#Chris Keyser

[fans4wga]

Interview with Chris Keyser, co-chair of the WGA’s negotiating committee, on 100 days of the strike

'Chris Keyser, the co-chair of the Writers Guild of America’s negotiating committee, doesn’t see the 100-day marker of the ongoing strike as a moment to celebrate. In fact, Keyser has a few choice words for the Hollywood studios and streamers who comprise the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, calling the anniversary of the work stoppage “shameful” and “a day of infamy.”

In an interview posting Friday as part of The Hollywood Reporter’s TV’s Top 5 podcast, Keyser talks about the stalled state of negotiations with the AMPTP, why companies boasting about cash savings during the work stoppage is a “smokescreen” and his thoughts on what it will take to get both sides back to the negotiating table.

Below is an edited and condensed version of the TV’s Top 5 interview with hosts Lesley Goldberg and Daniel Fienberg. You can listen to the full conversation when episode 226 posts on Friday morning. (Subscribe here.)

Walk us through what happened with the Aug. 4 talks where both sides reunited to see if there was a path forward to resume negotiations.

Keyser: It didn’t go perfectly well, obviously. The conversation turned on Carol [Lombardini, president of the AMPTP] saying, “We’re going to talk about some things” and Ellen [Stutzman, chief negotiator of the WGA] saying, “You’re going to need to talk about everything.” And Carol saying, “I need to get back to you and talk to my member companies.” We’re waiting to hear. So, a stutter step but not really worth worrying too much about in the long run.  [After the meeting THR reached out to the AMPTP, which did not comment.]

How was the temperature of the room when you walked in versus when you walked out?

Keyser: Things are cordial with the AMPTP. People are not yelling at each other. Everything is very professional; coldly professional, probably. The coldness is metaphorical. But no one needs to worry about that. The WGA is not particularly interested in playing games. Talking is the only way forward. There’s a sense somehow that you label something 100 days like it’s some kind of celebration. It’s an anniversary of shame for the AMPTP, let’s be clear about that. There was that early comment in the press about trying to starve us, and then they walked that back. But of course they are. We can make a TV show in 100 days; they can’t seem to get back into the negotiating room and have one substantive conversation. It’s a day of infamy for the AMPTP. It’s shameful. Either they cannot get it together or they intentionally are not getting it together. Or the AMPTP is doing precisely what they claimed they wouldn’t do, which was to try to create a situation in which people who are hungry and desperate no longer have the will to fight for their own survival. That’s not going to work.

Do you have an idea of when talks are going to resume?

Keyser: I don’t know. It’s impossible to get inside their heads. They could be negotiating among themselves about what they’re willing to offer. They could be delaying for the sake of delaying. At some point, I almost don’t believe that anymore. There’s a difference between the companies and the AMPTP itself. There were reports that said Carol didn’t want to meet last Friday. I don’t know if that’s true or not. You can never quite tell [what’s going on] behind that curtain. All the chatter you’ve been hearing from the companies — all of the reports of outreach — that’s because the companies have come to understand that this is no longer a tenable strategy and Wall Street’s repeating it: “We don’t understand what the companies are doing.” “This no longer makes sense.” “They can’t work without product.” It’s an inevitability that companies that make TV and film have to go back to making TV and film — with an asterisk that who knows what Amazon and Apple are up to because they could never make another program and it wouldn’t affect their bottom line. That’s part of the problem with the industry: It has players in it for whom the thing that we all love and value is an asterisk.

One of the things that you’ve been talking about is the possibility that the individual members of the AMPTP do not necessarily have the same agenda and that at some point they could splinter. As we are at 100 days, from your perspective, does that seem more or less likely?

Keyser: It’s hard not to look at the situation and see the differing interests of the companies and the ways in which this strike affects them differently means that at some point, they may need to assert their own interests rather than the interest of the group. I’m not surprised that no one has broken off yet because the AMPTP process has been highly effective for them in putting downward pressure on labor. So, in some sense, I think it needs another step for that to happen. I can easily imagine that Carol would say, “You have to give me a chance to go back in and negotiate.” She’s going to have her chance. It does not entirely make sense for Warner [Bros. Discovery] to tie its future to Apple’s point of view about the industry if Apple is intransigent. Apple [for example] would be fine, and Warner would disappear.

