The Corsair Spring 2023 - Issue 7

May 17, 2023 | VOLUME 125 ISSUE 7 | SANTA MONICA COLLEGE

Blown Away: Open House at SMC Read more on page 6

EVERY COPY OF THE CORSAIR IS FREE, EACH COPY AFTER IS 25¢ | SANTA MONICA COLLEGE, STUDENT-RUN NEWSPAPER SINCE 1929

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CONTENT News | pg. 3 Sports | pg. 4-5 Photo Story | pg. 6-7 Arts & Entertainment | pg. 8 Culture | pg. 9 Opinion | pg. 10-14

EDITORIAL STAFF Sasha Funes | Editor-in-Chief Conor Heeley | Managing Editor Anna Sophia Moltke | Photo Editor Antoineé Jones | News Editor Baleigh O'Brien | Arts & Entertainment Editor Taylor Smith | Arts & Entertainment Editor Michael Zavala | Culture Editor Sydney Partyka | Opinion Editor Dylan Dayton | Sports Editor Ryan Watts | Sports Editor Jackson Tammariello | Copy Editor Katheryne Menendez | Digital Editor Christina Torres | Social Media Editor Callie Yiu | Multimedia Editor Presley Alexander | Multimedia Editor Caylo Seals | Design Editor Alejandro Contreras | Design Editor

CORSAIR STAFF Bryan Antunez | My'Dari Baker | Victor Chambers | Ashley Chinchilla | Damond Collier Sr. | Rafaella Cruz Ramaciote | Vanessa Daily | Daniel De Anda | Jorge Devotto Ordonez | Claude Epperson | Ilayda Gercek | Shaylee Guerrero | Jehrid Hale | Josh Hogan | Rebecca Hogan | Torrie Krantz-Klein | Maria Lebedev | Isaac Manno | Nicholas McCall | Richard Mendez | Danilo Perez | Akemi Rico | Tyler Simms | Kevin Tidmore | Sebastian Villamil | Amanda Villamil-Solano | Aaron Wiria

FACULTY ADVISORS Ashanti Blaize-Hopkins | Journalism Advisor Gerard Burkhart | Photo Advisor Samantha Nuñez | Social Media Advisor

CONTACT Editor-in-Chief | corsair.editorinchief@gmail.com Managing Editor | corsair.managing@gmail.com

SOCIAL MEDIA Twitter | the_corsair Instagram | corsairnews Facebook | thecorsairnews YouTube | thecorsaironline

WEBSITE www.thecorsaironline.com

FRONT PAGE Seija Gerdt has been a part of the Santa Monica College glass blowing program since the beginning. Her birthday wish was to blow glass on her 90th birthdhday, which is in a few weeks, she says.

"I never stop doing things." (Akemi Rico | The Corsair) Read more on page 6.

LETTER FROM THE EDITOR One morning, I was carpooling to the Center for Media and Design and had to hop onto everyone’s favorite freeway, the 405. Unsurprisingly, it was morning rush hour, so the freeway was packed. Normally in a situation like this, I would get irritable and start complaining about the heavy traffic. This time was different. I felt unexpectedly calm, and I remember saying to myself, “at least the sun is not in my face.” Though it was something small, I realized in that moment that it wasn’t me talking — that was my best friend, shaping my perspective and encouraging me to have an optimistic approach to the obstacles in my life.

Throughout my time at SMC, I’ve faced a lot of challenges, as most students do; feelings of imposter syndrome, anxiety, and hopelessness in regards to finishing college. Sometimes, all it took to keep moving forward and stay motivated was talking to those around me, such as my best friend.

Even after a previous semester of being part of the Corsair, I still felt insecure about my writing, and only really felt comfortable with a copy editor reading it.

During the fall I mainly wrote about sports, but I wasn’t confident about the quality of writing I was producing despite reassurance by other staff members.

At the beginning of this year in particular, I felt more lonely than ever. I had circumstances in my life that caused me to push everyone I cared about away, including that same best friend. These circumstances became more complicated when I started the spring semester as editor-in-chief. I was just really out of touch with what the role entailed and didn’t know how to be the leader that was expected of me.

A few weeks into this semester I had the opportunity to attend a journalism conference in San Francisco. The conference allowed me to immerse myself in the journalism world and get to know people with similar experiences. It helped me feel a little less alone knowing that there were others who understood what I was going through, and gave me a sense of confidence that I was previously lacking.

