"Production Designers are artists who adapt their style to all types of films. The scope of their talent is limitless. Their imaginations soar within a practical and economic framework. They make seemingly impossible things possible for filming, all the while under the pressures of money and time."
The Art Directors Guild is a branch off of the IATSE, the International Alliance of Theatrical and Stage Employees. This organization is one I strive to become a part of but membership is not an easy one to attain. It was interesting to read that in 1924, sixty-four of the men and women behind the set designs decided to get together to discuss the business and inform each other of new and creative designs in their trade. In the 1930's Art Directors were given little to zero credit for their major contributions to the film industry. It wasn't until the grand production of Gone With the Wind and the amazing sets behind it and the storyboards that went scene by scene that people started to give credit to the hard work designers do. After WWII the Guild aligned with IATSE and become a strong and powerful guild, one that every art director aspires to a part of much like Directors wish to be in the DGA.
To be granted entrance into the Art Directors Guild you must do the below which was taken from the website:
Eligibility for application and admission into Local 800 as an Art Director or Assistant Art Director is typically triggered by working for a signatory company in a Local 800 covered classification. Thirty calendar days from the start date the employee is required to join Local 800. And there are four typical scenarios:
a. When a project starts out non-union then signs an IA agreement; that is, it's organized." Employees working in a Local 800 covered classification when the project is organized are "grandfathered" into the union. Please contact the Guild's Membership Department.
b. Employees also become eligible when they work on signatory commercials and music videos.
c. If a signatory company not covered by b), above (say one doing a television show or feature film), wants to hire an Art Director or Assistant Art Director, and the individual is not on the Industry Experience Roster, the company may petition the Local to do so under the applicable Off-Roster sideletter to the Local 800 Basic Agreement. If the petition is granted by the Off-Roster Hiring Review Committee, the individual may be hired and is eligible for admission into the Union.
d. If the individual in c), above, is already on the Roster at the time he/she is hired by the signatory company (see below), the company doesn't require the Guild's permission for that hire, and the individual is eligible for admission into the Union and is required to join after thirty calendar days.
Once in the guild you receive the following benefits also taken from the website:
Workplace grievances resolved by union
- Guaranteed prominent placement of screen credit
- Training and education (seminars, symposia, etc.)
- Access to employment information
- Annual ADG Membership Directory and semi-monthly newsletter
- Annual Awards Banquet
- Film Society screenings
Being a production designer I am working towards the qualifications of membership. The rewards behind the membership are great and incredibly appealing.
Art Directors Guild website
http://www.adg.org/
Business Storytelling with Ted
"He tells me film can change the world. He tells me you can build companies based on trust. He speaks softly."Stephen Gaghan in Time
Jeff Skoll was the first President of Ebay and left the company to find a way to promote positive change in the world. He discovered that the way he can reach the most people is through the medium of film. In the video he talks of his move from Silicon Valley to Los Angeles and that he felt as if he may be laughed out of town with his talks of creating a production company geared around social change and the promotion of different groups that make a difference in the world. He also makes a joke that the fastest way to become a millionaire is to start out as a billionaire then move to Los Angeles and make movies, which I found to be a clever joke.
What I find to be particularly amazing about his story is that with success the company is still committed to change. Sometimes we find that success changes a companies values and mission in Hollywood and find that putting out movies for strictly entertainment purposes actually make more money than those that are attempting to affect people in a certain way that causes them attach themselves to a particular purpose. If you go to the company's website, http://www.participantmedia.com/index.php, you'll find that on the right side of each film they have produced and are promoting you'll find the "make a difference" panel where they list at least three different ways and links to get involved with a particular movement associated with the film. That is an amazing commitment to promoting what they believe in as they are not only showing what they have created but the inspiration behind it and how the consumer can get involved.
Jeff Skoll is an inspiration to me as he has proven that you can stay true to who you are, promote change, and create films with meaning and be a success. I dream that I may be a billionaire turned millionaire so I can form a production company with similar values.
His Ted Video
http://www.ted.com/talks/jeff_skoll_makes_movies_that_make_change.html
His Bio
http://www.ted.com/speakers/jeff_skoll.html
Get Involved!
http://www.takepart.com/