There was a sense of optimism, going into Friday’s meeting, from guild membership that seems to now have evaporated. How important is it for both sides to be at the table talking?

Keyser: There’s always optimism because you can’t be in a struggle for 100 days and not say, “There’s a tiny light at the end of the tunnel.” I just don’t know how long the tunnel is. We put out an email to the membership the Thursday before reminding them that of the AMPTP “playbook.” I use that term meaningfully because they do tend to go back to the same strategy over and over again — not to come right back in and say, “OK, what do you need? Let’s make a really good deal” — but to see how little they can give us. In 2007-08, they did it and talks led to breaking off. Even if we get back into a room, I don’t put it past them to continue to say, “We’ll give you a little bit.”

The AMPTP’s line is the DGA pattern and then a few other things. That’s the same way they negotiated a non-conflict negotiation. That’s what they did in 2020, during COVID. But they’ve got two guilds — 170,000 people — out on strike. You can’t just use the same line over and over again and expect it to apply to every single situation. At some point, that becomes useless obstinacy. We’re going to talk at some point because the companies can’t afford not to.

When you hear concretely that the DGA deal is going to be what they’re offering, how do you respond?

Keyser: The DGA deal was never going to be a meaningful pattern for us. There are pieces of this — like success-based residuals — that the DGA felt like it didn’t need and we feel that we do. The DGA doesn’t get to make our deal. The DGA made the deal that it needed to make. But the companies can’t use that deal as our settlement, because 170,000 people are on strike telling them that that’s not going to be sufficient and it doesn’t allow us to survive in this industry.

Companies are caught between a Wall Street regime that requires certain things of them that are hard in the middle of transition — free cash flow and growth — and the ability to deal with the fact that practices that they have adopted over the last decade have driven their workforce closer to being unable to survive. They have to figure out a way to compensate their workforce fairly, even as they have that sound in their ears saying, “Wall Street wants profitability,” “Wall Street doesn’t want to spend money.” They’re going to have to get through that, because not having us working only hurts them in the long run. It only diminishes their power in the business. It’s disruptive. They don’t even have to listen to me; they can listen to all of these Wall Street analysts.

The 2007-08 strike lasted 100 days, with negotiations resuming after 21 days. What is your expectation for how long the writers strike will go on?

Keyser: There’s no way for me to know that. Once they get into a room and they’re open to having real conversations, you do go very fast. Real negotiations don’t take very long. It’s really a question of how long it’s going to take the companies to say, “We understand that we have no choice but to sit down and have a real conversation.” I can’t determine that. When the broadcast season begins to evaporate, when Sony moves all of its movies from 2023 to 2024, when you look ahead to next year and you say, “What is Warner going to program on HBO once they get through this?” How do they manage that, month after month after month? They’re going to make a deal with us. That deal is going to be some version of what we’re looking for. If they keep us longer, that price doesn’t go down. All that’s going on now is they’re compounding their losses.

Taylor Sheridan is one of the most successful working TV writers in this moment. He told THR in a cover story this summer that he didn’t support the minimum room size, which is one of the WGA’s core issues. Others have echoed those sentiments, including John Ridley. What do you make of their comments?

Keyser: I’m not going to emphasize any one of our areas of negotiation because we had five or so, broadly speaking, areas that we need to make progress on and to make sure that writing is sustainable. One of them is the dismantling of the writers room process, and part of the solution to that is to make sure that writers are hired. We’re committed to that. We have 11,500 members. I don’t worry if somebody disagrees. Taylor Sheridan makes a lot of TV shows, and he’s good at doing that. But he’s still just one voice. And John Ridley can do the same. That’s fine. I think they’re wrong. I don’t negotiate with Taylor Sheridan. He doesn’t determine our bargaining. Whatever he wants to say, he can say.

What concessions might the WGA make in order to get back to the table?

Keyser: It’s a valid question, but it’s not a question you could possibly expect a negotiator to have with you. We have said to the companies that the solutions to these problems that we face can be negotiable. If they have an idea of what formula they want to apply to success-based residuals, they should feel free to suggest one. What we want to negotiate is the solutions, not the existence of the problems themselves. We’re not going to walk out of this negotiation with a company saying, “There are like five different ways for you to die, you can be saved three of those ways and then we’ll kill you the other two.” That’s not going to happen. All of [the issues] have to be dealt with; they can be dealt with in other ways that we have proposed or there may be variations inside that, although I don’t want to promise that every one of them is infinitely flexible. For example, we’ve got to be really careful about the language on AI to make sure that AI does not have the power to replace writers.

