spring 2017 - sag-aftra · spring 2017 letter from ny ... unscripted line of dialogue and you must...

N.Y.

continues on page 2 >>>

Spring 2017

Letter from NY President Mike Hodge > p3

Friedman Health Center Opens > p4

Broadcast Spotlight: David Ushery > p5

“I Am a New York Actor” Richard Kline > p6

SAG-AFTRA helps #SAVEtheNEA > p8

Perspective:Thomas J. O’Donnell > p10

Staff Spotlight: Becky Curran > p11

One of the most common questions we receive in our contracts department is whether a performer deserves an upgrade from background (or extra) to principal. Most of the time we have to tell the performer they are not entitled to one. But a little knowledge can go a long way, and if you understand what entitles you to an upgrade, you will be empowered to leverage one while you are on set.

Why are upgrades so coveted? They give you a big bump in salary for the day, they may qualify you for residuals if your performance is exhibited and they get you additional health and pension plan contributions.

There are different rules for upgrades among our contracts, so read each section below carefully:

TV/THEATRICAL CONTRACTSimply put, you must be directed to speak a

specific, unscripted line of dialogue and you must be recorded. If you offer a line or improvise a line, you are giving it away for free. If a principal actor says “Thank you” and you reply “You’re welcome”, you are not entitled to an upgrade because you were not given the line. If the director tells you to improvise or react, and you do so with a line of your own creation, you are not entitled to an upgrade. What should you do in these situations? Ask the director, “What do you want me to say?”Also important to note: • A silent “bit” is not an upgrade

Are you a background actor who improvised the funniest line in a movie, TV show or commercial?

Congratulations, you’ve just given it away for free.

2 // SAG-AFTRA NY // SAGAFTRA.ORG

• Interacting with a principal actor is not an upgrade • Being heard as part of a group or crowd is not an upgrade • Being prominently featured in the shot is not an upgrade

The good news is that if you have a bona fide upgrade, it does not matter if your line makes the final cut. As long as you performed and it was recorded, you are entitled to an upgrade. You are paid for what you do, not for what is used.

You have three months from the day you worked to claim an upgrade. Not from when the film opens or the TV show airs, but from the day you worked. If you believe you deserve an upgrade, call the union as soon as possible. Even better, ask while you are on set. And always get the name of the person who directed you to speak the line. This makes a huge difference if we need to investigate your claim.

NETWORK CODEThere are some variations under the Network

Code Agreement, which covers talk shows, game shows and variety shows like SNL. In Network Code, there is an “under-five [lines]” category, which is distinct from a principal performer category. If you receive more than minimal

direction and portray a point essential to the story, you may be entitled to an “under-five” upgrade if you meet some additional criteria. Performers who speak no lines but who nevertheless portray a major part in the program may be upgraded to principal performer.

There is a one-year limit to file a claim under the Network Code, but again we encourage you to contact the union as soon as possible.

COMMERCIALS CONTRACTFor spoken lines, the same rules apply as in

the other contracts, but there is an intermediate upgrade between extra and principal called a “session differential.” Session differentials apply if you are given a line on set but it does not make the final edit of the commercial. If you are given a line on set but do not see a bump in your extra rate payment, contact us immediately. Additionally, you may be entitled to an upgrade even without speaking a line, if you meet all three of the following criteria: You are in the foreground, you are clearly identifiable and you are illustrating the commercial message. Determining these upgrades requires that we look at the final, edited commercial, so contact SAG-AFTRA as soon as you see your spot playing if you think you qualify. Factors such as camera placement and how much of your face is visible will affect your chances for an upgrade in commercials.

Remember, an informed member is an empowered member, so keep this for reference and don’t give away your best lines for free!

UPGRADES >>> continued from page 1

On Tuesday, Dec. 6, SAG-AFTRA hosted an inclusion and diversity-focused table-read of WGA, East member Doug Magee’s TV pilot script Truth Be Told. This project was developed following meetings of the WGA, East Diversity Coalition, SAG-AFTRA diversity-related committees and staff leadership, and the PGA-East diversity leadership. The goal of the table-read was to explore how to implement an inclusion and diversity focus with the creative team of a writer, director, casting director and producer. SAG-AFTRA performers were part of the cast.

Table-Read Exploration

Questions?Comments?

Compliments?

We’d like to hear from you!

Send your suggestions and comments to

[email protected]

Please write

NEWSLETTER in the subject of your email.

