Yahoo News Filmmaker Paul Feig Donates $100K to MPTF Community Care Fund Amid Strikes (Exclusive)
The Motion Picture and Television Fund’s Community Care Fund is getting a six-figure assist from Paul Feig.
The filmmaker has donated $100,000 to the fund to help support Southern California members of the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE) that have been affected by Hollywood’s dual strikes. Members of the Writers Guild of America went on strike May 2 over an ongoing labor dispute with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP). Members of SAG-AFTRA joined the picket lines on July 14, causing a widespread work stoppage in Hollywood.
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“My heart goes out to all the amazing crew people I have had the pleasure of collaborating with on my movies and TV shows who are financially struggling to make ends meet in the midst of this ongoing double strike,” says Feig, who has directed dozens of projects including Bridesmaids, Ghostbusters, Spy, The Heat, The Office, Nurse Jackie, A Simple Favor and the recent The School for Good and Evil. “We have seen firsthand on sets the persistence, talent and endurance of our IATSE colleagues, so it’s imperative we do our part to ensure they get on the other side of this work stoppage.”
Feig went a step further and offered a call to action from his peers. “I invite all producers and directors to contribute as well since the livelihood and safety of our IATSE crew directly impacts all of us.”
Feig’s donation comes less than a month after MPTF president and CEO issued an open letter to the industry calling for greater support for below-the-line professionals amid the writers and actors strike.
“Members of the WGA and SAG-AFTRA have been very generous in stepping up to support their own members, but as a community we are not doing enough to support the tens of thousands of crew members and others who live paycheck to paycheck and depend on this industry for their livelihood,” Beitcher wrote. “They have become the forgotten casualties during these strikes, overlooked by the media. Let’s face it, actors and writers make better subjects for strike stories; and now crew members are not getting the philanthropic support they’ve earned and deserve.”
It’s not the only push this week for crew members. On Thursday, THR reported details of an upcoming fundraiser titled “The Give Back-ular Spectacular.” Set for L.A.’s Orpheum Theater on Oct. 25 as a benefit for workers amid Hollywood’s dual strikes, the event is organized in partnership with the Union Solidarity Coalition and will be co-hosted by Friends co-creator Marta Kauffman, actor and director Paul McCrane and actor and writer Paul Scheer.
Per official intel, the fundraiser is designed “to raise awareness that this strike is adversely affecting not just writers and actors, but the entire community of artists, craftspeople, technicians, production assistants and support staff” while also raising money to cover COBRA and healthcare premiums for members of the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE), Teamsters, Laborers’ International Union of North America and other workers who are being financially impacted by the work stoppage.
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