Has the WGA considered asking fans — or even members — to boycott streamers?

Keyser: We’re not in the business of running nationwide boycotts. But if fans feel like doing that, fans should take that on. I think the fans, without coordination, will begin to do that. All of these companies know that churn is a big problem and as their original offerings become sparser and sparser, people are going to say, “Why am I spending all this money?”

SAG-AFTRA has drawn the ire from both performers and writers for its willingness to grant waivers during its strike. I’m hearing that the WGA would oppose waivers. But if someone came to the WGA and agreed to such things as room minimums, health insurance for any length of a mini-room, and as well as acceptable AI language, would the WGA grant that network or studio or streamer a waiver?

Keyser: We’re not granting waivers. We will if a meaningful player comes and wants to make a full deal with us. That changes the complexion of this negotiation. We’re open to making that deal. But we’re not granting waivers. We did that in 2007-08 and it wasn’t advantageous; it led to complications. That is not a commentary on SAG and I’m not going to comment on their official policy.

Warner Bros. Discovery and Paramount revealed in earnings reports that they’re saving money by being media companies that aren’t actually producing media right now. Why do you think that’s a message that they’re putting out?

Keyser: It’s a smokescreen; it has nothing to do with the way things are going to work going forward. I think we really need to be concerned as a country about when Amazon and Apple have their quarterly earnings calls and don’t even mention entertainment because the results don’t matter. So, if the argument is, “We can take control over and decimate the entertainment business because it’s irrelevant to us,” that’s a real problem for writers, actors and directors, but also a problem for the public. Having said that, Warner, Disney, Sony, Comcast, Paramount and Netflix need to create product. And a pile of money on their shelves without anything for people to watch next year is only going to come back to haunt them. And they know. But I don’t think any Wall Street analyst is fooled by the short-term vision that says, “Look at us, we didn’t spend anything, we didn’t make anything. We’re rich.”

We’ve heard of back-channeling going on, and there’s been a lot written about who could be the white knight — the Lew Wasserman of this era — with suggestions ranging from everyone from Peter Chernin to Ari Emanuel to Nancy Tellem and Mark Pedowitz, as well as political folks like Gavin Newsom or Karen Bass. Who has the potential to do so and who do you trust?

Keyser: We don’t need a mediator. That’s an old wives’ tale that you need somebody to come in and have a conversation. We’re perfectly OK. Talking about whether the companies need a mediator internally is an entirely different question. I appreciate everyone who wants to help. But what’s necessary here is for the companies to get it together and be ready to talk about the issues on the table. They know where to reach us.

What is your message on day 100 of the strike to the AMPTP and to writers?

Keyser: My message to the companies is we are your allies. We are your asset, we are the way in which you create value. And we are here and ready to have a conversation about how that’s going to happen where we share enough of that value that’s fair and allows us to survive in the business as we have over the past half century. It’s good for you, and it’s good for us. So, we need to get past the rhetoric, and we need to get into a room and talk.

As writers, the real job now is to fight through the fear and the uncertainty and the tendency to think, “How can we end this without getting exactly what we need?” Hold firm and remember why we got here in the first place. With SAG by our side, we’re more powerful than ever. There will be no path forward for writers or for actors who do not say, “Enough.” There is no mercy here; there is only a revolution that comes out of our power. And that’s what we intend to achieve.'

[kaseyjaywriting]

"Where We Are and Where We’re Going" - an update on the WGA Strike from Chris Keyser.

"No one knows how long this will take. The companies will have some say in that. What they will have no say in is how we behave along the way in our fortitude."

"We are in awe of this membership. You give us strength.

Union now. Union forever."

[kaseyjaywriting]

Yes! Be angry at studios, be angry at the executives who "hope" the strike is resolved quickly... except the strike would be over by now if they were actually open to negotiations.