1900 Broadway, 5th Floor New York, NY 10023

EDITORIAL STAFFRichard Baldwin

Bernadine Robbins

CONTRIBUTORSBecky CurranSarah Howes

Caroline O’Connor

• • •

NEW YORK COMMUNICATIONS

COMMITTEELiz Zazzi, Chair

Jeff Spurgeon, Vice Chair

Anne GartlanMike Hodge

Alex Silverman

SAG-AFTRA NYVOL. 6 • NO. 2

SPRING 2017 // SAG-AFTRA NY // 3

Dear Member,

Our recent five-year anniversary celebration reminded me of my first face-to-face National Board meeting as an elected board member of Screen Actors Guild. We had recently hired Robert Pisano as our national executive director, and the thing he said that stood out most in my mind was, “I don’t know why you haven’t merged with AFTRA yet. I will tell you right now all the studios do is play you against each other. ‘We go where we can get the best deal, and we drive your prices down as much as we can.’” That’s a loose quote, but it has stuck with me. Now, 15 years later, thanks to the expert guidance of and collaboration with my good friend and partner, the late President Ken Howard, we celebrate the fifth anniversary of the SAG-AFTRA merger.

Our achievements during that time have been many. We have combined most of our contracts to more effectively deal with complex issues of content distribution. Money our two unions used to spend fighting each other is now spent on more important efforts like organizing and

fighting unfair producers. We recently celebrated winning an NLRB vote to organize NBC’s Telemundo, a historic vote with the goal to bring parity between Spanish-speaking and English-speaking performers.

Another great benefit from the merger has been combining the two legacy health plans. I know this has been a difficult issue for many. Work on merging the two plans could not begin until the unions merged: first because each held proprietary information, and second because the trustees had to learn how one another’s plans worked. The SAG-Producers Pension & Health Plan and the AFTRA Health & Retirement Fund are completely separate entities from their unions. Each set of trustees is evenly divided between union and management. It is not simply a function of SAG-AFTRA wanting to do something and doing it. Union and employer-side trustees must agree on decisions made about the plans. Getting buy-in can sometimes be challenging. However, when you think about how long it took SAG and AFTRA to merge, the merger of our health plans happened

relatively quickly. Work continues to be done on merging the pension and retirement plans.

We are also moving forward in our technology. If you have not already, I encourage you to download and use the new SAG-AFTRA app. I love it, and it will be regularly updated as we learn what our members may want or need. We are also beta-testing a direct deposit system for residual checks. I am one of the test participants, and it’s so nice getting an email telling me I’m getting a deposit the next morning. Now, every check I receive is automatically deposited and I no longer stack them up and wait to make a single deposit. It’s great!

SAG-AFTRA: Here’s to the next five years. Here’s to the next fifty!

— In unity

Best Decision We Ever Made A LETTER FROM THE NEW YORK PRESIDENT

MIKEHODGE

By Janice Pendarvis

On Jan. 9, the National Singers Committee and the New York Local

held a historic networking event organized by the New York Singers Committee at the union’s elegant Lincoln Center offices. Over 120 singers and recording artists of all ages and genres gathered to reconnect and

nurture a sense of community, including luminaries like Cissy Houston, Nona Hendryx and Lisa Fischer. The excitement in the air was electrifying. This was the first time there was an event this big for singers and recording artists in New York.

The night was dedicated to the memory of one of our foremothers, Rose Marie Jun. Also in attendance were special industry

guests from the Recording Academy, Content Creators Coalition, NYU-Steinhardt and MusicAnswers. At the end of the night, the response was unanimous: We must do this again!

Following this event, The New York Singers Committee

held a well-attended “Raucous Caucus” on March 20 for singers and recording artists to talk about their work experiences and what they would like to see happen with the SAG-AFTRA music community and its relationship to the union.

The caucus discussed the first-ever economic impact study of New York’s music industry done by Mayor de Blasio’s administration. It defines NYC as one of the largest music ecosystems in the world. The potential inclusion of the Empire State Music Production Tax Credit in the New York Senate and Assembly budgets for FY ’18 was examined. The revitalization of the music biz in New York is in the air, and we agreed that we want to make sure whatever the government does will benefit our members.

It’s a great time to be a SAG-AFTRA singer or recording artist in New York!

— Janice Pendarvis is a SAG-AFTRA National and New York Local Board member.

Singer and Recording Artist Networking Gala and Raucous Caucus


From left, President & CEO of The Actors Fund Joseph P. Benincasa; SAG-AFTRA New York Board members Marc Baron, leslie Shreve and Charles Gemmill; MPPWF Chair Maureen Donnelly; Chairman of the Board, The Actors Fund Brian Stokes Mitchell; SAG-AFTRA New York Local President Mike Hodge; New York Health Care Safety Net Committee Chair Cathy Lily; Executive Vice President Rebecca Damon; Director, New York Special Projects Maura Walker

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By Maureen Donnelly

On Thursday, March 2, I joined an exuberant crowd of supporters and well-wishers at the ribbon-cutting for The Actors Fund’s new Samuel J. Friedman Health Center for the Performing Arts right in Times Square in New York City.

