Hollywood’s screenwriters’ union voted yesterday in their first collective strike in more than six decades, stalling a new contract with studios and broadcast services and shutting down Hollywood and the U.S. entertainment industry. In real danger..
It was the first time two major Hollywood unions had gone on strike at the same time since 1960, when Ronald Reagan was president of the Actors Guild.
In an emotional speech when the strike, which began at midnight, was announced, Fran Drescher, president of the Actors Guild, took aim at industry executives.
“The bosses prioritize Wall Street and their own greed, and they forget about the key stakeholders who make the machine work,” Drescher said. It’s ugly. Shame on them. They are on the wrong side of history. Hours earlier, a three-year contract expired and talks broke down between the American Screen Actors Guild of Television and Radio Artists and the Motion Picture and Television Producers Alliance, which represents Disney, Netflix, Amazon and other employers.
Screenwriters who sat outside Netflix’s Hollywood offices immediately after the strike was announced chanted, “Pay your actors.”
“Looks like it’s time to take off the masks and raise the banners,” said Oscar-winner Jamie Lee Curtis in a post on “Instagram” with an image of sad and comic masks.
The first strike for film and television actors since 1980 will overshadow the 75th Primetime Emmy Awards, whose nominations were announced earlier in the day. Guild rules prevent actors from giving any interviews or publicity about the awards, and they may not appear at the ceremony.
Actors Guild of America president Fran Tresher confirmed that in anticipation of the expected end of the strike, studios had negotiated unfairly with the union to buy time off and promote upcoming movies over the summer.
“We’ve been cheated,” said the star of the “Nanny” series, which dates back to the nineties of the last century, indicating that he feels “disappointed” after the announcement of the start of the historic strike in Hollywood.
He explained that representatives of studios and broadcast platforms “were behind the scenes and did not hesitate to cancel meetings with us,” adding that “they probably did so in order to have more time to promote their upcoming films in the summer. .”
The strike will halt the production of series and movies in the US, with the industry already hit by a screenwriters’ strike since May.
Under the strike, the union’s 160,000 members, actors and workers in the film and television industries, refrain from participating in any form of promotion of a work, whether through premieres, festivals or social media platforms.
Thus, it is expected that the promotion of the films will be stopped in the summer.
The union agreed to extend negotiations with the Hollywood studio by 10 days before making the decision to strike, a deadline that expired yesterday evening.
The time slot was used to promote films including “Barbie” and “Mission Impossible,” which benefited from the presence of stars including Tom Cruise, Margot Robbie and Ryan Gosling.
“I may have acted naïve, but this was my first time negotiating,” said Drescher, adding that “greed is the root cause of all the misfortunes in the world, and this is the most striking example.”
“I thought we could achieve a convergence of views, and they would see the extent to which this new business model was imposed on the entire industry,” he added of the streaming platforms.
Like screenwriters, actors are demanding better salaries in light of record inflation and guarantees when their work is damaged as a result of resorting to artificial intelligence programs.
In particular, they deplore the low remuneration they receive for each re-broadcast of a film or series, and that these sums are large for the re-broadcast of a television work because it is based on advertisements, while it is very low for re-broadcasting. Running works via streaming sites that do not provide statistics on the number of views.
The second main point of the negotiations is the issue of artificial intelligence, which is increasingly used in Hollywood, for example, Disney uses it to create the opening credits of the “Secret Vision” series.
• 160 thousand members of the union will stop working.
Lebanese artist Masen Khataj described Dubai as an important station for creative people, pointing out the excellence the city has to offer in all aspects from art to culture, health services, tourism and expressed his happiness at his first exhibition in Dubai. Entitled “Finding Yourself,” it runs through October 10 at Urbanest Art Gallery.
In his paintings, Khadaj reflects his search for ego, especially after trying to overcome many crises and difficult times, colors were his means of translating subjective feelings. The works of the exhibition are divided into two groups: the first is called “Lost and Found”, in which the artist reveals moments of loss, leading the recipient to find himself with the second group, whose title is “Self”.