It carried over into the Corsair newsroom, in which some peers expressed they could see a change from how I started out the semester. That confidence also impacted my personal life. It started with little things, like feeling comfortable to finally order my own meals at restaurants. Eventually, I was able to hang out with some high school friends without being awkward the way I used to be.

Another thing that helped with my writing confidence is being editor-in-chief. People have approached me all semester asking for advice on how to write articles, and editors asking how to make edits on them. It makes me happy knowing that people felt comfortable approaching me for advice and I could guide them in the right direction.

Most importantly, talking and hanging out with my best friend again with that new sense of confidence helped me mend the friendship. I completely expected her to be angry, but she welcomed me back so easily, simply saying “at least you’re here now.” Her acceptance helped me grow into the person I am today. As a result, my confidence continued to grow and I began to feel more comfortable in the newsroom.

Having a lack of confidence is something everyone can relate to at some point, especially students. One thing I’ve learned is that it’s okay to not be perfect. There’s no such thing as the perfect leader, writer or student, but what’s important is that they persevere and keep trying their best. As long as someone is trying their best, that’s reason enough to be confident in whatever they go through and whatever comes their way.

Sasha Funes

Editor-in-Chief

NEWS

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Corsair Connect to Undergo Redesign After 17 Years Presley Alexander | Multimedia Editor Bryan Antunez | Staff Writer

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orsair Connect, the website used by Santa Monica College (SMC) students to enroll in classes and pay fees, is receiving a complete top-to-bottom redesign since its creation 17 years ago. The update is scheduled to release on May 18, and aims to prioritize the user experience and make the layout more intuitive for students and faculty.

The updated interface will also have new features not seen in the website’s current layout. When students open the page, they will be greeted with a countdown to summer, an interface where they can check their enrollment and education plan, and other features useful to students.

One of these new features will be called Success Steps. “Our main goal with that is to essentially give students an idea of where they are in terms of applying for financial aid, their placement, and access to MyEdPlan,” said Liz Martinez, a User Experience (UX) Designer and Interaction Experience Design (IXD) student. “You can log in now and really figure your way around the site, and not be so lost and confused.”

Redesigning Corsair Connect was a collaborative project two years in the making between IXD students, designers, researchers, and different cross-functional teams. Martinez said that IXD students also worked with Financial Aid and the Admissions department.

The collaboration included two years of prior research and development by the UX design students. It was a massive project with lots of challenges along the way.

“The original research was big,” said IXD student Dave Giammarco. “When it actually started being de-

signed, there were big changes along the way having to do with each department telling you ‘this is what we want,’ and then ‘how can you make it work?’ It had to do with how to structure things and present things in a way that was the most accessible.”

The teams took notice of the fact that it has been a long time since Corsair Connect received an update.

The website needed to be updated to modern standards.

“It was disorganized and feeling a little cluttered,” said Christina Strok, an IXD student and UX designer.

“We’ve been able to organize it, it makes it much easier to find information and a little bit more intuitive, so you can recognize where certain places are within Corsair Connect.”

In the final stages of development, there was a private webinar with SMC staff in attendance to get feedback prior to the official launch on May 18. Strok said that the feedback from all the staff was very positive.

“I’m really excited to hear feedback from the actual students now,” said Strok. “They did interviews with students comparing where Corsair Connect is now and overviewing as a class where they think it should go.”

It is currently unknown if this will be the last redesign for a long time or if Corsair Connect will be consistently updated in the near future.

“For right now, I think the updates and the redesign that we’re doing, I think they’re trying to set it up so it won’t have to be as updated for a little bit,” said Strok.

“Definitely not 17 years.”

Presley Alexander | The Corsair

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SPORTS

May 17, 2023

Santa Monica College Corsairs' California Community College Athletic Association 2023 Women's Swim & Dive Champions (standing left to right) Ema Klimauska carried) Risa Akatsu at SMC's Santa Monica Swim Center on Tuesday, May, 16, 2023, in Santa Monica, Calif.

Victory Laps for SMC Women’s Swim Sasha Funes | Editor-in-Chief

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he Santa Monica College (SMC) Corsairs women’s swim team took part in the California Community College Athletic Association (CCCAA) swim and dive state championship, winning first place in five relays. The team also placed second and third in several individual events. Head Coach Brian Eskridge won coach of the year following the championship.