I don't care if no new shows come out for 2 years, the sheer amount of media that exists couldn't be watched in a million years. Go back and watch old movies and shows, YouTube videos, documentaries, read a book. Anyone acting like this writers strike is less important than their entertainment, you aren't a leftist or an ally to the working class, you're a spoiled bougie brat

[loserdudes]

Next stop ➡️ HFD

[iww-gnv]

The writers strike has hit Day 100 – the point at which the last walkout by the Writers Guild of America ended in 2008. It’s a significant juncture, one that Chris Keyser and David A. Goodman, who co-chair the WGA’s negotiating committee, call a “milestone of shame” for the AMPTP. It also comes five days after the latest attempt to get both sides back to the negotiating table. That meeting between the WGA West’s Chief Negotiator Ellen Stutzman and her General Counsel Tony Segall and AMPTP boss Carol Lombardini and her team wasn’t as productive as many had hoped. While the WGA, late on Friday night, revealed that there was “no agreement” on resuming negotiations for a new MBA and, in a caustic note to members said that the “AMPTP playbook continues”, there were reasons to be more optimistic than at first glance. If you ignore the furor around press blackouts and trade leaks, the WGA stated that it was “willing to engage with the companies and resume negotiations in good faith to make a fair deal for all writers”.

[jynersq]

“I discontinued all writing and writing-related work on Andor prior to midnight, May 1. After being briefed on the Saturday showrunner meeting, I informed Chris Keyser at the WGA on Sunday morning that I would also be ceasing all non-writing producing functions.”

— Tony Gilroy

(original tweet)

[lastweeksshirttonight]

Hi! Did you see this: https://deadline.com/2023/07/john-oliver-amber-ruffin-ziwe-protest-at-wga-comedy-writers-picket-1235449603/?

Thanks for sharing this! I hadn't seen this exact article, but I'd seen on other social media that he's been at the picket lines.

His quote is really great: “I like what Chris Keyser said yesterday, ‘This isn’t a war, this is a basic request for some completely understandable contract points’ so I want to see a fair deal as soon as possible. It is absolutely appalling that they are not negotiating right now. The fact that they are not around a table right now is absolutely disgusting.”

I also highly recommend reading and watching Amber Ruffin's thoughts on the strike. Love her and love what she had to say.

[entitledrichpeople]

Writers are facing the most comprehensive assault on compensation and working conditions that they have seen in a generation. The studios have taken advantage of the transition to streaming to underpay entertainment industry workers, including writers in every area of work. Like too many working people across our economy, as corporate profits grow, writers are just not keeping up. We have reached this moment today not of our own choosing but because the companies' assault on writer income and working conditions have pushed us to an existential brink."

CHRIS KEYSER WGA NEGOTIATING COMMITTEE CO-CHAIR

The WGA is on strike as streaming companies try to take advantage of writers, here’s their website.

[burningexeter]

Here's a fairly solid amount of all the different kinds of media that I think both can fit well in and could share the same universe as one of the greatest TV shows of all time, David Chase's The Sopranos, which you can both read and see below for yourself:

• Tom Fontana's Oz (HBO)

• David Simon's The Wire

• Vince Gilligan's Breaking Bad, Better Call Saul & El Camino: A Breaking Bad Movie

• Kurt Sutter's Sons Of Anarchy & Mayans MC

• Todd McFarlane's Spawn (HBO) Trilogy

• Chris Carter's The X Files (first nine seasons), The X Files: Fight The Future, Millennium & The Lone Gunmen

• Joss Whedon's Buffy The Vampire Slayer & Angel

• Christopher McCulloch & Doc Hammer's The Venture Bros. & The Venture Bros.: Radiant Is The Blood Of The Baboon Heart

• Remedy Entertainment's Connected Universe (Max Payne Trilogy, Alan Wake Duology, Alan Wake's American Nightmare & Control)

• Quentin Tarantino's Tarantinoverse (Reservoir Dogs, True Romance, Natural Born Killers, Pulp Fiction, From Dusk Till Dawn, Curdled, Jackie Brown, Kill Bill Duology, Inglourious Basterds, Django Unchained, The Hateful Eight & Once Upon A Time In Hollywood)

• Larry David & Jerry Seinfeld's Seinfeld

• Christopher Keyser & Amy Lippman's Party Of Five

• Winnie Holzman's My So-Called Life

• Linwood Boomer's Malcolm In The Middle

• Mitchell Hurwitz's Arrested Development (first three seasons)

