Film crews became “collateral damage” of Hollywood strikes

ALBUQUERQUE, New Mexico (Reuters) – A Toronto production assistant whose income dried up due to Hollywood strikes lost his housing and ended up living in his car. A New York outfit slipped out of sobriety amid the tension. An assistant director in New Mexico fell into a deep depression and committed suicide.

They were among hundreds of thousands of film and television crew workers in the United States and Canada who were out of work for up to 10 months due to strikes called by actors and writers, creating a cascade of evictions and family breakups.

Crew members rallied to help each other and charities intervened during the writers’ strike, which began on May 2 and ended in late September, and the actors’ strike, which began in July. The representatives reached a tentative agreement on Wednesday.

“Actors and writers get a lot of publicity, but crews are the collateral damage of strikes,” said Lori Rubinstein, chief executive of mental health charity Behind the Scenes.

Crew members lost health insurance and raided their retirement funds. They saw relationships break down and became isolated and depressed, going month after month without pay and missing out on the rush of 70-hour work weeks creating shows that cost hundreds of millions of dollars, according to union leaders, consultants and more than a dozen crew members. Members interviewed by Reuters.

In the past 18 months, Rubinstein has put about 1,000 industry members through a mental health first aid course to prevent suicides in a sector plagued by drug abuse, workaholism and bullying, according to crew members Reuters spoke to.

“He really needed to work,” said Pam Rosen, the mother of Joe Bufalino, 32, New Mexico’s youngest-ever first assistant director, who committed suicide last August. .17.

“When he died, he didn’t see any future,” Rosen said.

Psychological distress

In California, Jennifer George, head of social services at the Motion Picture Television Fund (MPTF), and her team were handling hundreds of calls each week, some from film crew members who talked about suicide.

“When someone is struggling to make a monthly payment, or when their car is repossessed, or when they face the risk of eviction, or when they don’t have food for themselves or their children, it causes a great deal of psychological distress,” Jorge said. .

The MPTF provided about $3.75 million in aid to workers. Canadian charity AFC has halted new requests for assistance after being inundated with requests. The Entertainment Community Fund has distributed more than $11.2 million in grants, mostly to workers in California, New York and Atlanta.

In the Toronto area, a production assistant who was asleep in his car was greeted by a crew member.

“Without the blessing of friends, I would be dead,” said production assistant Sean, who asked that his full name not be used.

The crew member, a site manager, had his truck re-owned. His wife, who also works in the film industry, has turned to childcare to pay the bills.

“We usually have a safety net, and because of everything we’ve personally gone through this year, that safety net is gone,” said Chris, the site’s director, who asked that his full name not be used.

New York City Costume and Props Norvin Van Donk has long dealt with depression and anxiety. He had been sober for about a year before the first hit happened.

Even with the support of his wife, who was still working, and his crew friends, he briefly returned to drinking to cope with the stress of not working. He has since regained his sobriety, going to the gym, playing music, and taking care of his young children.

New York prop lady Gwen Roach and her husband have exhausted their life savings and given up their hopes of owning a home. Her unemployment benefits had run out, and her husband’s was about to.

“Never in my life did I think I would have to look at social or food assistance,” said Roach, who worked at a restaurant and a flower shop.

In Albuquerque, assistant director Anthony Bilott, 37, who worked on sets with Bufalino for 14 years, mourned the loss of his best friend.

“There is no doubt in my mind that if these strikes had not happened, Joe would be alive today,” Bilott said, sitting next to Rosen in a cafe near where the two friends live.

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