Episode Details

Author’s Note: In the wake of the possible IATSE strike I wanted to share my two cents specifically regarding turnaround times and overall hours. I know the pension plan is the headline of negotiations (as it should be), but I want to ensure we're not overlooking the health, safety, and sanity of everyone working behind-the-scenes. A pension plan is meaningless if you don't live long enough to use it. For those of us in Hollywood working behind computers in dark rooms for a living, will there ever come a time when we realize it’s counterproductive, unhealthy, and downright dangerous to work insane hours at the expense of our health and our creativity simply for the sake of our jobs? How much is our time (and our sanity) really worth? For years now I've stood on my soapbox proclaiming from the hills that sitting is killing us and that success happens BECAUSE you prioritize your health above your career, not DESPITE it. If you think living in a dark room for sixteen hours a day under constant stress is good for your creativity, think again. If you value your health, all you have to do is ask yourself this simple question honestly: Is the job you’re doing every single day worth dying for? If your answer to this question is ‘No,’ I suggest reading on. Because if we don’t begin collectively standing up for ourselves and do what's necessary, things will only get worse.

C’mon...Is It Really That Bad?

Wait a second...using words like “unhealthy” or “dangerous” is irresponsible. For those of us who are film editors, visual effects artists, composers, animators, and everyone in between, we just sit at desks all day long in air conditioned luxury suites and have our meals handed to us twice a day on a silver platter. We’ve got it easy! It’s not like we’re blue collar workers slaving away in steel factories or coal mines losing limbs or dying of black lung…..(Note: The typical seated office worker has more injuries than any other industry sector worker including construction, the metal industry, and transportation¹). It’s not like we suffer through grueling days on movie sets working sixteen to twenty hours a day, often deep into the following morning….. And we certainly aren’t out on the front lines sacrificing our lives for the sake of a stunt or “getting the perfect shot”.....

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