What a bright, white, sleek, fresh, clean space! And hanging on the walls everywhere you looked were colorful depictions of those who spend their lives bringing the performing arts to life. It was welcoming and throbbing with life — our lives.

The idea for this new wellness facility for those with union or private insurance, as well as the underinsured and the uninsured, was first presented to the trustees of the SAG-AFTRA Motion Picture Players Welfare Fund in December 2015. By May 2016, the 12th floor in The Actors Fund building on Seventh Avenue between 48th and 49th streets had become available for lease. That meant the Friedman Health Center, a partnership between The Actors Fund and Mount Sinai doctors, and the Artists Health Insurance Resource Center, could share a floor where our members could find insurance and receive primary care. The SAG-AFTRA MPPWF was asked to become a founding donor, and we approved a grant of $500,000 toward the cost of the build-out of the clinic and the future health of our members. And now we have a plaque on the wall.

We realized that those of us in our business go on and off different health insurance plans depending on our employment at a given time. We need continuity of care in a centrally located facility no matter what plan we’re covered under at the time.

The space occupied by the former Al Hirschfeld Clinic (only for the uninsured) at 57th Street and 10th Avenue will become a senior center run by The Actors Fund, a place where seniors can meet, socialize and engage in meaningful activities.

A plan for a drop-in breakfast at the Friedman Health Center is in the works. Members will be able to visit the center, meet the doctors and staff, and enjoy a bagel and a schmear (or even, perhaps, something totally healthy, like maybe fruit). So keep your antenna up. Visit actorsfund.org/services-and-programs and read your SAG-AFTRA publications.

— Maureen Donnelly is a SAG-AFTRA National and New York Local Board member.

FRIEDMAN HEALTH CENTER IS OPEN!

Housing is a critical concern for many SAG-AFTRA members, especially in

New York City. The Actors Fund has for many years worked to increase access to affordable housing for members of the performing arts and entertainment community. SAG-AFTRA members can visit actorsfund.org/services-and-programs for a wealth of information about affordable housing opportunities. No fee or membership is necessary to access the site. Highlights include:

THE HOUSING BULLETIN BOARD allows members to search through listings for local housing opportunities in a professional, convenient and easily accessible forum.

THE HOUSING RESOURCE CENTER offers regular seminars and information on affordable housing, roommate and home sharing, tenants’ rights, housing court and first-time home purchases. There is a page dedicated to subsidized housing search resources in the New York area.

THE ACTORS FUND HOUSING DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION develops and oversees new affordable housing for the performing arts and entertainment community. Its portfolio includes three major developments in our area, all of which are connected to supportive services:

• The Dorothy Ross Friedman Residence (formerly the Aurora) provides supportive housing to special low-income groups including seniors, working professionals and people living with HIV/AIDS. The Visiting Nurse Service of New York provides on-site evaluations and arranges for services and treatments.

• The Schermerhorn is a unique, 217-room facility for single adults in downtown Brooklyn. Social services, community gatherings, health and wellness treatments and more are available on-site. It also houses a 2,000-square-foot art center and performance space that residents may use for rehearsals, performances and exhibitions.

• The Lillian Booth Actors Home in Englewood, New Jersey, is an assisted living and skilled nursing care facility. It provides a comfortable living environment for 124 residents on six acres of property, and is currently undergoing a major expansion, scheduled to be completed by the end of 2017.

SAG-AFTRA members are encouraged to take advantage of the many programs offered by The Actors Fund to assist them in meeting their professional and personal challenges.

Affordable Housing


By Alex Silverman

As an 11-year-old, he got an audience with the most trusted man in America.

That kid from Connecticut — who happened to host a TV show produced near his hometown — recalled the thrill of the trip down to West 57th Street for the interview. “We were a [Walter] Cronkite household; my parents watched him every night,” David Ushery recalled over coffee and a chicken salad sandwich decades later, but just a few blocks away. “He was a total gentleman.”

It might be natural to think the seed was planted then and there. But it took several more years for Ushery to steer himself onto a career path toward the evening anchor desk at WNBC-TV. “I guess it was there,” he said. “It just had to flourish.”

As a political science major at the University of Connecticut, Ushery was leaning toward a career in government, but when it came time to take a few journalism courses, something grabbed him. He added a second major and landed internships at the Hartford Courant and the Los Angeles Times.

Just as Ushery was preparing to leap into a career in print storytelling came an opportunity at the local CBS affiliate, WFSB-TV. It was familiar territory, and a homecoming of sorts; the station had produced Kidsworld, the show Ushery began hosting as an 11-year-old (which led to his sit-down with Walter Cronkite).

Ushery was acquainted with union life well before his arrival at Connecticut’s Channel 3. His father, Sol, a longtime employee of the city of Hartford, served as president of his AFSCME local. When Ushery became a member of AFTRA at WFSB, the benefits were almost immediate. “It wasn’t long before I was in the regular rotation [on television]. The shop steward said, ‘We need to protect you.’ It was a real lesson to me in showing how the union can play a role in working with management to make sure things are fair.”

