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Canadian screenwriters and independent producers reach terms on new Independent Production Agreement

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From a media release:

Today, the Writers Guild of Canada (WGC) and the Canadian Media Producers Association (CMPA) jointly announced the successful conclusion of negotiations, resulting in an agreement in principle on the terms for a new Independent Production Agreement. The CMPA-WGC Independent Production Agreement establishes the terms, conditions, and rates for writers, story editors, and story consultants.

“We are pleased to have reached a fair agreement with the CMPA that will protect the livelihoods of our screenwriter members and maintain stability in the Canadian film and television industry,” said Victoria Shen, WGC Executive Director. “We feel the new agreement includes important protections for Canadian screenwriters and balances the concerns of our producer partners.”

“We are proud to have come to terms on an agreement that truly values the important alliance that exists between Canadian screenwriters and independent producers,” said Sean Porter, the CMPA’s Vice-President of National Industrial Relations and Counsel. “I want to thank the individuals on both sides of the bargaining table for their commitment to finding solutions that serve to benefit the future of our sector and Canadian storytelling on screen.”

The terms for the new three-year Independent Production Agreement will be sent to the CMPA’s Board of Directors, and distributed by the WGC, for ratification. The current agreement expired on December 31, 2023.

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Featured, Industry News

Writers vote overwhelmingly in favour of strike authorization

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From a media release:

Today the Writers Guild of Canada (WGC) announced that its members have voted overwhelmingly in favour of authorizing strike action if there is no resolution in its negotiations with the Canadian Media Producers Association (CMPA). An unprecedented 96.5 per cent voted in favour of a strike mandate during a week-long voting period, which also marked the highest voter turnout in Guild history at 70.2 per cent of eligible voters.

“This strike authorization vote, a first in the Guild’s 33-year history, represents a pivotal moment for Canadian screenwriters,” said WGC Executive Director Victoria Shen. “It underscores our members’ commitment to securing fair compensation and meaningful AI protections in an ever-evolving industry.

“While a strong strike mandate does not necessarily mean we will strike, it tells the producers we are ready to defend ourselves if necessary. We remain committed to negotiating a fair agreement for our members.”

The strike authorization vote came after nearly six months of negotiations aimed at renewing the Independent Production Agreement (IPA) between the WGC and the CMPA. WGC members have been working without a new contract since December 31, 2023.

The WGC has been fighting for an agreement that will protect the livelihoods of its members and preserve a future for screenwriters in Canada. To date, the parties have not been able to negotiate meaningful protections for both live action and animation writers against AI, reasonable compensation for animation writers, or secure minimum participation of screenwriters during production of television series.

“Our members understand what’s at stake in these negotiations, and I am proud of the strength of their support in this vote,” said Alex Levine, President of the WGC. “We cannot let producers devalue us and our work. We are standing strong and together to secure a future for Canadian screenwriters.”

The WGC remains committed to reaching a fair agreement with producers and keeping the industry working. Currently, the Guild is confirming dates when all parties can get back to addressing the outstanding issues.

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Industry News

WGC and CMPA Ratify Extension of Independent Production Agreement

From a media release:

The Writers Guild of Canada (WGC) and the Canadian Media Producers Association (CMPA) today announced that an 18-month extension to the CMPA/WGC Independent Production Agreement (IPA) has been ratified by both parties. The current IPA will now expire on December 31, 2023. The IPA establishes the terms, conditions and rates for writers, story editors, and story consultants.

“We are pleased to have reached an agreement that protects Canadian screenwriters and maintains our strong relationship with the CMPA”, says WGC President Alex Levine. “As our government looks to modernize the Broadcasting Act with Bill C-11, our relationship with our producing partners is more
important than ever.”

“This extension will create a welcome foundation of stability for all involved, as the industry continues to recover from the challenges of the pandemic,” said Sean Porter, Vice President, National Industrial Relations and Counsel, CMPA. “We thank our negotiating partners at the WGC for their commitment and diligent work throughout these negotiations.”

The two groups reached an agreement in principle in May after constructive negotiations between the parties. As part of the newly ratified agreement, the minimum Script Fees in effect from July 1, 2021, to June 30, 2022, will increase by 3 percent effective on July 1, 2022. The budget thresholds under the Low-Budget Television Production Incentive will also increase by 3 percent effective on July 1, 2022.

