on the verge of settling an agreement that was originally embarked upon eight years ago. A proposal is expected to be sent out to members of both associations later this month for ratification. cftpa head Mireille Watson says this is the closest to an agreement the two organizations have ever been.

The pressure to get the pending agreement resolved stems from the increasingly difficult environment for accessing film and television funds. Says Watson: ‘Since many of the directors are also producers, they are sensitive to the fact that it is getting more and more difficult to finance a project. I think the Directors Guild, more than probably any other guild, has a fairly good knowledge of this.’

The principle of the agreement is to co-ordinate a number of points that are currently negotiated on a project-by-project basis, thus benefiting especially the smaller and medium-sized production companies by cutting down on the cost factors related to individual negotiation of variances. ‘It will be less attractive for the bigger companies, which have the infrastructures in place (for negotiating),’ adds Watson.

At the top of the list of priorities in the settlement is the issue of discounting rates across the board for low-budget productions. While there has always been a low-budget agreement, Watson says there is a need to raise the ceiling as the money situation gets tighter for production funding.

The proposal now in motion raises the ceiling of a production budget to allow for discounts ranging from 5% to 20% of standard rates. For example, a theatrical feature under $2 million could be up for a 20% discount while a feature at $3.5 million to $4.5 million would be eligible for a 5% discount. The 20% discount currently applies to productions that are under a $1.75 million budget and a 5% discount applies to features ranging from $2.5 million to $3 million.

For a television series or programs of 30 minutes or less, the proposed ceiling has crept up to under $300,000 (from $250,000) for a 20% reduction and a 5% discount for tv series budgeted up to $500,000 per half hour (up from $300,000).

Other points under negotiation include:

– Manning requirements, with the aim to reduce the number of assistants mandatory when a guild director or cinematographer is hired. Watson says the cftpa is seeking ‘a certain amount of flexibility’ since the existing rules are ‘not very cost effective.’

– Setting up a dispute resolution mechanism (or grievance procedure) whereby if a dispute occurs between a member of either organization, it can be dealt with swiftly and with the assistance of both associations.

– The redefining of an active production entity that will serve to better protect unpaid or unsatisfied crew members from single-purpose production companies by ensuring a legally bound entity is intact after the production closes.

– Residuals beyond five years for dgc members, an issue which has been left unsettled since the last guild agreement of two years ago.