As is almost always the case in broadcast news, the path to the top was winding and sometimes grueling. “I just kind of followed the road and worked hard, working every schedule, sometimes six-day work weeks,” he said. But Ushery looks back fondly on those days. “There’s an adrenaline rush, if you’re in storytelling and news.” Asked if there was ever a time he considered — as many in the business do at one time or another — the allure of a nine-to-five life, Ushery was

unequivocal. “That’s the thing: no.”When he made the jump from

Hartford to New York in 1993, in the middle of one of the worst winters in a generation, his schedule didn’t improve. “They had something like 18 storms, all of which I had a hand in covering because I was the new guy,” he laughed. He still relishes the grind — living just blocks from WNBC’s Rockefeller Center studios, in part because he can get to work in minutes if the phone rings (also, he’s sure to add, because he married a New York City girl. “I’ll say I need a backyard, and she’ll say ‘Central Park is our backyard!’”).

Over nearly a quarter century, Ushery has covered every conceivable genre of news story, from the wind-whipped weather coverage to parachuting into Rome for the election of a new pope, to being New York’s eyes and ears after last year’s mass murder at a nightclub in Orlando.

His favorite stories to tell are the ones that convey humanity. Three weeks after the Sandy Hook Elementary School murders, he went to Newtown to interview the parents of Chase Kowalski, who Ushery points out was the same age as his own son. “The family didn’t want his story to end there. The ability to tell his story how they wanted it told, so soon after the tragedy, that’s what was so important.”

Humanity is perhaps Ushery’s defining characteristic as a broadcaster. He is natural and conversational, as at ease at the anchor desk or a chaotic scene as he is across the table at an Ninth Avenue diner. He has a philosophy on this: “If we’re not careful, we can get caught up in trying to project something we’re not,” he explained. “Everyone has a different approach. But I think at the end of the day, authenticity overrides.”

Being authentic is just one piece of advice for up-and-comers in the business. Ushery also stresses a commitment to storytelling, attention to detail, a focus on the facts and a simple but powerful reminder: Words matter.

“The traditional perception of the media and journalists has shifted,” he said cautiously. “Not always for the better. And that’s why I think those of us who have been doing it for a while take great pride in our work, in trying to maintain the balanced approach we’ve had all along.”

– Alex Silverman is a SAG-AFTRA New York Local Board member.

BROADCAST SPOTLIGHT: David Ushery

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“It wasn’t long before I was in the regular rotation [on television].

The shop steward said, ‘We need to protect you.’ It was a real lesson

to me in showing how the union can play a role in working

with management to make sure things are fair.”


Liz Zazzi Interviews

Richard Kline

Richard Kline was always drawn to performing. “My dad was an actor for about a half an hour during the depression — I unearthed

his Equity contract for the 1927 Broadway play Fiesta — before he became a butcher to support the family. My mom was a community theater star when I was a kid. My older sister Virginia was a ballerina at Julliard, and later became a dance therapist with New York Presbyterian Hospital, where she still works today.” He cites his first mentor as “Mr. Adolf, who cast me in junior high in a Thornton Wilder play. At one performance, my cousin Emily said, ‘You made me cry,’ and I thought ‘Wow, I can move people.’”

At William Cullen Bryant High School, Richard flirted with writing. “I was the

sports editor for the school paper. I was really into sports. But something happened when I arrived at Queens College as a speech major. I opened the doors to their 700-seat theater and knew where I belonged.” Another beloved mentor was Tom Haas, who headed the theater department and cast Richard in summer stock at the Weathervane Theatre. Haas not only co-founded the still-extant venue in New Hampshire, but had a storied career teaching at the Yale School of Drama, counting among his students Meryl Streep, Sigourney Weaver and Henry Winkler. “I was Tom’s protégé. He invited me

to an acting class taught by William Ball, who founded

ACT in San Francisco. I was a young actor getting to work alongside Cecily Tyson.” Richard continued to train and

received a master’s degree in theater from Northwestern.

In 1967, Richard got the first of many union cards. Attending

an open call, he landed his Equity card with the American Shakespeare Festival in Stratford, Connecticut. Weeks into rehearsal, he was drafted into the U.S. Army. “I expected to get a medical deferment because of a complication from childhood surgery. But they weren’t having it. So I had 30 days — either to head to

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Canada, shoot off my toe or plead my case that I really needed to keep my acting job. ‘Next!’ was pretty much what they said.”

