Hawaii’s film industry has dodged a bullet after the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE) earlier this month struck a tentative contract agreement with Hollywood studios.
Had negotiations for the three-year contract fallen through, a strike would’ve proceeded on Oct. 18, according to Hawaii News Now.
U.S. Sen. Mazie Hirono (D-HI) took to social media to highlight the importance of unions. "Unions are crucial in fighting for economic justice,” Hirono wrote on Facebook. “Congratulations to IATSE members who have reached an agreement. I'll keep working to support and empower workers across the country and to pass the PROAct in the Senate.”
While a strike has been averted, it was still up to the IATSE -- which represents everyone from camera operators to makeup artists to carpenters -- to ratify the agreement, Hawaii New Now reported.
Donne Dawson, state film commissioner, said it was a “huge relief” for the union to reach the agreement “because IATSE is the backbone of our industry. Every film set is just predominantly IATSE crew members,” Dawson told Hawaii News Now. “And it’s really, really — we’re grateful for the fact they came to an agreement, and we can get back to work.”
According to The Hollywood Reporter, the new Theatrical and Television Motion Picture Area Standards Agreement deal covers 20,000 workers in places outside of New York and Los Angeles, including Hawaii, which enjoyed a record-breaking year in film productions.
The Aloha State’s film industry’s success, despite the COVID-19 pandemic looming large, is attributed to streaming services.
“The streaming game showed up about 12 years, in 2009, when they were relatively new,” Tuia'ana Scanlan, president of IATSE Local 665, told Hawaii News Now. “They asked for concessions here and there on wages and on benefits, as it was an experimental platform. Twelve years later, or into the pandemic, it is not only viable, it is the standard now for the business model.”