• Dan Schneider's Drake & Josh, Drake & Josh Go Hollywood & Merry Christmas, Drake & Josh

• John Cleese & Connie Booth's Fawlty Towers

• Dylan Moran & Graham Linehan's Black Books

• Rob McElhenney's It's Always Sunny In Philadelphia

• John Carpenter's Big Trouble In Little China

• Bryan Fuller's Pushing Daisies & Hannibal (NBC)

• Damon Lindelof & Carlton Cuse's LOST

• Jeff Pinkner & J.H. Wyman's Fringe

• Greg Daniels' The Office (U.S.)

and last but not least,

• Michael Schur's Parks and Recreation

The universe does what The Sopranos did (and did so wonderfully) and that's both balance and explore different tones, styles and aesthetics.

Each media shows the various different sides to this world that's similar to ours but is much more larger than life.

Plus, in case anyone's wondering, Pawnee is seen as a joke by the rest of the world which yeah it is.

[masterofdemise]

MFB: Solar Swap AU, What Does it Mean To Be Legendary?

I had a new idea for this AU and it completely spiraled so behold. I’m going to talk about one of the biggest events in this AU (that has no comparable event in canon Fury) and how it sparks a change in the side of good (and evil).

If you prefer to read on AO3, the link is here:

 https://archiveofourown.org/works/42298515/chapters/119563858

JOHANNES VS CYCNUS

Johannes versus Cycnus is not long after Beyster Island, when moral for the good side is quite low. Even with the good side having some legendary bladers like Pluto, Gingka, Herschel, Keyser and Rago, they also have yet to find Kyoya after the event of Atlantis Island (equivalent to Mist Mountain arc), Ryuga still shows no interest in helping them and Chris is revealed to be a legendary blader, but he’s working for Dynamis. Some are continuing to train (Gingka, Masamune, King who has just joined them), while others are moping (Tsubasa is seriously questioning his value to the team right about now). During this dead period of nothing really happening, Pluto and Johannes decide to go on a walk together to take their minds off of the unlucky string of events. In the meanwhile, Cycnus is still panicking and stressing over his recent loss to Rago during the Atlantis mission. Dynamis was not too pleased with Cycnus’s failure and insisted he catch his breath before getting any new orders. Desperate for Dynamis’s praise and wanting to prove himself, decides it is time to act on his own. Cycnus misinterprets Dynamis’s views on Pluto and thinks that if he kills Pluto on his own, Dynamis will be proud of Cycnus.

During Pluto and Johannes’s walk, Pluto worries about Johannes tagging along after he has got hurt trying to protect Pluto despite Pluto being the legendary blader. Johannes fires back and says that if anything, he is not doing a good enough job protecting Pluto. Before they can say anymore, Cycnus launches his bey directly at Pluto to take him down. Pluto is about to counter attack to protect himself but before he can, Johannes intervenes and chooses to battle Cycnus instead. Pluto is horrified and knowing how powerful Cycnus is, begs Johannes to not fight him in his stead since Cycnus is a very powerful legendary blader but Johannes doesn’t listen. Cycnus is annoyed and tries to attack Pluto again but is blocked once more by Johannes. Johannes, as Pluto’s bodyguard, refuses to allow any harm to come to Pluto.

As the battle heats up and they throw more and more insults at one another, Cycnus is so fed up, his pride so damaged, that he also threatens to harm Motti, who he has seen at Olympus Corp conversing with Yuki (she is a double agent and works on her own to eventually help out the WBBA later but Cycnus doesn’t know she is actually betraying Olympus). Cycnus hints that Motti is a traitor, but Johannes doesn't really care for that part and tells Cycnus that "No matter what, Pluto and Motti is my family, if she's being stupid then I'll set her straight. Even if she can be an idiot, she is my sister and I won't let a loser puppet like you lay a finger on her". In the end, Johannes wins as Cycnus runs away in shame.