Richard served three years, including a year in Vietnam. “I am totally proud that I did not become a felon — I didn’t want to go to jail. I served my country.” While he is thankful that he never saw combat, he spent two weeks in the hospital after being struck by lightning. “I was on the tarmac under the wing of a C130 transport headed to Saigon. We were 50 miles from the DMZ with the 101st Airborne. Suddenly, [there was] a tremendous boom and I went flying into the air with five other people. There were burn holes in my boot soles. I was taken to the hospital and my unit had a shirt made for me that said Lt. Flash.” He chuckles when I ask if there were any after effects. “Johnny Carson asked me that on The Tonight Show. I said I was fine, but when I rub my hands together, my neighbor’s garage door opens!”

After his stint in the army, Richard went to another open call and found an understudy job with Lincoln Center Rep. “I was doing Twelfth Night with Blythe Danner, and her husband Bruce Paltrow generously offered to introduce me to Blythe’s agent. I began working steadily in New York and got my SAG card in 1974 on a movie of the week called Seventh Avenue. I was also booking loads of commercials. My New York agents had a reciprocal relationship with the agents representing John Ritter in Los Angeles, and they sent me there to pursue television work. My first sitcom gig was on The Mary Tyler Moore Show in its final season. Trivia fans may also remember my three-episode stint as investigative reporter Tuggy McKenna on Maude. Then I landed what was supposed to be a guest spot on Three’s Company in 1977. Norman Fell took me aside and rasped ‘You’ll be back — trust me. You work so well with John.’” Richard played Larry Dallas “a few more times” and then his agents negotiated a five-year deal. “I was there eight years, and we actually just celebrated a reunion — 40 years ago Three’s Company hit the airwaves.”

While most recall Richard’s iconic TV role, they don’t know about his other talents. Aside from continued work in film and TV, he’s an accomplished singer and pianist, appearing on Broadway and across the country in everything from iconic fare to developing new works. “I’ve been workshopping the musical All That Glitters about Liberace. It’s a natural fit because I love to play piano and I credit my mother with making me practice. Fingers crossed that we get the financing, because you don’t cheap out on Liberace.”

Richard glows when he talks about the reason he left Los Angeles to return to New York. “I wanted to return to my roots in theater. I wanted to be nearer to my family. After Three’s Company, Burt Reynolds gave me a great opportunity at his theater in Florida. I was directing, and he suggested I teach the apprentices. This translated into an offer to direct an episode of Evening Shade in L.A. I got my DGA card. I was working with Burt and Marilu Henner! I was working with amazing actors, earning DGA scale, which was terrific, but then I was offered a Broadway show. I had to choose: money or lifelong dream? Did I want to get more work as a director in L.A. or did I want to get back on stage? In every decision, there is a loss.” Richard picked the New York stage over a potential L.A. directing paycheck and has never looked back.

He moved back to New York and continues to work as an actor, director and teacher. His daughter “Colby carries on the Kline tradition of performing, mostly as a singer and composer. I am so proud of her. She recently recorded one of her songs and was so excited that she was in a

studio singing at a mic that Adele had just used.”Richard’s been a teacher and coach since 1998

in Los Angeles and since 2006 in New York. “I have students who have been with me for seven weeks and students who have been with me for seven years. It’s how I stay sharp as an actor and director. I love watching them progress. I help them understand not only the process, but the business of the audition — how important it is to make that first impression. You can only control what you bring into the room. If you go in desperate for the job, you’ll shoot yourself in the foot. Just go in and do your best take. It’s all capital. It may not be this job, but they’ll

want you for something else. At a recent musical audition, I joked that the 22 people sitting on chairs and radiators were bigger than some houses I’ve played. They exploded with laughter and applauded my song. But like all of you, I get rejected and this was no exception. I consider it part of the job. The feedback that my agent got? ‘He did nothing wrong.

We just went another way.’”When asked about his union memberships,

there is no hesitation about gratitude. “Godsend! I am blessed to have three pensions from AEA, SAG and AFTRA. I met my wife, Beverly Osgoode, through mutual friends. She is way above my pay grade — a beautiful, classy lady. A two-time cancer survivor, she was covered by my SAG health plan with very little out of pocket. I was also so impressed with the staff at the plan, who were responsive and compassionate about all my questions.”

“So can I say you are a professional New York actor for five decades?” I ask, and Richard jokes “Can we just say four decades and nine years? I will never retire. Old actors don’t retire. They just forget their lines.” Decrying the IMDb age disclosure, which SAG-AFTRA is currently fighting in court, Richard says, “I’m almost 73, but I don’t look a day over 72.” Then he makes a signature Larry Dallas face and we know his boyish charm will be here for years to come.

— Liz Zazzi is a SAG-AFTRA National and New York Local Board member.

“I have students who have been with me for seven weeks and students who have been with me for seven years. It’s how I stay sharp as an actor and director. I love watching them progress.”