The three-day tournament kicked off on Thursday, May 4 with warmups before the preliminary rounds began at 9 a.m. The warmups for finals began at 2:45 p.m. and the meet officially began at 4:30 p.m. The first event SMC placed in was the 200 yard freestyle relay.

The swimmers in order for the event were Risa Akatsu, Reva Reignier, Wilma Henriksson, and Emily Lester.

They placed first in the final race with a time of 1:38.56.

Akatsu continued her day with the 200 individual medley (IM). She dropped her original time by nearly three seconds, placing third with a time of 2:10.57.

Akatsu noted a physical and mental toll that she faced during the season, but was grateful for Eskridge’s constant encouragement to keep swimming competitively, as well as her team.

“This year was really hard but I’m so proud of myself for pushing through and I’m so proud to be on a team and having really good teammates and coach,” she said.

The Corsairs closed out the day with another first place win in the 400 medley. The medley was led by Reignier in backstroke, followed by Henriksson swimming her preferred stroke, breaststroke. Ema Kilmauskas continued the relay with butterfly and Lester closed it out with freestyle. The group solidified their

first pla Lest ming b swim t she wa pionsh “I re state fo and ho Lester. hard to The mance swim e before first ev medley riksson Akatsu with a t SMC with a second ment a events She pla with a t a time Hen ite stro The fin Reignie Hen

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“I looked up at the board and I saw first place, by I think eight seconds … the relief I felt was immense.”

– Valerie Burchard

Photos by Nicholas McCall

as (CQ), Wilma Henriksson, Reva Reignier, Emily Lester, Valerie Burchard, and (being

ace spot in the final race with a time of 3:53.89. ter had taken a three-year hiatus from swimbefore enrolling at SMC and signing up for the team. The hiatus gave her confidence issues, but as able to work through it to win the state chamhip alongside the team. eally liked having it be all the relays that really won or us because it kind of reflects the whole season ow it was a team sport all the way through,” said . “All of us just supported each other and worked ogether the whole time.” e women continued with their stellar perfores on Friday, May 5, placing in all seven of the events. The prelims once again started at 9 a.m. the official final races starting at 4:30 p.m. The vent for the Corsairs was the 200 Medley. The y began with Lester swimming backstroke, Henn doing breaststroke, Kilmauskas butterfly, and u rounding it out in freestyle. They placed first time of 1:48.55.

C also placed in five individual events, beginning 400 IM from Kilmauskas. Kilmauskas placed d in the official race with a six second improveat 4:39.03. The 100 fly followed, the first of two in the day in which Reignier placed individually. aced third with a time of 58:38. Akatsu followed third place spot of her own in the 200 free with of 1:55.82. nriksson came next in the 100 breast, her favoroke. She placed second with a time of 1:05.33. nal individual event, the 100 back, was swam by er where she placed third at 59.32. nriksson described winning both individual and

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Santa Monica College Corsairs Aquatics Director Brian Eskridge.

team events as a special feeling, especially after an eye and ear infection kept her out of the water for a few weeks. Growing up swimming in Sweden gave her the impression that swimming was more of an individual sport, but being at SMC has helped her appreciate the sense of camaraderie she developed with her team.

“Just really feeling that we’re all doing this together and we wouldn’t be here without each other is like a whole different feeling that I’ve ever felt before,” said Henriksson.

The Corsairs wrapped up their day with a win in the 800 free relay. There was no preliminary round for the event, but that didn’t stop them from securing the first place spot. The swim began with Akatsu, followed by Valerie Burchard, Kilmauskas swimming third, and Reignier anchoring the race. The Corsairs won with a time of 7:59.91.

Burchard felt a sense of relief finally winning the state championship. A couple challenges she faced throughout the season were joint issues, as well as not really considering herself a long distance swimmer.

“I just really didn’t want to let my teammates down so when I looked up at the board and I saw first place,

by I think eight seconds … the relief I felt was immense,” said Burchard.

Saturday featured Henriksson and Kilmauskas placing in individual events. Henriksson placed third in the 200 breast with a time of 2:24.24. Kilmauskaus followed in the 200 fly, placing second with a time of 2:07.16.

