I'm in process of pulling together a crew for a shoot. My director is a DGA member. Does anyone know if this means I am required to hire a union 1st and 2nd AD? Please tell me I can use non DGA.
Filmmaking / Directing : 1st AD Union question by Nena Eskridge
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Yes, you must hire union UPM, 1st & 2nd AD.
Your Director should know this.
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I'm sure he does. Just didn't want him to know I didn't. lol. thanks so much
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On a related note, this is the DGA's most recent update on production - so they will have to report your current hiring: https://www.dga.org/News/Guild-News/2020/June2020/Work_Safety-Member_Not...
Great question, Nena Eskridge! On a related note, this is the latest from the DGA during COVID: https://www.dga.org/News/Guild-News/2020/June2020/Work_Safety-Member_Not...
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Nena Eskridge So Nena, contra to the comments above, listen to me carefully because I have over two decades in producing. If the production is NOT a DGA production then it is NONE OF YOUR BUSINESS to contact the DGA for anything, ever, at all. Similar with SAGAFTRA - if it is NOT a SAGAFTRA production, it is none of SAGAFTRA's business. Your obligation is to the production, who is paying your salary, not to any outside party. So you need to ask this question of your line producer/producer - it's their call not yours. And if you are even considering making any waves for the production, you might maybe consider another line of work. As a line producer who does both union and non union work, I would fire you immediately for doing something which is frankly, the production's business and not yours. I could not permit an AD, coordinator, etc on my production who was confused about what is best for the project, or who cannot navigate the legal relationships. If your director is a DGA member, it is his business whether he or she wants to work on the production. DGA has no jurisdiction on non-union productions and it's between the director and them. Likewise for everyone else. On the other hand, if the production is a DGA production, the same applies; you had better NOT hire non-DGA people because that is going to create issues for the production. If you are not a DGA member, and think you will look good to them by reporting, think again. Just don't. If you yourself are a DGA member, you are by their rules NOT permitted to work non-DGA productions. But obviously it is up to you to do so or not. Director's do it all the time and the DGA really has to suck it up because it's their guild (NOT ADs, PA's POCs, etc) and they don't like being told what they can and cannot do.