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Industry News

Writers Guild of Canada releases new equity, diversity and inclusion data

From a media release:

The Writers Guild of Canada has released a new Equity, Diversity and Inclusion Report with 2020 data. The initiative is part of the WGC and its Diversity Committee’s efforts to work towards addressing issues of historic underrepresentation in Canadian television. (Diversity groups are defined by the WGC as Indigenous, Black, LGBTQ2S, People of Colour, People Living with Disabilities.)

The new report provides membership data from 2017 to 2020, and includes contract data from 62 live-action and animated series that started production in 2020, in addition to the 280 series previously covered in the period from 2017 to 2019.

The data shows some marked increases between 2019 and 2020 in key credit categories, including:

  • The share of writers from underrepresented communities receiving upper-level staffing credits increased in multiple categories, including Co-Executive Producer (from 25% in 2019 to 28% in 2020) and Consulting Producer (from 24% in 2019 to 33% in 2020).
  • The combined share of Black and People of Colour who received credits for entry-level Story Editor and Executive Story Editor positions rose in 2020 by 14% to 46.9% and by 5.5% to 52.6%, respectively. Both categories of credits have reached a parity zone, when population numbers in urban centres where writers’ rooms are often located are considered (visible minorities make 54% of the population in Toronto and 51% in Vancouver).
  • Black writers have made strides to achieve representation in live action that is on-par with population numbers. The percentage of Black writers in live-action writers’ rooms increased from 8% in 2019 to 9.2% in 2020 and is slightly higher than population numbers in highly dense population centres like Toronto and Montreal. Other indicators such as writing credits show that there is still room for improvement.

Other observations on the 2020 data include:

  • The participation of Indigenous writers decreased across the board in 2020. The share of Indigenous writers working on Canadian TV dropped to 1% in 2020 from 4% in 2019. No Indigenous writers were engaged in animation productions during the same period.
  • The share of East Asian (1.4% in 2019 to 2.8% in 2020) and South Asian (3.2% in 2019 to 3.6% in 2020) writers increased slightly, but there’s still work to do to achieve representation on-par with Canadian population numbers.
  • The share of writing credits received by LGBTQ2S writers decreased across different formats. In live action, credits dropped from 8.6% in 2019 to 6.9% in 2020. When it comes to animation, writing credits going to LGBTQ2S writers decreased from 4.1% to 1.7% during the same period.

The full report is now available on the WGC’s website HERE.

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Industry News

The WGC announces new president, council

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From a media release:

The Writers Guild of Canada is pleased to announce that showrunner Dennis Heaton is the WGC’s new president, elected by WGC council to serve the 2,200 members of the Guild from May 1, 2018 to April 30, 2020. Dennis is an award-winning screenwriter based in Vancouver; currently showrunner of the upcoming Netflix show, The Order.

“We’re very excited to work with Dennis,” says WGC Executive Director Maureen Parker. “His showrunning experience will hold us in good stead as we go into Independent Production Agreement bargaining within the next year.”

Dennis has been a member of the WGC since 2001 and has served on the Guild’s council since 2012. He was showrunner of the internationally renowned police procedural Motive (CTV/ABC seasons one and two), and has written for The Listener and Blood Ties, among other shows.

“It’s great to be the new WGC president,” says Heaton. “I’m looking forward to building on the Guild’s past successes, as well as facing the challenges ahead.”

In addition to electing a new president, the Guild also has a new council, responsible for setting policies and overseeing Guild activities. The 2018-20 WGC council is made up of experienced screenwriter members from across the country: Vice President Andrew Wreggitt (Mayerthorpe), Treasurer Mark Ellis (X Company), Marsha Greene (Mary Kills People), Alex Levine (Orphan Black), Anne-Marie Perrotta (Max & Ruby), and Michael Amo (Pure).

The WGC’s new council, along with Executive Director Maureen Parker, is ready to move ahead in a time of industry flux, and to continue the Guild’s ongoing work on behalf of Canadian screenwriters.Facebooktwitterredditlinkedinmail