Kilmauskas reflected on the championship and her season as a whole. A personal hardship for her was balancing a student-athlete life, especially for a sport

where the athletes wake up very early to compete — but it paid off in the end.

“It was also just a huge relief off of our shoulders because we knew that at the end we may have had a chance,” said Kilmauskas. “But when we knew our point totals that's when we really could relax because we knew we’d finally done it.”

The final event for the Corsairs was the 400 free relay. Akatsu kicked off the race, followed by Reignier, Kilmauskas swimming third, and Lester rounding out the final leg. The group placed first with a time of 3:33.67.

Eskridge, who’s been head coach of the women’s swim team since 2018, felt proud of the team’s chemistry displayed throughout the season and how they performed at the state championship. He gave credit to the team and coaches around him for helping the team win, as well as winning head coach of the year.

Eskridge said he looks forward to next year’s upcoming water polo and swim seasons.

“A lot of the girls play water polo, a lot of them do both so kind of building on that momentum, getting in a good water polo season and then getting ready for swim season next year,” said Eskridge.

Reignier expressed that the wins were unexpected but they were all happy as a team and proud of themselves.

“The group, you can see that we have a close — we consider each other really more than friends,” said Reignier. “More like family.”

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Blown Away: Open House at SMC

Torrie Krantz-Klein | Staff Writer n Saturday, May 12, the main campus of Santa Monica College (SMC) buzzed as the annual Open House took place. The event offered students to aid in enrollment for the upcoming summer and fall semesters, as well as showcased insight into student resources and courses being offered.

Tucked in the back corner of the art building, the highly adored faculty members of the glass-blowing class presented the studio and classroom with student and faculty art for sale, as well as glass-blowing and torch work demonstrations.

The studio faculty includes four part-time employed technicians alongside glass instructor Terri Bromberg.

There is a beginner and an advanced glass-blowing class which are both offered to all students at SMC. Bromberg, who has taught the glass-blowing class for the past 15 years, found a passion for glass art when she returned to SMC as a student after getting her master's degree. The program was initially founded in 1982 by professor Don Hartman who then passed the instructing baton off to his former student, Bromberg, upon retirement.

“Having been a student in the class for a number of semesters, it was such a vibrant part of the art department,”Bromberg said.“There are so many people that are involved in an

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May 17, 2023

energetic, proactive kind of way that it needed to keep going.”

Upon failed program attempts at both USC and UCLA due to expenses and upkeep, SMC offers a one-of-akind class to students.

“It is really a unique program as there is not something like this in an educational institution in L.A. anywhere else,” she said.

Bromberg shared the demand she sees from students who want to repeat the class but are not permitted to upon completion.

“I wish they would allow more repeatability, but the college has gone in a different direction,” she said. “It’s just like learning piano, if you can only do it for two or three semesters, you’re not a virtuoso, you want to continue to get better.”

Visitors gathered around four illuminated glory holes — furnaces torched to a specific temperature — where technicians and students demonstrated how they heat the glass and performed various manipulation techniques, as well as answered questions from the audience.

Myles Freedman, one of the four part-time technicians who run the studio for Bromberg, switched between holding the rod into the furnace and handing it to his colleague who rolled and manipulated the glass. Freedman has been a glass-blowing technician at SMC for 15 years alongside Bromberg.

“The glass-blowing class, although popular, is extremely underrated, and everyone who comes in and takes it usually finds that as difficult as it might be, it is much more enjoyable than most things at school,” he said.

In the main classroom of the studio, student Kimberly Hansen sat at a smaller torch, manipulating a small glob of glass on the end of a very thin rod.

“I just started last semester, and this is my first time bead-working,” she said.

Hansen is in her second semester as a student in the glass-blowing class.

“It was last year at the Open House that I found it, and now I am getting my own torch.” Hansen, who specializes in the intricate manipulation of smaller glass pieces, plans on continuing her newly sprouted glass-blowing career. “I want to be a glass-blowing teacher,” she said.

Students interested in glass-blowing courses at SMC can find the classes under “Glass Sculpture I” and “Glass Sculpture II” on Corsair Connect.

Akemi Rico | The Corsair

Seija Gerdt has attended the glass blowing program at SMC since the beginning. Her 90th birthday wish is to blow glass, she says. "I never stop doing things."

