Australasia’s commercial production companies set to get tough with agencies and their clients
At a meeting of the Australasian Union of Television Commercials Production Companies (AUTCPC) held in Sydney on the weekendall Australian and New Zealand commercial productioncompanies have agreed to be represented under the auspices of theAUTCPC.
All TVC production companies, along with Directors and Producers, arebeing made to comply under the authority and mandates of AUTCPC and itsassociate Unions.
All production companies must comply with tough new mandates and allagencies, and consequently their clients, failing to comply will face scrutiny from the brotherhood of unions associated with AUTCPC.
Apart from many new and revised mandatories covering issues such asworkplace safety, compliance and insurance, above are some key points agreed by all attending the meeting (leaked to the CB Blog)that will affect agencies and their clients.
37 Comments
Serious question. How will this mandate sit with with someone like the ACCC as it relates to issues like price fixing within industries and anti-competition legislation? Any lawyers out there care to proffer an opinion?
You’re fucking kidding. The last clause about lunches cannot be right. I’ve got a big one on today with an NZ outfit. When does this law come in? Stuff this union crap, If production companies want my business, they’ve got to play the game.
It’s about time! Well done to all involved in this push. Must happen.
Not only does the behaviour of agencies and clients in their treatment of directors and the production side of the business leave a lot to be desired ethically, it leads to a decline in the quality of the work and an unsustainable industry.
If you want it, pay for it. Like anything else in life or any other business in the world.
Any production cowboys out there who want to go undercutting the process, expel and deem them unfit to operate in the industry.
In doing all this we can actually get back to creating work of the level that used to exist with real directors using real craft to make great ideas on screen. Onward and upward.
there’s some seriously good ideas in this.
I look forward to more international shoots.
So let me get this right, if a production company does a charity job for an agency (presumably a one day shoot mentioned) they then HAVE to get given the two next jobs (two day’s shooting) out of the agency regardless of whether or not they are actually suited for the work? Or the agency gets charged, sorry FINED $25,000. So much for charity work being done, you know, to help others.
And the entertainment budget…no one is forcing production companies to take agencies out to lunch. Generally, it’s done after a shoot and presumably budgeted into the fees so the agency pays anyway. If the production company wants to schmooze an agency team in the hope of getting some business, does that automatically oblige the agency to pay for it if no work ends up coming their way? Surely that’s the price the production company pays in an effort to build relationships, this is just how business goes.
There is no way in hell I am ever going to feel obliged to hand a half million dollar job over to a production company because they bought me a $10 drink. Smacks of guys who take women out for dinner and then get upset when she won’t sleep with him because, you know, SHE OWES HIM.Give me a break.
Sounds like good news for New Zealand production companies…these new rules are going to screw the Australian TV production industry as to be competitive Agencies will now have to look offshore. Typical bloody unions. They don’t understand our business at all….
Yeah $25k fines to agencies for not rewarding a charity job… long overdue!
Where do i join AUTCPCATUP?
So the tradition of getting three directors to pitch for the job is dead? Unless you want to cough up $15K of your production budget? Wow, huge repercussions.
Productions companies are finally getting the picture that they cannot be screwed anymore. Well done guys. To the agencies, well you mugs are now up shit creek as no one is going to do your work for you for nothing… Ha Ha…. This is great news……. ha ha ha ha…….. I am almost falling off my chair…..
Everyone in this post be like “Herpety derp derp”.
Nice one guys. You nailed em. A union in advertising…priceless.
This is bullshit. I’ve checked with two NZ production companies that do all our charity jobs and small client work and they assure me this union has no jurisdiction in New Zealand. They’ve never been contacted by AUTCPC or any other body. Which is a relief as I’m of to lunch today with one of them!
All that’s going to happen is creatives will now start enjoying their production lunches and shoots in Thailand and Aussie production staff will learn to say “Would you like fries with that?”
As a director I’d like to run through the points suggested by the AUTCPC.
mark up – good if there’s a standard amount agreed. too many
prod co’s get screwed here.
director’s fees – sounds reasonable.
treatments – sounds too high. maybe 2k for any treatment and extra for changes (we often end up writing two or three versions).
check quotes – a totally reasonable idea. this has long been a way to mine prod co’s for favours and nothing to do with fair business practise.
single bids – yep, totally fair. maybe 7k too high (5K?).
charity gigs – can’t see agencies coughing up 25k if they don’t use the same guy on the next one. that would be restricting the agency too much, and the fine is a bit heavy. no one has to do a charity gig if they don’t want to.
entertaining – can’t see this as relevant. we know lunches don’t create scripts, but they do build relationships. we only lunch people who are worth lunching with. won’t work.
p.s. if anyone thinks that the answer to some fairer business practises for an Aus industry that is getting ripped off daily is to shoot abroad I feel sorry for your mercenary souls.
fools…all of yous
Are they kidding? To reimburse production companies for lunches we would be out of pocket by thousands of dollars a year. At our agency we get at least three a week (not cheapies either). The bill for the team and agency producer is usually over $100 per head, so that’s $300 per person per week. Over a year, you do the maths! (leave you to work that out, I’m just a – very pissed off – art director).
Fuck it’s April 1st…!!!!!
there’s me gettin’ all happy.
Does this apply to interstate visits? I’m a CD in Perth and do regular trips to Sydney for post production (but sometimes for the full production if we get the budget). Sure there’s a few big lunches and night time entertainment but isn’t that the normal part of the business? Anyway, if this is the case, I’ll seriously be looking even further west to South Africa or north to Asia where production companies are even more accommodating, especially at this time. They’ll literally do anything for a shoot.
