Asian filmmakers watch Hollywood strikes with hope and frustration
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Asia
By Andrew Jeong and  Karishma Mehrotra
July 21, 2023 at 4:03 a.m. EDT
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SEOUL â When Netflix launched in South Korea in 2016, it was a breath of fresh air for filmmakers jaded by a local industry notorious for labor abuses and penny-pinching. The streaming giant didnât meddle in the filmmaking process, offered to invest significant chunks of cash and provided a way for Koreans to show off their work to foreign audiences.
Now, with Netflix as the dominant platform in South Korea, local screenwriters, directors and actors are expressing concerns about the companyâs labor practices in their country. They are watching Hollywoodâs biggest strike in six decades with hope that it will give them more bargaining power and a precedent to follow.
âWe have a love-hate relationship with Netflix,â Justin Byung-in Kim, the head of the Screenwriters Guild of Korea, said in a recent interview at the offices of the Directors Guild of Korea. On the one hand, Netflix has given South Koreaâs film workers better opportunities, he said. On the other hand, he said that Netflix has not been paying South Korean workers residuals , which are royalties that directors, writers or actors receive if their work is rebroadcast. Netflix disputes this.
Korean content is a big moneymaker for U.S. streaming giants: âSquid Gameâ alone contributed an estimated $900 million to Netflixâs value, and shooting is underway for a sequel to the Emmy-winning ultraviolent series. Netflix is planning to invest more than $2.5 billion in South Korea.
The Hollywood strike: Everything we know and are working to find out
India is also among the fastest-growing markets for streamed content. Netflix executives said that Indian movies such as âRRR,â with its hit song âNaatu Naatu,â were becoming âbreakout successes in the West.â Meanwhile, the India director of Amazonâs Prime Video, Sushant Sreeram, said the company would double investments in India over the next five years, according to a local report. (Amazon founder and former CEO Jeff Bezos owns The Washington Post.)
But while U.S. streaming giants have benefited from the popularity of Indian and âhallyuâ (meaning âKorean waveâ) productions, any concessions earned by striking workers in the United States would not be shared by overseas creators.
For years, South Korean TV stations hired studios to produce dramas on the cheap. This meant studios overworked temporary staff and paid little, or sometimes nothing, to workers, Kim said.
TV âSquid Game,â dystopian Netflix hit, gets green light for second season
Then came Netflix. The American company offered contracts to South Korean production companies that involved lump-sum payments worth more than the cost of production, meaning Netflix assumed all financial risks, and that there would be a guaranteed profit â something that had been previously rare for dramas in Korea, Kim said.
The catch was that Netflix would own all copyrights of that show. This meant that Netflix didnât have to pay residuals, even if the series became a hit.
Netflix said that its payments to local studios are high rates that surpass what they typically receive from Netflixâs competitors.
In 2021, Korean producer Hwang Dong-hyuk told The Guardian that Netflix paid him only for the original contract for âSquid Gameâ when it was an independent project, before anyone could have predicted its global success. He added that shooting was âphysically, mentally and emotionally draining.â
Netflix said it rewarded Hwang with an extra payment in the contract for Season 2 of âSquid Gameâ that is meant to reflect the success of Season 1.
âThis is where it gets complicated,â said Kim.
Netflix usually outsources Korean production to local studios, unlike in the United States. This means that most South Korean writers, actors, directors and set staff â who, on paper, work for the studios and not Netflix â normally donât get paid directly by Netflix. The streaming company has no legal obligation to sit down at the negotiating table to discuss wages or residual payments.
Netflix said that it educates these production companies on best practices regarding contracts and production environments. But discussions about labor laws and industry guidelines should be between them and the people they hire, it added.
In a visit to Korea last month, Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos said Netflix would not mistreat local talent and would aim to work with first-time writers and directors, he said.
The Korean Broadcasting Performersâ Rights Association says Netflix has ignored an email request to negotiate residual payments sent this March. âWe received a reply saying a relevant Netflix department would look into the matter,â Cho Byeong-han, an official at the association, said by telephone. âBut we havenât heard back since.â
Other industry groups like the Screenwritersâ Guild arenât formal unions, because their members are legally seen as freelancers or individual gig workers. âAccording to current laws, weâd be accused of price-fixing if we attempted to bargain wages collectively,â Kim said.