The White House has proposed a complete elimination of the

National Endowment for the Arts’ budget by FY2018, calling for an immediate $15-million cut in the FY2017 budget. On March 21, SAG-AFTRA was once again a proud national partner of the Americans for the Arts’ Arts Advocacy Day in Washington, D.C. Alongside other arts advocates, we shared with elected representatives a vision of all Americans — including children, seniors and veterans — having access to the arts: a shared vision now being challenged.

As is tradition, Arts Advocacy Day participants attended the annual Nancy Hanks Lecture on Arts & Public Policy; this year, Darren Walker, president of the Ford Foundation, delivered the lecture. To Walker, cutting the NEA’s budget is not an option “in a democracy like ours,” stating “everyone deserves to experience the arts. No child should need a permission slip to dream. Art is not a privilege. Art is the soul of our civilization, the beating heart of our humanity, a miracle to which we all should

bear witness, over and over again, in every home.”

In our 2017 letter to Congress, SAG-AFTRA also made the case that funding the NEA is an investment in our nation’s thriving creative economy. In exchange for a relatively minuscule federal investment, arts-based industries and institutions gain access to economic and cultural studies, and arts

organizations and artists across the country receive grants they can then leverage into additional funding.

SAG-AFTRA is proud to stand by the NEA and will continue to work with our affiliate organizations to communicate that the NEA needs to stay and remain fully funded. We invite members to take action and contact their elected representatives through the Americans for the Arts’ Action Fund (artsactionfund.org). Countless members have already taken to social media to #SavetheNEA, and to share how the arts put America to work. We also got word that thousands of SAG-AFTRA members answered our call to sign the recent Action Fund petition to Congress.

SAG-AFTRA Helps #SAVEtheNEA

MORE Committee Educational Outreach Volunteers Buzz Roddy, Andrew Gelles and Marc Baron (front row) hosted students from LIU Post’s BFA and MFA theater arts acting programs at the SAG-AFTRA office on Friday, March 31, for an educational and informative session about the benefits of union membership.

Arts Advocate Honored

On March 7, SAG-AFTRA member Vicky Jeudy (Orange Is the New Black series regular) was named the 2017 Creative

Champion of the Arts at the Volunteer Lawyers for the Arts (VLA) Gala. SAG-AFTRA New York Local President Mike Hodge attended the fundraiser to celebrate Jeudy’s advocacy work, and to extend SAG-AFTRA’s appreciation for the pro bono legal services and educational programming that VLA provides our low-income members.

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Pictured, from left, performer Vicky Jeudy, SAG-AFTRA New York Local President Mike Hodge, VLA Executive Director Katie E. Wagner and Sarah Howes, director and counsel, SAG-AFTRA Government Affairs and Public Policy.

“In a democracy like ours, everyone deserves to experience the arts. No child should need a permission slip to dream. Art is not a privilege. Art is the soul of our civilization, the beating heart of our humanity, a miracle to which we all should bear witness, over and over again, in every home.”

– from a lecture given by Darren Walker, president of

the Ford Foundation


NY COMMITTEES FAIRCookies, coffee and

committees were served up at the New York Committees Fair, held on Feb. 15 at the New York office. Members had the opportunity to meet with each other and local committee chairs to discuss common concerns. SAG-AFTRA committees are designed to represent specific constituencies within the union and develop strategies to address their issues. All committee members are volunteers who donate their time to serve you.

COMMERCIALS INDUSTRY ROUNDTABLE

In early March, as part of ongoing outreach for the Commercials Organizing & Recapture Initiative, the union met with a small but dynamic group of industry professionals to

foster better communication, create a closer-knit community and solidify positive working relationships with our industry partners. The meeting was attended by representatives from casting and talent agencies, signatory and payroll companies, and SAG-AFTRA’s Commercials Department. The discussion centered around how each of us is impacted by the changing commercials industry landscape and the importance of creating opportunities for all parties to be heard. We expect to do many more of these roundtable events in the coming months with these and other key industry partners.

From left, Jo Ann Kessler, Extreme Reach; Kim Stevens, JPC; Jeanine DeLuca, Chloe Productions Inc.; Gary Saxe, SAG-AFTRA commercials strategist; Tracey Goldblum, Abrams Artists Agency; Tracy Hyman, SAG-AFTRA senior manager, commercials; Kyle Coker, Donna DeSeta Casting; Phil Cassese, Stewart Talent; Lori Hunt, SAG-AFTRA national director, commercials; Jennifer Faraday, Background Inc.; Patrick O’Donoghue, Wieden + Kennedy

Makeup with MAC Pro

Member volunteers serve as models at the MAC Cosmetics – Basic Beauty

and Looking Your Best for Your Audition seminar held on Monday, March 27, at MAC Pro studios in the Flatiron neighborhood. MAC Pro senior artists gave members in attendance tips and tricks for putting their best face forward for auditions, interviews and go-sees.

