LOCAL actors are beginning to speak out in dismay at how New Zealand Actors’ Equity negotiations surrounding The Hobbit have been handled.
Hamish Brown has worked as an actor and as a crewmember in costuming on Peter Jackson’s productions in the past.
“Without Peter Jackson I would never have had a career in the industry and there are many other people in the same position,” he says.
Brown is one of many “extremely frustrated” Wellington actors who feel their future and that of their friends and colleagues is being decided by a handful of people.
“If this was about all film workers making a unanimous decision I’d understand, but decisions are being made by a very small minority of people. I have a lot of respect for actors, but I don’t know how a small group can in good conscience be prepared to jeopardise the livelihoods of so many others,” he says.
Furthermore, Brown is at a loss to understand what NZ Actors’ Equity and the actors they represent are asking for.
“It seems to me that this whole situation is a little bit of show pony-ing and a lot of game playing. There are certain higher profile actors in the country who have nothing personally to lose from the production falling over and just want to lend their face to what seems like a just crusade,” he says.
Wellington actor Greg Ellis is upset but not surprised by drama surrounding The Hobbit negotiations. Ellis used to be a member of NZ Equity, but withdrew his membership when amalgamation with Australian-based Media, Entertainment and Arts Alliance (MEAA) was proposed.
“This is exactly the kind of thing I thought would happen,” he says.
Ellis worked on Lord of the Rings.
“For those of us who were extras, we were very happy with our pay,” he says.
Ellis was the only Wellingtonian present at the NZ Equity meeting in Auckland last week.
“I thought, ‘I’m not going to let a bunch of characters in another city decide my fate, I’m going up there,” he said.
Ellis was also the only person at the meeting of almost 400 actors to officially vote ‘nay’ to the resolution to enter into negotiating a recommended agreement.
Ellis is quick to say he’s not anti-union and that it’s the way NZ Equity has gone about the negotiation that worries him.
“I think there is naivety on behalf of a lot of the people supporting negotiations. They really believe the production won’t go elsewhere and that they’re in a powerful position,” he says. “It’s like the Rugby World Cup semi-finals all over again, but this time it’s the film industry, and we’re about to choke.”
Another Wellington actor who would like to remain anonymous is flummoxed at how the debate has unravelled.
“If they’d talked to SPADA first and things had gone wrong there then I’d understand pulling a publicity stunt like this, but they’ve skipped ahead and not gone through the official channels. I just don’t understand it,” he says.
The source believes that Auckland actors suffering low rates on other productions saw The Hobbit as an easy way to get publicity for their cause.
“They genuinely do want better rates, but this isn’t the process by which to do that,” he says.
Wellington director Gaylene Preston doesn’t understand why The Hobbit is involved in the debate.
“I don’t think this has anything to do with Peter Jackson, he pays above regular rates anyway,” she says.
“It’s unfortunate that people in the film and television industry, including the media that surrounds them, don’t know their own business.”
The common threads that run through the opinions of actors and crew we spoke to are that the actions taken by NZ Equity should never have been necessary, that those in support of the actions are naive to think The Hobbit can’t be made elsewhere, and that the best possible outcome of negotiations is a recommended contract that cannot even be legally enforced. Most frustratingly for Wellington actors beginning to speak out, many of them are unsure what it is NZ Equity are seeking.
“They’re throwing a nuclear bomb into a situation that requires a hammer. They must be fighting for something else, but I’m not sure what that is,” says the unnamed source.
Greg Ellis doesn’t consider himself likely to score any big role in The Hobbit, he is acting on behalf of friends who will be severely affected by these negotiations.
“When the last big film to be shot in Wellington fell through it left a lot of people out of pocket. Those people are hanging on by the skin of their teeth right now,” he says.
“With a family to feed and mortgages to pay, to be even a small lead in The Hobbit would completely change your life. I believe these actors have the right to ask, but the way they’re going about it is wrong. For a shot at the prize, they’re risking the decimation of the whole film industry,” he says.