That South Koreaâs film workers are scattered among dozens of unofficial unions or groups worsens the situation. Even if Netflix, or any other major streaming service, decided to initiate pay negotiations in collective bargaining settings, it has no representative body to talk to, as is the case in the United States. Thereâs also no representative body for streamers or major studios like the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers in the United States.
Set staff â the camera operators, set designers, costume designers and makeup artists who do many of the physically fatiguing but thankless tasks during shoots â say the poor labor practices rampant in South Koreaâs film industry have changed little. The country already has a long 52-hour workweek .
Streaming companies have been accused of sidestepping collective bargaining in jurisdictions outside the United States.
Anjum Rajabali, a prominent screenwriter and a member of Indiaâs Screenwriters Association, has been leading attempts at collective bargaining since last year, including workshops educating writers about legal and contractual procedures, and a fight for a basic minimum fee.
Rajabali said by telephone that U.S. streaming companies were willing to accept collective bargaining in the United States, but not in India.
âThere is still a feudal shadow that falls here,â he said. âWe are going to fight those double standards.â
Rajabali said contracts by U.S. streaming companies operating in India mostly give the producer the authority to determine writersâ credits â whereas in the United States credit issues are arbitrated by the Writers Guild of America, whose 11,000 members are on strike .
âIf the strike succeeds there â and we believe it will because they are absolutely determined â it establishes a precedent that writers are unwilling to back down from what they reasonably and justifiably need in terms of protect of rights,â Rajabali said. âIt will definitely have a ripple effect.â
Shubhra Gupta, one of Indiaâs most prominent film critics, said the U.S. strike might not have a direct effect on India yet. âBut the Indian industry is watching. And people are talking,â she said. âBecause writers everywhere suffer from the same issues: overworked, underpaid, and given little or no credit.â
Kim, the head of Koreaâs Screenwriters Guild, said he appreciates Netflixâs willingness to take risks on local talent. But the frustrations touch on Netflixâs willingness to pay what writers, actors and directors view as their fair share â especially residuals â which Netflix has been avoiding, Kim said.
âI hope Netflix doesnât view this as a zero-sum game,â he said. â Netflix should consider [residuals] as part of its R&D budget,â he added.
âItâs a win for Netflix, too, if we get our fair share.â
Mehrotra reported from Delhi.
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Asia. By Andrew Jeong and  Karishma Mehrotra. July 21, 2023 at 4:03 a.m. EDT. Listen. Comment. Gift Article. Share. SEOUL â When Netflix launched in South Korea in 2016, it was a breath of fresh air for filmmakers jaded by a local industry notorious for labor abuses and penny-pinching. The streaming giant didnât meddle in the filmmaking process, offered to invest significant chunks of cash and provided a way for Koreans to show off their work to foreign audiences. Now, with Netflix as the dominant platform in South Korea, local screenwriters, directors and actors are expressing concerns about the companyâs labor practices in their country. They are watching Hollywoodâs biggest strike in six decades with hope that it will give them more bargaining power and a precedent to follow. âWe have a love-hate relationship with Netflix,â Justin Byung-in Kim, the head of the Screenwriters Guild of Korea, said in a recent interview at the offices of the Directors Guild of Korea. On the one hand, Netflix has given South Koreaâs film workers better opportunities, he said. On the other hand, he said that Netflix has not been paying South Korean workers residuals , which are royalties that directors, writers or actors receive if their work is rebroadcast. Netflix disputes this. Korean content is a big moneymaker for U.S. streaming giants: âSquid Gameâ alone contributed an estimated $900 million to Netflixâs value, and shooting is underway for a sequel to the Emmy-winning ultraviolent series. Netflix is planning to invest more than $2.5 billion in South Korea. The Hollywood strike: Everything we know and are working to find out. India is also among the fastest-growing markets for streamed content. Netflix executives said that Indian movies such as âRRR,â with its hit song âNaatu Naatu,â were becoming âbreakout successes in the West.