Crews face harsh ‘reality’ on unscripted TV shows
Labor complaints filed against ‘Idol’ producers reveal oppressive conditions

The entertainment community has yet another reason to hate reality television.

 

Dozens of reality TV employees met last week in Van Nuys, CA, to publicly file 21 claims with the California Division of Labor Standards Enforcement (DLSE), with complaints that the producers of top shows owe them over $500,000 in unpaid overtime.

 

Most of the filed claims were made against FremantleMedia, the international conglomerate behind “American Idol.” Employees – including writers, production assistants, contestant coordinators, craft services and office workers – claim that they are forced to work long hours without taking breaks or being compensated for the overtime work.

 

Former “Idol” production coordinator Justin Buckles said that he knew he would work long hours on the show, but he “wasn't ready for the level of exploitation that exists in reality TV.”

 

 

According to a study commissioned last fall by the Writers Guild of America West, the bulk of reality TV writers are incorrectly classified as exempt employees, meaning that producers get away with skipping out on giving benefits and overtime to employees. The study, entitled “Harsh Reality – Working Conditions for Reality TV Writers,” found that producers also regularly violate California wage and hour laws, and that most of the 300 writers polled do not receive any health care or pension benefits.

 

The study also found that 88 percent of reality writers worked more than 40 hours a week, and of those, a whopping 91 percent were not paid for their overtime.

 

Now, the claimants will each have separate meetings with the DLSE to determine if official hearings will take place. If hearings do occur, producers of unscripted fare may finally be forced to face a harsh reality of their own. -Jennifer DeYoung

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Stella Adler Studio thinks big

Popular NY acting school aims for $35M expansion

 

The Stella Adler Studio of Acting may soon undergo a massive expansion.

 

The New York Times reports that Tom Oppenheim, the grandson of the school’s namesake and the artistic director of the studio, is in the process of raising $30 - 35 million over the next decade in order to move the school from its current location in a loft building on West 27th Street in Chelsea to a bigger structure. The new complex, which Oppenheim intends to call the Adler Center for the Arts, would be on the scale of Joseph Papp’s Public Theater, and would add music, dance and poetry to the already prominent acting aspect of the studio.

 

The studio’s 60th anniversary is coming up next year, and will highlight Adler’s unmatched legacy in the world