Thursday, November 15, 2007
While Hollywood is in an uproar as writers picket outside movie and television studios for contract negotiations, at least one writer is trying to stay out of the limelight. Kevin Willmott, a professor in the department of theater and film, has been a member of the Writer’s Guild of America since 1995, and he said he understood the current writers’ strike.
Willmott said the evolution of media was the source of the strike.
“The way people watch television is completely changing,” Willmott said. “We have new revenue sources for how movies are made.”
Willmott said the Internet’s ability to offer movie downloads was a major factor in why writers want more compensation, and that they deserved more payments for their films and movies when they went to DVD or were downloaded online.
As a result of the strike, which has been taking place since Nov. 5, major television networks have been relying on re-runs for shows, and reality shows, such as “Dancing with the Stars,” are now unscripted.
Michael Good, California senior, is a film major and hopes to become a professional writer. He said he understood the reasons for the strike.
“I understand why the studios might have issues, but the writers are completely right,” Good said. “They deserve money for Internet sales and for when they go to DVD.”
Good is writing multiple film scripts, so it is important for him to follow the strike, he said.
“I’m definitely watching because in a certain amount of years I’ll hopefully be working professionally, and this strike could very well impact me in the future.”
Willmott said show business was bizarre because writers could have long careers with little of their work being produced. He said he had worked with director and writer Oliver Stone, whose film credits include “Scarface” and “Any Given Sunday,” and he also wrote scripts for Chris Columbus, the director behind “Home Alone,” but none of the scripts had been produced yet. In 2000, NBC picked up and aired his mini-series, “The 70s,” which received critical accailm.
Willmott said the last writers’ strike, which took place in 1988, took a toll on his family and helped him make his decision to work independently from movie studios. Willmott, who grew up in Kansas, became a professor at the University seven years ago. John Staniunas, chairman of the department of theatre and film, said Willmott’s experiences had made him a great professor and helped him to improve film students.
“Knowing the business of writing is as important as being a skilled writer,” Staniunas said. “Having Professor Willmott on our faculty allows our students to not only become good writers, but savvy writers.”
Although he’s a professor, Willmott still makes time for his writing career. In 2004, his film “C.S.A: Confederate States of America” went to the Sundance Film Festival before going to DVD. Director Spike Lee saw the film, and because he enjoyed it, he introduced the film at Sundance.
Willmott said Sundance was an event he would remember and use as a stepping stone toward the future. He said he is now working on two films, “The Only Good Indian” and “Bunker Hill.”
“It was really a beautiful experience, and now I’m making movies in Kansas and trying to build on it,” Willmott said.
Edited by Rachel Bock
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