Yes, surely we should get exemptions for Brisbane as well. Without the generosity of the Sydney or Melbourne industry there would be no real benefit to shoot there. I think I’ll stick wit the locals, none of whom have signed with this union – or that’s what out agency producer assures me. By the way, she is very upset about this situation as she has built up great relationships with Sydney/Melb TVC companies over many years and is always looked after like a queen.
I like all these comments.
Jeez’like man, this is great fucking news! Pull in over to this side of the pond and we’ll really look after you, lekker bru. Durb’s, Joey’s Capetown and Trips to Sun City, the Kruger is just up the road, all the boom you can smoke on a lekker safari all thrown in. And all the skirt – or borwors – you can handle – any shade of our rainbow nation!
Go Bokkie!!
Hunrey Van der Merwe
Executive Producer
Less Boks Productions
Hoedspruit
RSA
“‘ll seriously be looking even further west to South Africa or north to Asia where production companies are even more accommodating, especially in this current economic crisis. They’ll literally do anything for a shoot.”
We already are accommodating! What more do you want from us? Blow jobs???
Anyone checked the date?
Just goes to show what morons some people on this blog are. It really is cringeworthy. Get a grip.
if you didn’t see this as an april fools gag, then your head is so far up your winging arse it’s embarrassing. seriously, best to pretend you never commented and get on with your life. Personally, if I were you i’d take a break over easter and get some perspective…
Not that many independent thinkers here – very slow on the uptake. As for the agency producer who rang NZ – retire please. Love the reactive rants about lunch, now we know you are as shallow as you appear.
Every aspect of this is awesome.
How many prod co’s hopped on here with a sigh of relief that their never ending hell was almost over? All of them.
Damn – back to fruitless charity jobs, kissing ass and lunches with a bunch of entitled children.
How many agency guys saw their (literally) free lunch being cut?
Awesome awesome awesome.
Thank you. Every word of every comment has been deeply, truly funny.
Surely there can’t be this many unbelievably naive people working in the TVC Production Sector? The comments section must be part of the joke? It has to be. I can hardly breathe. How do you people even operate a business? Really.
That being said – how about we all form a union and, at the very least, stand up for the right to not have to start all of our treatments with sycophantic comments about how we have always wanted to…, would love to…, appreciate the opportunity to…
… Oh and it would be great if we could also speak honestly about how some of the scripts that we receive are so appallingly bad that they shouldn’t even be used as loo paper, without the threat of never working in this industry again being held over our heads.
Best April Fools Day Joke EVER!
Loved every second of this and the awkward hilarity of the comments posted from both sides…
I still feel the article should have been titled: Agencies never to eat lunch again… As this might have gotten even more hits…
April 1.
It’s kind of awful to be momentarily taunted by the carrot of fair play, only to be crushed again. Me, not the carrot. Oh well – back to sucky reality.
April Fools joke, surely?
I am prod co producer and this is the stuff of dreams.
Has the AUTCPC read the Intergenerational Report?
We gotta be more productive or return to the standard of living of our grand dads.
Let’s talk about the past. Specifically, print.
Remember when there were hundreds of specialist typography, film houses, repro and design firms? Paintbox? Lithograph? Art assistants? Paste up? Bromide? Runners?
All of that was done away with software, as well as the new digitised hardware. A bit like telecine, 35mm and all those other wonderful things disappearing from film.
The only thing is, advertising took it further. They dispensed with typographers, pre-press, designers, in-house illustrators, their in-house caterers, Porsches, pony tails and the lot.
And that pretty much happened once Art Directors were forced to use a mac and learn typography.
Let’s talk about the future. Specifically, film.
I know the value of a good director just as much as I knew the value of a good typographer 20 years ago. I know the value of a great production company, just as much as I knew the value of a great external retouching house 5-10 years ago.
But these days, the schools aren’t just churning out people who can think. They’re churning out people who can think, write, art direct and film their own stuff. Negating the need for a mac-operator or in your instance, a production company / director / editor.
I’m not saying I’m cool with it. I’m just saying those free lunches you’re whinging about – enjoy them while you can.
April Fools or not … the sad thing is … this actually is the state of the production industry, particularly in Sydney.
Agencies have been – in pirating terms – raping and pilaging production companies for the last 15 years … ever since Agencies started to unbundle and agency land got scared of losing their profit margins. The agencies have screwed their own business model splitting out creative and digital agencies and which has resulted in the disection and despecification of the production industry.
The current model is not sustainable. There is no longer a career projectory for young talented directors, now it’s just a matter of who can stay in the game. I watch the majority of work either TV and content now, which is lacklustre in creativity and execution.
I’m surprised clients put up with it really!
Except for the better directors, there’s not enough work for the mid to entry level directors to sustain a living. In general there’s litle to no loyalty between Agencies and production houses, and often where the young digital agency staff are concerned, there’s little or no respect offered to directors and their skills .
Enjoy the lunches while they last agency peeps, because if this cut-throat price war continues for another couple of years, you will have no one to blame (cause and effect) for the landscape of production mediocrity you will have created.
This may be an April Fools joke, but problem for the production companies is that most agency people believe this is exactly how production companies really think anyway.
So the joke was lost on 90% of the people it was intended for.
Sucked in.
quick google yields an old gag…
http://autcpc.blogspot.com.au/
hats off gentlemen. well done.