â Meanwhile, the India director of Amazonâs Prime Video, Sushant Sreeram, said the company would double investments in India over the next five years, according to a local report. (Amazon founder and former CEO Jeff Bezos owns The Washington Post.) But while U.S. streaming giants have benefited from the popularity of Indian and âhallyuâ (meaning âKorean waveâ) productions, any concessions earned by striking workers in the United States would not be shared by overseas creators. For years, South Korean TV stations hired studios to produce dramas on the cheap. This meant studios overworked temporary staff and paid little, or sometimes nothing, to workers, Kim said. TV âSquid Game,â dystopian Netflix hit, gets green light for second season. Then came Netflix. The American company offered contracts to South Korean production companies that involved lump-sum payments worth more than the cost of production, meaning Netflix assumed all financial risks, and that there would be a guaranteed profit â something that had been previously rare for dramas in Korea, Kim said. The catch was that Netflix would own all copyrights of that show. This meant that Netflix didnât have to pay residuals, even if the series became a hit. Netflix said that its payments to local studios are high rates that surpass what they typically receive from Netflixâs competitors. In 2021, Korean producer Hwang Dong-hyuk told The Guardian that Netflix paid him only for the original contract for âSquid Gameâ when it was an independent project, before anyone could have predicted its global success. He added that shooting was âphysically, mentally and emotionally draining.â Netflix said it rewarded Hwang with an extra payment in the contract for Season 2 of âSquid Gameâ that is meant to reflect the success of Season 1. âThis is where it gets complicated,â said Kim. Netflix usually outsources Korean production to local studios, unlike in the United States. This means that most South Korean writers, actors, directors and set staff â who, on paper, work for the studios and not Netflix â normally donât get paid directly by Netflix. The streaming company has no legal obligation to sit down at the negotiating table to discuss wages or residual payments. Netflix said that it educates these production companies on best practices regarding contracts and production environments. But discussions about labor laws and industry guidelines should be between them and the people they hire, it added. In a visit to Korea last month, Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos said Netflix would not mistreat local talent and would aim to work with first-time writers and directors, he said. The Korean Broadcasting Performersâ Rights Association says Netflix has ignored an email request to negotiate residual payments sent this March. âWe received a reply saying a relevant Netflix department would look into the matter,â Cho Byeong-han, an official at the association, said by telephone. âBut we havenât heard back since.â Other industry groups like the Screenwritersâ Guild arenât formal unions, because their members are legally seen as freelancers or individual gig workers. âAccording to current laws, weâd be accused of price-fixing if we attempted to bargain wages collectively,â Kim said. That South Koreaâs film workers are scattered among dozens of unofficial unions or groups worsens the situation. Even if Netflix, or any other major streaming service, decided to initiate pay negotiations in collective bargaining settings, it has no representative body to talk to, as is the case in the United States. Thereâs also no representative body for streamers or major studios like the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers in the United States. Set staff â the camera operators, set designers, costume designers and makeup artists who do many of the physically fatiguing but thankless tasks during shoots â say the poor labor practices rampant in South Koreaâs film industry have changed little. The country already has a long 52-hour workweek . Streaming companies have been accused of sidestepping collective bargaining in jurisdictions outside the United States. Anjum Rajabali, a prominent screenwriter and a member of Indiaâs Screenwriters Association, has been leading attempts at collective bargaining since last year, including workshops educating writers about legal and contractual procedures, and a fight for a basic minimum fee. Rajabali said by telephone that U.S. streaming companies were willing to accept collective bargaining in the United States, but not in India. âThere is still a feudal shadow that falls here,â he said. âWe are going to fight those double standards.â Rajabali said contracts by U.S. streaming companies operating in India mostly give the producer the authority to determine writersâ credits â whereas in the United States credit issues are arbitrated by the Writers Guild of America, whose 11,000 members are on strike . âIf the strike succeeds there â and we believe it will because they are absolutely determined â it establishes a precedent that writers are unwilling to back down from what they reasonably and justifiably need in terms of protect of rights,â Rajabali said. âIt will definitely have a ripple effect.â Shubhra Gupta, one of Indiaâs most prominent film critics, said the U.S. strike might not have a direct effect on India yet. âBut the Indian industry is watching. And people are talking,â she said. âBecause writers everywhere suffer from the same issues: overworked, underpaid, and given little or no credit.â Kim, the head of Koreaâs Screenwriters Guild, said he appreciates Netflixâs willingness to take risks on local talent. But the frustrations touch on Netflixâs willingness to pay what writers, actors and directors view as their fair share â especially residuals â which Netflix has been avoiding, Kim said. âI hope Netflix doesnât view this as a zero-sum game,â he said. â Netflix should consider [residuals] as part of its R&D budget,â he added. âItâs a win for Netflix, too, if we get our fair share.â Mehrotra reported from Delhi. Gift this article.