Psychological state
The paintings presented by Khataj reflect the psychological state he went through. His colors are very faithful to his feelings and the events of his life, so the viewer sees them as loss, broken states and rebuilding of self. His colors highlight the feelings he experienced when life took away many things, including his father and motherland, and how he worked to restore his conscience and self, so the paintings were a lifeline from all life situations.
Khadaj told Emirates Today about his first exhibition in Dubai: “I started painting these works in 2021 and they translate what I went through in 2020, when I went through a very general crisis in my life related to my nation, Lebanon. The Beirut port explosion, as well as the crises that affected my personal life, including the death of my father due to (corona) and my moving from one city to another in Germany.
He added: “I lost many things and instead I gained other things, and I translated these feelings through colors. The level of loss I experienced made me discover a lot about myself, because loss makes a person search for courage and strength within himself.”
Arbitrary
Kataj points out that he went through a period of depression, but this group was his savior, and therefore his colors have more strength. Also, the color group he works with is different as a result of his move to live in Germany. In this country it is very saturated with nature and different colored lights.
He points out that he tends towards spontaneity and spontaneity in artistic works as he gives them complete freedom to rely on talent and ideas.
Khataj, who works in the film production industry, explains, “His combination of music and film photography brings two people together in a special place.” Regarding the difference in his dealings with painting and pictorial performance, he added: “Photography allows me to address important issues like political topics and racism or other shocking ideas, but in photography the spontaneity is intentional, and it’s a two-dimensional painting.”
He found painting to be a different experience and often personal, so he did not ask questions while painting, but followed the color, and after experimenting with painting more than one work, the real idea might emerge. He confirmed that he worked with film programs on personal topics, including filming his father on his deathbed three hours before his death, and later making more than one film about his death and his relationship with his father.
Khataj moves between simplicity and depth in the titles of his paintings, when he paints and gives them simple titles, it may seem to some that they belong to that simple style, but in reality they have real depth in their meaning. , emphasizing that the title does not always indicate whether the graphs presented are deep or not.
Regarding stability in art and its applicability, he believed that it was possible to accomplish stable installation works, while it was difficult to provide this in paintings.
He noted that his first exhibition in Dubai was a valuable opportunity for him as an artist, as the city has become an important station for artists and is distinguished by the presence of art, culture, health and tourism services and any presence. The fact that the creator shows his works there ensures the continuity of the art.
Masen Kataj:
• My first exhibition in Dubai was a prestigious opportunity… and having any artist in it ensures continuity.
• I tend to be spontaneous in artistic work as I trust talent and give it complete freedom.
good time
Mai Al-Haj, a curator at Emirates Al-Youm, told Emirates Al-Youm about his work at Mason Ghadaj’s exhibition: “I felt it was the right time for the artist to exhibit his work in Dubai, and I met him in Lebanon and coordinated with him. To present the exhibition. He added, “Everything presented in the exhibition was consistent, especially the collection of the last period, which reveals the changes that affected his colors, especially reflecting through them the self he discovered and discovered.”
Al-Haj said, “Dubai plays a significant role in the global art market today because there are major venues for art fairs, including (Art Dubai) and (Dubai Design Week), all of which reflect the positive in the career of any artist who is here.”
The King Abdulaziz Center for World Culture (IDRA) is participating in the “Saudi Film Forum” organized by the Film Authority tomorrow in Riyadh, where the center will showcase its pioneering cinematic efforts in supporting the kingdom’s growing film industry. Funding for local filmmakers. In line with the global needs of the sector.
The participation forum includes a special stage that highlights the most important programs of the “ITRA” center in supporting the cinema industry, especially the “ITRA Film Program” which supports local filmmakers and gives them the opportunity to apply to tell the truth. Saudi stories. This is by producing films and getting co-financing opportunities.
The center will also organize a special workshop titled “Hajjan: The Story of Visual Effects” following the public success of “Hajjan” during the film’s world premiere at the recently held Toronto International Film Festival, adding importance to the workshop. They have been used in this film by Tariq Al-Khawaji, Cultural Adviser of the Idra Center, while participating in a dialogue session on the theme of challenges and opportunities in filmmaking in the region.