How though? Isn’t Johannes not a legendary blader while Cycnus is? Let me explain. Legendary nladers are indeed more powerful than regular ones, but not by a lot. Regular Bladers still have the potential to defeat legendary bladers if they do not have a strong will or spirit and this is most clearly displayed in Johannes versus Cycnus. Johannes wins because his motivation to protect the people he loves (Motti, Pluto) is far stronger than Cycnus’s one-sided admiration for Dynamis, which isn’t even that strong because his pride hinders him and Rago challenging Cycnus’s beliefs has left Cycnus in a twisted and confused state. Cycnus cannot win because deep down, his blader spirit is next to nothing when compared to Johannes because Cycnus doesn’t know what he really wants for him or Cygnus. Johannes doesn't just protect Pluto because it's his job, or protect Motti because he is obligated to as her brother, but because he genuinely loves them both and wants to protect them of his own volition. Johannes knows exactly what he wants from himself and its to protect the people he loves so he can preserve the things they have.

Johannes versus Cycnus largely affects both the allies and all the villains in their approach in stopping or trying to revive Nemesis.

THE EFFECTS ON OLYMPUS CORP

Dynamis returns from successfully cursing and kidnapping Rago after a rigged battle where Dynamis cheated, and Yuki returns from Beyster Island with the good news that Chris is the final legendary blader they need. The two of them congratulate the other as they are a step closer to reviving Nemesis. All is going well until Cycnus barges in with injuries from his fight with Johannes. Cycnus tells Dynamis everything and apologizes for failure to kill Pluto. Dynamis is enraged that Cycnus acted without consulting him and even tried to kill his main rival.Dynamis calls Cycnus “useless” and an “idiot” for fighting them and still having nothing to show, especially after Atlantis where Dynamis had to bring Rago himself to make up for Cycnus’s first failure. Dynamis has never wanted to kill or purposely cheat against Pluto because as much as he fights with his rival, he also heavily respects him and wants to be the one and only one to defeat him. So when Dynamis hears that Cycnus tried to take him down in such a manner, Dynamis is furious at this act, especially since Cycnus is the legendary blader in the situation and despite trying his hardest, still lost.

Yuki, slightly concerned over Johannes since he is Motti's brother, asks how Cycnus lost to Johannes of all people. Cycnus also then reveals how he threatened Motti the same way he did to Pluto. Yuki has been friends with Motti the whole time outside of work so he feels a lot of concern since he cares for Motti a lot. While Yuki just calls Cycnus an idiot in the room, in reality, he is terrified and worried about putting Motti in danger whenever she goes into the Olympus Corporation building. Even though Yuki never really listened to Motti telling him to stop working for Olympus because he was so dead set loyal to Dynamis before, now he is feeling conflicted. He knows Dynamis would never threaten Motti because she is too much of an “insignificant flea” in his plans to change anything, now he has to worry about Cycnus going too far and hurting his “best friend”. This feeling of doubt and uncertainty lingers inside Yuki until he eventually betrays Dynamis in the end after Nemesis is revived successfully. This doubt also spreads to the Beylin Fist, who also can’t really condone such harming of innocent people (Motti) in such a manner after rumors spread of Cycnus’s failure.

THE EFFECTS ON THE ALLIES

Johannes defeating Cycnus is a huge revelation and realization for the allies because it proves to everyone that it is possible for non-legendary bladers to defeat powered up legendary bladers. Anyone can be a powerful blader, even without bonus legendary powers, because it's about spirit and passion, not just skill and some magic flying rock.

One of the two people who were most affected by their losses against the legendary bladers are Masamune and Tsubasa (Ryuga and Chris respectively). Masamune is the most obvious one and not much changes from canon since King still gives him that sunset speech (with just a tiny bit of adjustment to fit the AU). Tsubasa however, is a different story. Tsubasa was tasked with finding legendary bladers and was kept away from his friends for a period of time. When all the legendary bladers were found and he was not one, he became frustrated with others and himself. Why were people like Cycnus and Ryuga selected as legendary bladers instead of him? Was he not responsible enough, strong enough, did he not have enough spirit? Tsubasa in his disappointed state, is unable to enjoy any of his training sessions because he is starting to base his worth on the fact that he was not a legendary blader. He begins to forget about his blader spirit, until Johannes comes back victorious.