Blood DriveNew York Health Care Safety Net Committee members, from left, Bill Rapp, Matt Rouillard, Chair Cathy Lilly and Rob Stats help members check in for the American Red Cross Blood Drive held at the SAG-AFTRA office on Monday, April 3.

New York Young Performers Committee Chair Holter Graham with committee members Monica Trombetta and Victoria Pannell


Who does Local 817 represent?Drivers in feature film, television, commercial and videos as well as theatrical trucking and equipment houses. We load in and out the shows at the Broadway theaters and most of the concert venues in the New York metro area. We also represent location workers in TV, features and commercials as well as casting directors in TV and features.

What region does the New York office cover?Rhode Island, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Eastern Pennsylvania and Delaware.

What are your members’ main concerns?What one might think, in no particular order: solid pensions, good healthcare, fairness in the workplace and abundant jobs, which often translate to a robust, stable state film tax credit.

How long have you been with the Teamsters?I’ve been a member since 1984, but my first job was actually as a driver on the film The Stepford Wives in the summer of ’74 after my freshman year in college.

Why did you become involved with organized labor and with the Motion

Pictures Division in particular?I’m a third-generation Teamster, so you can say it’s in my blood. After college, I went to grad school to study industrial psychology and worked five years for a management consulting firm developing training programs. I found that work unfulfilling and went back into the “family” business as a driver. Later, I began coordinating transportation for motion

picture production companies and then I started running for positions on the executive board. I became secretary-treasurer of the union in 1990, president in 2012, and director of the Motion Picture & Theatrical Trade Division of the International Brotherhood of Teamsters in 2013.

What are you most proud of about Local 817?I’m most proud of our representation. The representation we’ve achieved through organizing and the representation we give to our members. I’m proud of the standards we’ve upheld. I’m proud of how tight knit the local is and the family atmosphere we’ve cultivated. And I’m proud of our scholarship program that affords every child of every member the opportunity of a college education.

What do you think are a union’s strongest tools when entering a negotiation?Preparedness. Prioritizing your desired outcomes and identifying paths to get there. Galvanizing support within the labor community. The threat of a strike, but not necessarily a strike. You can’t be afraid to take a strike, but they invariably produce no winners, only losers.

How can entertainment unions best support one another?No union is an island and there is strength in unity. Communication among unions is key. We need to know where each union is at and where they stand; there are many lessons to be learned in the successes and failures of each union’s negotiations. We need to be cognizant of the impact that our negotiations have, not only with our members, but also with members of other unions. If I’m trying to negotiate a wage increase for 5 percent when other unions just took 2 percent, then I wouldn’t necessarily expect they would support a job action by my local. SAG-AFTRA Senior Advisor John McGuire has done a great job in the communications department, in the maintenance and chairing of the Council of the Motion Picture & Television Unions.

How can New York unions continue to grow the local entertainment industry?SAG-AFTRA, IATSE and the DGA are already the best lobby partners I could ask for in Albany. In this growth cycle, we must have defined pathways for new members that are both inclusive and nurturing. I also feel that individually and collectively we should be giving back to the communities that we work and live in.

Any final thoughts?In my 27 years as a labor leader, these are the scariest times I can remember. But they are also the most exciting, because I think there is a real opportunity to finally swing the pendulum back to our side. Organize. Represent. Get out there and preach the Gospel.

PERSPECTIVE: Thomas J. O’DonnellFor this edition of Perspective, National and New York Local Board member

Anne Gartlan spoke with Thomas “Tommy” J. O’Donnell, president of Teamsters Local 817 and Director of the Teamsters Motion Picture Trade Division.

“No union is an island and there is strength in unity. Communication among unions is key. We need to know where each union is at and where they stand; there are many lessons to be learned in the successes and failures of each union’s negotiations. ”


It would be oversimplifying things to say that Becky Curran is working to

eliminate her own job at SAG-AFTRA, but it wouldn’t be entirely untrue. Becky is a coordinator in the Equal Employment Opportunity & Diversity Department in the New York office, which monitors discriminatory employment practices and advocates for more work opportunities for members of diverse backgrounds.

“We always joke that we hope someday that this department doesn’t even have to exist,” Becky says. “Unfortunately, we’re not even close to that.” Becky coordinates events and other activities for both local and national committees — Asian Pacific American Media, Ethnic Employment Opportunities, Seniors, LGBT, Native Americans, Women and Performers with Disabilities — as well as working with individual members. “When someone brings a complaint of on-set discrimination or harassment, I can help them based on our diversity criteria. Our department can also give casting or production people a call if a casting breakdown is inappropriate. But advocacy doesn’t always have to come from SAG-AFTRA staff; it can be very powerful coming from a member.”