Myles Freedman holds a rod with hot glass on the end, in preparation to shape the sculpture he is making. Demonstration at the Hot Shop on the main ca

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(Left and Far Left) Brightly colored glassware demontrates the skill set taught at Santa Monica College's glass blowing studios, located in the Art Department on the Main Campus in Santa Monica, Calif. On

Saturday, open studios invited community members to admire and purchase wares, made by faculty and students at SMC. Alejandro Contreras | The Corsair

Akemi Rico | The Corsair

(Left) Tools like clamps and tongs used to handle hot glass were laid out during Santa Monica College’s Art Department's open studio day. The Hot Shop held glassblowing demonstrations.

Caylo Seals | The Corsair

Caylo Seals | The Corsair

ampus of Santa Monica College in Santa Monica, Calif., on Saturday.

A glassblowing student rolls and forms a glass sculpture with a wet newspaper.

Caylo Seals | The Corsair

A R T S & E N T E R TA I N M E N T

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May 17, 2023

A close up of the earrings Wilbur and her mother wear which are for sale outside the photo exhibit.

The audience anticipating Wilbur giving a closing talk on creating her book and collaborating with Santa Monica College.

Photos by Akemi Rico

Matika Wilbur, the author of "Project 562: Changing The Way We See Native America" is introduced by Emily Silver, Director of the Barrett Art Gallery at the BroadStage Theater in Santa Monica, Calif., on May 8th.

The Power of Art and a Vision Akemi Rico | Staff Writer

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Good evening relatives!” Matika Wilbur greets the audience as she walks on stage in front of a packed house at The Eli and Edythe BroadStage with a great big smile and a contagious laugh. She teases the audience good naturedly, encouraging a response of “Say, good evening Matika!”

The audience enthusiastically obliges.

Wilbur is the 2022-2023 artist-in-residence at Santa Monica College (SMC) and author of the book “Project 562: Changing The Way We See Native America.” She is a photographer, writer, podcaster and public speaker from the Tulalip and Swinomish Tribes, who profiled representatives from 562 Native American tribes across the United States, or “Turtle Island,” as it is called by some Indigenous peoples.

The project took ten years and spanned six hundred thousand miles, with the intention to raise awareness

and counter stereotypical images that have persisted to this day. The gallery officially closed on Monday, but her presence at SMC inspired new curriculum and learning materials designed in collaboration with the art history department.

Many students in attendance at the May 8 closing reception were introduced to this work through a class they attended. Mariam Moges, a second year psychology and computer engineering major, said that one of her extra credit assignments was to come to the exhibit. She was moved by the commitment Wilbur had to completing this project.

“I just wanted to see the person who created all this, when you think of committing yourself to a decade’s worth of work, and everything that comes with it,” Moges said.

To computer science major Aldo Barrera, Wilbur’s motivation in documenting hundreds of Native American

tribes stood out to him.

“It shows how little America has spent in investigating the differences between each tribe, and trying to recognize them,” Barrera said.

The auditorium was packed, and many more people came for the second half of the evening, where Wilbur signed copies of her book inside the photo gallery. Others gathered in the courtyard to chat and enjoy the catered dinner before going inside to view the artwork.

The line of people waiting to purchase her book affirmed the interest in her work.

“I’ve always been interested in photography, and over the past two years, I’ve been finding my own Indigenous roots, and part of that is learning from other Indigenous cultures and seeing the similarities,” said architecture student Jacob Rojas. “So it’s really inspiring to see someone making art out of culture.”

Emily Silver, professor and director of the Pete & Susan Barrett Art Gallery, and SMC Photography Department Chair Josh Sanseri were instrumental in getting Wilbur’s work up in the gallery. During the summer of 2022, they co-taught an experimental gallery class that had students learning how to put together the exhibition, from printing, mounting and building frames, to hanging the artwork on the walls, creating an entirely new curriculum and certification program.

Walter Meyer, art history professor and chair of the art department reflects, “It just shows what is possible, when you have a vision, and the will. It’s been amazing, working with the students.

Just seeing how much of their world changes, not realizing what’s possible, not realizing what you can do with a career in the arts. Not realizing the impact you can have.”

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“Locals' Night” on the Santa Monica Pier Rebecca Hogan | Staff Writer

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anta Monica’s “Locals’ Night” on the third Thursday of each month is curated with the intention to attract Santa Monica natives and locals.