When they first met, Tsubasa did not view Johannes highly as he saw him as overly reckless and chaotic. After Johannes defeats Cycnus however, he gains a new found respect for him. Tsubasa asks Johannes how he did it and beat the impossible. Johannes bluntly responds, “I just won.” Tsubasa tries to find a reasoning for this by asking if Johannes cheated or used some sort of trick but Johannes tells Tsubasa that his reasoning is the sound of someone who is “weak and just tries to find excuses”. Tsubasa yells at him for the insult but Johannes clarifies that he’s not talking about his skill, but his willpower and confidence in himself. Tsubasa still confused, Johannes has to remind Tsubasa on what blading spirit really means. If you already admit to yourself that you can’t fight the legendary bladers, you have already lost. Johannes, not much of a motivational speaker, tells Tsubasa that the title of legendary blader doesn’t mean anything other than their role to form the barrier, and that he is still just much of a powerful blader as the likes of Gingka and Kyoya. Tsubasa realizes that his love for Beyblade does not and should not change just because of a star fragment. Tsubasa later converses with Gingka and when he realizes that Gingka still sees Tsubasa as a worthy rival despite the power difference, Tsubasa finally has his motivation returned. Tsubasa tells himself that when Nemesis is finally defeated, he is going to keep striving for his best and to continue helping out with the Beyblade scene so that others can continue to pursue their dreams too.

Other non-legendary bladers like Toby Zeo, and Benkei also have a boost in motivation, not just in their hopes of saving the world from destruction, but also in the way that it really isn’t impossible for them to eventually catch up to and rival their legendary blader friends. They don’t need to give up on their dreams of being the strongest bladers because they have just as much potential to achieve that title as other people do.

Despite all the recent losses that the protagonists have to suffer through, the group realizes that there is still hope, this hope being their blader spirit and fighting passion. With things finally starting to look up, they all prepare to head off into the end game to stop the revival of Nemesis.

[gaythingsinstartrektos]

I'm glad you support the WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes, but in your post, you called for people to stop streaming which is not something helpful to the strike at this time and may be counterintuitive. There are sites that detail the current picket lines for WGA (wgacontract2023.org) and SAG-AFTRA (sagaftrastrike.org). We cannot set new lines for the unions. Only voice our support for their proposals and their fight.

Hi!

And I will continue to call for boycott. There has been people who have called to it.

It is not something I have just come up with on my own, simply something I understand to make sense.

The Union as a whole officially cannot call for a boycott. We all know the studios and streamers to be synonymus, but legally they would get into hot waters since *technically* they are differen entities, on paper. It's the whole business about who owns what under which name. It would be a secondary attack and making them vulnerable legally. So yes, someone sticking their head out is different than a whole movement being in danger by calling for boycott. Please do note that nobody but fans says 'they don't want you to'. The statement that gets shared because it is safe legally is 'it is a personal choice.' It is a choice one can make, not one that is discouraged, though.

As for the counter intuitive part. The reasons that get thrown around seem to be as follows But what about the pay? - we have all seen the checks, let's not kid ourselves, the only ones making money off off your views and subs are the studios. But the projects they will use it against the creatives? - Guys. They are saying to starve them out. Leave them on the street. Replace them with AI. They are spinning the news as if the creatives fighting for their livelihood are the villains, while all the studios have to do is give a fraction of their money to those who deserve it. Threats of broken contracts, recently. It's moot. They have worse weapons than crying 'but people aren't watching' - please also note here that a) there is a hastag, time frame and online vocality on purpose here. Make it known that it is a targeted effort. We can give or take time and money. Their move. That is what needs to be signaled. Then what does this even do? - Glad you ask! Initial turn off has already done some visual damages and the goal, overall, is to apply pressure that investors and big money sources can see and feel.

The influence of general tendencies of the strike (yes we can see Barbenheimer influence on WB, but that was to be expected). And no, that does not mean nothing needs to be done. It simply means this all does not go without reaction. It means pressure can be applied, here. Investors want money. Duh. They want to know these things will continue making money. A little side nudge at this

They have an eye on this. Very much so. Then there is this

Essentially? The studios hope to break the unions by either them starving, being replaced or everyone taking to scabbing because of the first two, so they can keep going as they have and worse. And the audience can hit them where it hurts by signaling we are not taking that and are in solidarity with the creatives. By not giving the studios money. Hurt their numbers. Make them *have* to give in first instead of hoping they will just happen to change their minds for no good reason. The reason will always be easy access to money.

Now some more statements from union members toward certain behaviors on 'oh but they didn't say-'

Vocality on those ~technicalities~ and work arounds. Breaches in solidarity.

