The film and television industry in New Mexico and across the country could grind to a halt in the coming weeks as the national union, which represents more than 90 trades, seeks permission to call a strike against film and television producers.
The International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE) announced Tuesday that it would seek a vote to authorize the union to call a strike among its 60,000 members.
The Los Angeles Times reported that the approval vote could take place as early as October 1st. IATSE did not announce a voting date.
IATSE Local 480 in New Mexico has approximately 1,600 members currently working on 11 productions in New Mexico, said Liz Pecos, president of Local 480.
These include the TV show Roswell, New Mexico, the fourth season of which was filmed at Santa Fe Studios in July, and the feature film Trail Blazers, which is due to be filmed soon at Mariposa King Studios near Chama.
“Trail Blazers is ready to start filming in October, but a strike is imminent,” said Tomas Sanchez, Mariposa’s chief operating officer. “I definitely believe they will strike. I think it’s a bad time, but I also understand that if you don’t stand for something, you will fall for everything. “
Trail Blazers would have 150 employees at Mariposa, which has backlots and green screen facilities, and five employees, said Sanchez, a member of the Screen Actors Guild.
Santa Fe Studios, located at NM 14 south of Interstate 25, has approximately 100 employees for Roswell, New Mexico and approximately 10 studio employees on board, said Octavio Marin, vice president of Production and Operations for the studio.
“We believe that will change for the better,” said Marin. “We are firmly convinced that it will work. The industry is as strong as ever. It is always in the best interest to keep working. “
New Mexico had 72 film and television productions with direct spend of $ 624 million and an estimated 9,000 new Mexicans in fiscal 2021, which ended in June, the state film bureau reported.
New Mexico has six studios with 23 soundstages and numerous other smaller production companies and studios with no soundstages. MovieMaker magazine ranks Albuquerque # 1 city for filmmaking (not counting New York and Los Angeles), and Santa Fe is # 3 small town. Businessfacilities.com ranks New Mexico # 2 behind Georgia as “Leader of the.” Film production ”.
The national IATSE in its announcement on Tuesday cited “excessively unsafe and harmful working hours” as well as concerns about wages for the worst-paid trades. Other items mentioned were the payment of workers on certain “new media” projects.
“It is incomprehensible that the film and television producer alliance … claims that it cannot provide the crews behind the scenes with basic human needs such as adequate sleep, meal breaks and living wages,” the IATSE statement said. “Worse still, management doesn’t even seem to see our core issues as issues that even exist.”
IATSE ended months of negotiations with Allianz after manufacturers announced that no counter-offer would be made to the union’s latest proposal.
“When we started negotiations with the IATSE months ago, we discussed the economic realities and challenges facing the entertainment industry as we work to recover from the economic fallout from the COVID-19 pandemic,” it said in a statement from the producer group. “With the decision to leave the negotiating table to request a vote on the strike permit, the IATSE leadership has said goodbye to a generous overall package.”
IATSE Local 480, based in Santa Fe, is “the crew members largely responsible for preparing and producing all film, television and streaming content,” said Pecos.
This includes construction, costumes, electricity, props, painters, hair and make-up, set design and numerous other trades. IATSE doesn’t cover teamsters, directors and art directors, writers or actors, Pecos said.
“A vote has been requested to approve the strike,” Pecos wrote in an email. “We are mobilizing members to vote on the approval of the strike. This is not a call to strike. A strike would mean that all IATSE employees working under the Area Standards Agreement and the Hollywood Basic Agreement would cease their work and the vast majority of the positions required for a production would remain vacant. “
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