The event motto is “for locals by locals,” and refers to the classic cars, vendors and entertainment groups who are all either based in or have ties to Santa Monica. The once-a-month event runs from 3 to 10 p.m., beginning with childrens’ activities offered in the Pier’s historic Merry-Go-Round Building.

The City of Santa Monica only spans 8.4 square miles, but through 2019 it averaged a whopping eight million visitors annually. Pre-Covid tourism generated revenues of up to 1.8 billion dollars annually for Santa Monica, but despite the benefits for the city’s economy, locals have long felt their quality of life was a casualty of the city’s financial gain. They view the city as focusing its resources and planning around the

beach town’s high volume of tourists, and the influx of visitors resulting from the 2016 opening of the new Expo train line station which is located just two blocks from the Pier.

"Locals have long felt that the pier and downtown were not ours anymore,” said Santa Monica Councilmember Phil Brock. “‘Locals' Night’ is an attempt to remind them that the pier is first and foremost theirs — to remind them it's their own city, built by residents for residents."

The 2017 discontinuation of the Santa Monica Pier’s iconic Thursday night “Twilight Concert Series,” was a devastating blow, as it was the loss of one of the last traditional gathering places for locals. So in March 2022, the Santa Monica Pier Corporation addressed the notable absence of a locals’ gathering place and of events relevant to local culture by launching “Locals’ Night" on the Santa Monica Pier.

“Locals’ Night” event organizer and Santa Monica native Jenny Rice spoke on the importance and motivation behind creating the event.

“It's an opportunity to bring locals down to the pier,” Rice said. “Sometimes they forget that the pier is for them so we create a space for them to come, and the goal is to have them run into neighbors and friends, so all of our programming — the music, the bands, the cars … is programmed for locals by locals … everything we do has a tie to Santa Monica.”

The April 20 ”Locals’ Night” featured Santa Monica High School’s Jazz 1 Combo. Jazz Program Director and Santa Monica Malibu School District Visual & Performing Arts Coordinator Tom Whaley sat in with the combo on trombone.

Performing on a nearby stage was Santa Monica band “Horny Toad!” The band has been together since the ‘80s,

and consists of several Santa Monica natives including Brian Behling on percussion, Louiche Mayorga on bass and R.J. Herrera on drums.

“I was excited to play in my hometown, at the pier, such an iconic location,” Herrera said. Mayorga and Herrera were also members of the notable band Suicidal Tendencies.

“There was such a great turnout of old friends and audience members, dancing and having as much fun as I was,” said Herrera. “Growing up in Santa Monica and being educated through the school system and music programs, made being the featured band at ‘Locals’ Night’ an experience we could treasure.”

The next "Locals’ Night" will take place on May 18, followed by a summer hiatus and resuming Sept. 21.

R.J. Herrera playing the drums for the band "Horny Toad!"

Photos by Akemi Rico

People watching the sun set on April 20. Santa Monica Pier in Santa Monica, Calif. hosts "Locals' Night" every third Thursday with free programming from 4 p.m. to 10 p.m.

(Left) At the end of the night, the owners of the cars from the car show driving their cars up the ramp.

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OPINION

May 17, 2023

“We create the blueprint that builds the entertainment that has made them close to $30 billion a year in revenues.”

– Travis Donnelly,

Screenwriter and WGA Board Member

Writers Guild of America members picket in front of Universal Studios in Studio City, Calif., on May 2, follow

Baleigh O'Brien | The Corsair

Writers Guild of America (WGA) Board Member Travis Donnelly at Radford Studio Center on May 11. Donnelly has been a member of the WGA since the summer prior to the 2007-2008 strike.

Baleigh O'Brien | The Corsair

Creators of "Will & Grace" Max Mutchnick and David Kohan on strike at Radford Studio Center in Studio City, Calif., on May 11.

Writers Gu

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Hollywood is Overdue for a Strike Taylor Smith | Arts & Entertainment Editor

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Anna Sophia Moltke | The Corsair

wing disagreements within negotiations between the Alliance of Motion Pictures and Television Producers.

Anna Sophia Moltke | The Corsair

uild of America members picket in front of Universal Studios in Studio City, Calif., on May 2.

he Writers Guild of America (WGA) and supporters have taken to the streets with the intention to force the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) to fairly negotiate their contract. This strike is a long time coming, as the industry has changed immensely through the rise of streaming and new technology. The WGA’s contract, outside of standard annual raises, has stayed virtually the same.