“Don’t,” the “Better Call Saul” Emmy nominee said succinctly outside Paramount studios on Wednesday. “It’s a strike. Strike. You lose. We lose. Everybody loses. That’s tough shit.”

Then there is the side of promotion by non union people:

Some more solidarity from those who 'don't have to', since the rules would allow things and their views:

Now for those having a hard time between the line reading, but are still paying attention:

What are promotions and advertisements for? Selling you a product. What does that entail? You ending up watching the product, usually a good and desirable thing.

But right now? No. Right now watching things, old new, what have you, is giving the studios money. Is the opposite of helping them. No it is not just about the people literally putting in work. It is also about not promoting the work so people are not encounraged to watch. Are you hearing me? They have to be indirect. They have to hope someone like Talarico sticking his head out and them being so very vocal where they can be (and this is just a handful), is enough to reach people. That their livelihood being threatened and the disgusting behavior of the studios is enough to make people upset in solidarity so they stop supporting the studios.

As is their personal choice to do. As would put pressure on the studios. As not doing only serves the bottom line of those who are willing to starve out and replace those fighting for fair wages.

Starve them instead. Of your time. Of your money. Stop streaming, be vocal about the reason, make it count. Stand with the creatives.

[fans4wga]

Is it true Tumblr is crossing the picket line by marketing One Piece?

It's unfortunate to have that show's ads blasted on all our dashboards, to be sure, but it doesn't exactly fit the definition of "crossing the picket line", which is specific strike terminology that's been muddied a bit by talk on the Internet.

Crossing a picket line generally means crossing an actual, physical picket line to work at a struck company, thereby disregarding the strikers. [Updated 1 September to clarify that crossing a picket line is specifically referring to workers crossing picket lines, not patrons.] (Recent example in the news: hotel workers on strike in California picketed hotels and called for a boycott; therefore, staying at those hotels was crossing a picket line.) It can also be used figuratively, and in that case it differs from strike to strike, depending on the specific union demands.

[Side note: there's no call for a boycott from WGA/SAG-AFTRA, so subscribing to streaming services/going to movie theaters isn't crossing a picket line at this time; however, people canceling streaming services in solidarity and leaving a note that explains they're canceling in support of the strikes is a move we wholeheartedly support! See WGA negotiating committee co-chair Chris Keyser's interview about that here.]

Tumblr is a company, not a person, so SAG-AFTRA can't discipline it for marketing a Netflix show like it would discipline an individual (a stern talk from the board, or prohibiting them from SAG-AFTRA membership, etc.) There's no legal way for any union to enforce a no-marketing rule for companies. If Tumblr had a strong solidarity ethic, they'd turn down studio marketing campaigns, but that's a lot to expect from any profit-driven company and shouldn't come as a surprise to anyone.

So, tl;dr: crossing the picket line? Not exactly. Still a not-great thing to do? Absolutely, and you can always send Tumblr a feedback form expressing your disapproval that they're marketing for Netflix during the strikes.

[bitbybitwrites]

[girasolreves]

Thank you, Tony!

(Thank you for not being a scab)

“I discontinued all writing and writing-related work on Andor prior to midnight, May 1. After being briefed on the Saturday showrunner meeting, I informed Chris Keyser at the WGA on Sunday morning that I would also be ceasing all non-writing producing functions,” Gilroy said.

original post below:

[popculturebrain]

Writers Guild Leader Suggests Studios Will Make Deal “Either Together or Separately”

Chris Keyser added in a pointed speech that lasted over 17 minutes that when it comes to the 2023 Writers Guild of America and SAG-AFTRA negotiations, "there is no winner or loser. It’s just a deal."

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[sallyember]

WGA’s Chris Keyser Issues Defiant Call For Solidarity As Strike Enters Second Month; Accuses AMPTP Of Lying & Vows To Fight On Even If DGA & SAG-AFTRA Make Deals

In a defiant clarion call for continued solidarity and endurance as the Writers Guild’s strike enters its second month, WGA negotiating committee co-chair Chris Keyser says in a new video that the guild’s fight for a fair contract is not one that’s being fought for writers alone, but for the entire labor movement. “When you […]WGA’s Chris Keyser Issues Defiant Call For Solidarity As Strike Enters…