Becky has a personal understanding of the challenges of physical differences. Born with achondroplasia, a common form of dwarfism, she is 4 feet tall. Originally from the Boston area, Becky has long been passionate about behind-the-scenes aspects of the entertainment business. At Providence College in Rhode Island, she had internships working at a television station, on movie casting and in an ad agency. She eventually found a position at Creative Artists Agency in Los Angeles, but first she had to take a lot of rejection.

“My resume got me in the door, but every time I walked in, people would judge me based on how I looked and not on what I could do. Before CAA, I went on a hundred interviews.” During her five years at CAA, Becky suggested the agency hold a panel discussion highlighting the accomplishments of performers, writers and directors with disabilities. At that event, she met Adam Moore, SAG-AFTRA National Director of EEO & Diversity. She came to New York to work in that department three years ago this April.

Outside of SAG-AFTRA, Becky is a motivational speaker, telling her story to student groups and being a resource to parents of children with dwarfism. “I got into this work to advocate for people who are physically different. I began speaking to educate as many people as possible so they don’t doubt the capabilities of people who are often left out. What’s really satisfying about my job at SAG-AFTRA is that I’m in front of people every single day and am given opportunities here that I might not be given in other workplaces where my capabilities might be doubted. I feel very respected here, and I love collaborating with my colleagues and our members.”

– Jeff Spurgeon is a SAG-AFTRA National and New York Local Board member.

Becky CurranCoordinator, Equal Employment Opportunity & Diversity Dept.

By Jeff Spurgeon

STAFF SPOTLIGHT

SAG-AFTRA Foundation Introduces The Business’ Small Group Sessions for New York Actors

The SAG-AFTRA Foundation is expanding its free educational programs for SAG-AFTRA members in New

York. Taking a page from its successful small-group sessions presented by The Business program in Los Angeles, the Foundation is now hosting its Branding Workshop in New York City, allowing actors to gain a more in-depth and self-reflective perspective on the audition process, casting, career orientation and more.

These 20-person small-group sessions are facilitated discussions that give SAG-AFTRA members the opportunity to break down concepts and individually apply them to their own professional pursuits. The Branding Workshop is the first of several new small-group sessions to be implemented in New York and is already a huge hit with members. Adapted from Kevin West’s class at the Actor’s Network, the Workshop specializes in aiding actors to understand how people perceive them in everyday life and how they might be cast as a result. The Branding Workshop uses categories of visual, essence, stereotypes and profession to determine how one might be “branded” and how actors influence their own brand.

“I found the workshop terrifically useful,” said New York-based actor Zach Libresco. “As an actor, understanding how a consensus of people see and judge me when I walk through the door is vital information.”

At this time, small-group sessions are held twice a month at the SAG-AFTRA Foundation at 1900 Broadway in New York City. These workshops are open to SAG-AFTRA and AEA members 18 years and older and, like all Foundation programs, are absolutely free. In order to participate, SAG-AFTRA members must first create a user account at sagaftra.foundation to sign up for emails and to RSVP on the events page for the small-group sessions. These workshops are popular and space is limited, so sign up for your spot now.

“You can’t put a price on this kind of experience. I can’t wait to go to another session in a couple of months, wearing a different wardrobe, and see what essentials rise to the top,” said Los Angeles-based actor Brice Harris. “For the process to be truly valuable, participation in two or three sessions is mandatory.”

For more information on the SAG-AFTRA Foundation and The Business’ small-group sessions in New York, please contact Florence Le Bas, New York Program Administrator, at (212) 827-1437 or [email protected].

New York Program Administrator Florence Le Bas leads the Branding Workshop

SAG-AFTRA members

should know that if

you are asked to fill out

a voucher on set that

asks for demographic

information such as gender,

race or ethnicity, you are

not required to supply this

information. Unless you

are a minor, you are not required to

supply your date of birth. In fact, we

encourage producers not to include

these questions on their vouchers at all.

You should also not write your Social

Security number on a voucher, only on

your W-4 or I-9 forms. If someone on set

is insisting you provide this information,

notify the on-set field rep or call the

SAG-AFTRA office. We’ve got your back.

1900 Broadway, 5th Floor New York, NY 10023

Non-Profit Org.

U.S. Postage

PAIDNew York, NY

Permit No. 9313

Support your SAG-AFTRA

New York softball team

this summer. Come out and

root for your fellow union

members as they represent us in

the annual Performing Artists Softball League. See

actors run, broadcasters hit and stuntmen slide (safely).

The season runs from April to September (if we make

the playoffs). Games are played on Mondays at noon

at Hecksher Field in Central Park. Enter on Central

Park West at 64th Street — just a block from the New

York office. Bring your stage voice to the bleachers and

let everyone know you’re a proud union member!

Play Ball!

SAGAFTRA.org/NY

spring 2017 - sag-aftra · spring 2017 letter from ny ... unscripted line of dialogue and you must...

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