The Idra Center has produced more than 20 films and is keen to support Saudi filmmakers and move them internationally, while offering a number of initiatives and programs throughout the year that support the creative industries in the Kingdom. , including theatre, films and cinema, participates in many from local and international forums through international film festivals, and hosts the annual Saudi Film Festival in collaboration with the Cinema Society and with the support of the Ministry’s Film Commission. Culture.
In Argentina… fear of random and dangerous plastic surgery
Cosmetic surgery is on the rise in Argentina, which is sometimes performed without any supervision, a reality highlighted by the recent death of an Argentine actress suspected of dying from side effects of this type of surgery.
Silvina Luna, who was 43 at the time of her death, appeared on the Argentine version of “Big Brother,” and the blonde, blue-eyed woman later launched a career that combined modeling and TV shows.
In 2011, Luna underwent surgery to increase the size of her buttocks, but she suffered from infections, complications, hypercalcemia, and kidney failure that left her hospitalized for weeks for a transplant, but she died at the end of August.
A woman held a picture of the late actress, model and TV presenter Silvina Luna during a demonstration outside the home of surgeon Anibal Ludogi, whose plastic surgery using methacrylate (AFP) killed at least two of his patients.
Her family’s lawyer, Fernando Borlando, said in early September, following an autopsy on her body: “No one can tolerate this amount of synthetic material in the body,” noting that he saw “how many solid materials appeared mixed in.” Human tissues were extracted from the body.”
Anibal Ludogi, the surgeon who operated on Luna, was sentenced to four years in prison in 2022, but was acquitted. He was banned from practicing his profession for five years after being accused of “malpractice” with four patients. Silvina.
After the death of the actress, other cases treated by Ludogi, who became famous as a “celebrity surgeon” 10 to 15 years ago, began to appear in public and were regularly hosted on television programs.
20 percent increase in 5 years
In August, former dancer Mariano Cabrarola died aged 49 of acute kidney failure and a heart attack. He, in turn, underwent surgery on his buttocks, which was performed by Ludogi, accusing the dancer of “injecting him to death.”
Polymethyl methacrylate was found to be responsible for the deaths of two former small screen stars.
Although this expensive material is allowed in plastic surgery, it is recommended only in certain quantities (teeth or artificial joints). It is currently sold in Argentina.
In an interview with Agence France-Presse, the Buenos Aires-based plastic surgeon, who wished to remain anonymous, said he had received previous patients who said Lodoki’s organs were “hard as stone, and the needle would break when injected.” in it.”
Silvina Luna’s case, which has sparked widespread sympathy in the country, has exposed some of the weakest aspects of the plastic surgery industry in Argentina, long considered the center of plastic surgery in Latin America along with Brazil and Colombia.
“There has been a 20 percent growth in plastic surgery in recent years,” pointed out Edgardo Beskert, president of the Plastic Surgery Society of Argentina.
One of the reasons for this high rate is the peso’s exchange rate against the dollar, which foreigners benefit from.
Biskert emphasized that the Covid-19 pandemic and social networks have “changed the equation”.
He added: “Many people spent their days in isolation, using the internet and looking at themselves in the mirror for long periods of time.”
He continued, “Social networks and phones that incorporate image-altering technology that can create face changes without undergoing surgery have created a huge desire among people to resemble altered images.”
Similarity to the “altered image”.
Maximiliano Gil Miranda, a surgeon who has been practicing the profession for 22 years, told Agence France-Presse that he has seen many patients show his picture and wish to resemble it. He had to patiently explain to them that this was not possible and that the “ideal” image was subject to change.
He pointed out that after successful rhinoplasty patients are reassured that all is well, but taking a selfie in a certain way distorts the shape of the nose compared to a normal photo. He said: “Things have become difficult to control…”
The expert confirmed that prices in the field have fallen by making plastic surgery “accessible to all social classes”. On the other hand, “lower-paid physicians are more interested in learning this more lucrative specialty.”
Plastic radiologist Carolina Marilouis told the agency that improved techniques and products are becoming increasingly available, “encouraging many people who are not experts in the field to get into it, maybe train in it.”
It specializes in monitoring and evaluating potential complications of previous cosmetic surgery.
She said: “My schedule is busy and with the media covering cases of plastic surgery, people have become more aware of it and are demanding ultrasounds to detect the nature of the product. injected into their bodies.
