While I will post the link to the tweet be aware that there a like 100 blue check bootlickers defending Netflix here https://twitter.com/SaeedDiCaprio/status/1699136050331799627
this post was submitted on 06 Sep 2023
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Here's a list of tons of leftist movies.
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Why should he be earning anything from it at this point anyway? If I'm paid to build a barn for a farmer, I'm not entitled to a percentage of the farmers profits every year he uses the barn. It's his barn, I just worked to create it. If I'm the camera guy on a movie, I don't get residuals for years afterwards. I get paid for my labour and then move on to the next job.
Aaron Paul did a stellar job playing Jessie in Breaking Bad, but why does that entitle him to rent every time the character is shown somewhere? He was already paid handsomely for his labour. Why should he be paid more when he's no longer working on it?
Well for one, because residuals are an industry standard for a reason. The fact that residuals dont exist for streaming services is seen as a problem by these workers, and we should support them.
Second, because corporations are making huge profits off recycling the labor of these workers. And not all of the workers involved are making money like Aaron Paul does. SAG-AFTRA doesn't just represent superstar actors that make millions. Corporations are making continued profit off a person's work and with streaming services they are the ONLY ones making those profits. The workers are only asking for a slice of that, which is less than they should be asking for.
To be clear, I think the camera guy should get residuals too. I think everyone involved should. The barn example is an interesting one because it does bring to mind that entertainment workers differently from other industries in this way, but at the end of the day I support the union in whatever they seek to get from the filthy capitalist pigs lol.
I fully support the workers protesting for whatever form of payment they want. There's no reason why streaming services shouldn't pay residuals if that's what the workers want.
That doesn't mean they're entitled to additional compensation for labour they've already done. If they did the work for an agreed price that wasn't linked to the future profits then they shouldn't complain just because the future profits are greater than expected. Equally if you take your compensation as a share of the future profits, you can't complain if they're lower than expected.
The grey area in all this is when contracts have been badly worded and the rights holders are trying to use these loopholes unfairly. If someone negotiated to be paid $X every time an episode is aired, it creates a big problem with the rise of non-broadcast TV. It's not realistic to claim that a show is 'aired' every time a single person streams it, but equally it's not fair say they aren't being aired at all just because they're streaming on demand instead.
I don't know what the best solution is. Future contracts will certainly be worded with streaming mind, but what (if anything) should be done about previous contracts is a much more difficult issue.
The best solution is shooting all the CEO's in the process of overthrowing capitalism and de-comodifying entertainment so everyone's needs are met and we can make art for the love of beauty and not because it'll make some rich person even more money.
Yeah, see, the problem is the old contracts were made before streaming was a thing so its hard to say "you agreed to the contract so you deal with the consequences".
Also I think my other comrades point about "the value of art is fungible" is really important here to respond to "they shouldn't complain just because the future profits are greater than expected" part of this.
Plus tbh I'd just rather the money go to the actors who actually put in the work to get these projects done than the suits who did nothing at all and are useless to society lol. Profit sucks. Anything that takes away profit and gives it to the workers is good to me.
You do realize projects are budgeted, and the studios say. “We don’t have money to do that” so they don’t pay people a lot upfront, and offer the actors and writers packages to get paid once the project is completed. This is how it worked for a century and then streaming came in and offered these two groups nothing.
People are paying for the streaming services for the content of shows and movies they hold, not because of software choices by streaming services. So if those are the breadwinners, and Netflix is making ads showing off their breaking bad content, then I thin it’s okay for them to want royalties from these services.
The solution is to make streaming services like TV packages where everyone pays $80 a month.