“The WGA Negotiating Committee began this process intent on making a fair deal, but the studios’ responses have been wholly insufficient given the existential crisis writers are facing,” read WGA’s statement posted on their website.

The fight is on to preserve screenwriting as a profession. What is currently a vital part of television and film making is slowly deteriorating into a freelance position at the hands of studios looking to spend less and profit more.

“We create the blueprint that builds the entertainment that has made them close to $30 billion a year in revenues,” said Travis Donnelly, screenwriter and WGA board member.

The WGA went on strike Tuesday, May 2 after failing to reach an agreement in their contract negotiations with the AMPTP. Donnelly took part in the negotiations for six weeks prior to the strike decision. He joined the WGA the summer prior to the 2007-2008 strike, which he said inspired him to be more involved in leadership.

“We negotiated for a couple of weeks, and then we took a strike authorization vote and got a 97.85% approval from our members,” Donnelly said. “That said, we, unfortunately, went back and tried to negotiate with them for two more weeks. But we were left with the clear sense that they did not understand how important this negotiation with us is.”

In the 15 years since the last strike, which lasted 100 days, streaming surged in popularity. According to National Public Radio, in 2022 streaming platforms accounted for nearly “34.8% of viewership in July, while cable accounted for 34.4% and broadcast came in third at 21.6%.”

In a time when technology is constantly evolving, the AMPTP can not expect their old model to stay the same.

While increases in streaming residuals

were negotiated into the WGA’s 2020 contract, those new benefits only apply to shows whose production started after the new contract was signed.

In made-for-television projects, writers receive revenue based residuals. This means they receive a standard payment, as well as an additional percentage each time their show is rerun, which worked well in a time where people turned to cable television for entertainment.

For streaming shows, writers currently receive fixed residuals based on factors such as the type of project (episodic series or comedy/variety) and running time. The amount of viewers a show receives does not impact a writer's pay as it does with revenue based residuals.

In negotiations, ​​the WGA sought to establish a viewership-based residual that rewards writers based on a show’s success. The AMPTP rejected this proposal, and refused to make a counter offer.

The WGA is also looking to close the gap between foreign and U.S. residuals.

According to Donnelly, the residual rate based on foreign subscribers is a small fraction of the rate based on U.S. subscribers.

“Residuals is how you have longevity in this business. You’re getting paid on your creative work after the production cycle is over,” said Redelia Shaw, a Communications and Media Studies professor at Santa Monica College.

While Shaw is currently a full-time professor, she also belongs to the Directors Guild of America (DGA) and works as a second assistant director, or in her own words, a “worker bee.”

“What has happened is the streaming work model has opened up a whole new avenue of loopholes that the companies have taken advantage of, and has devalued our work and driven our wages down,” Donnelly added.

One of these “loopholes” is a writer’s term of employment. With the rise of streaming, limited series and fewer episodes per season are the current trends. Studios are pumping out content faster than ever, which means writers are given more work in less time for the same pay.

In the past, shows ran an average of 22 episodes per season, and writers were involved throughout production and post-production. Donnelly explained that streaming has “separated out that process” and essentially cut writers out

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OPINION

May 17, 2023

of production completely, shortening their miliar faces and just a bunch of other term of employment. industry people who are all fighting The WGA sought to establish a minifor the same cause,” said Reed. “And mum number of writers per writers’ room to be completely honest, we hope this and a guaranteed number of weeks of emsets the tone for the next negotiations ployment dependent on the type of projthat are coming up with the DGA and ect. The AMPTP also refused this proposal with SAG.” without making a counter.

This refusal to cross the picket With shortened terms of employment lines has caused shows such as Apple and a lack of residual compensation, many TV’s “Severance” to halt production, writers are unable to make a liveable wage and late night talk shows have been and their opportunities to get in a writer’s forced to play reruns. room are few and far between. ScreenwritWriters are not only fighting for ing is slowly evolving into a freelance positheir own guild but also paving the tion, which is unsustainable as a career. way for other unions. SAG-AFTRA “I can understand the desire for writers and the DGA would also benefit from to have a living wage,” Shaw said. “If they a change in the current residual moddon’t, then that means people who are not el. from a certain class will have a hard time “Even in my experience with Awkgetting into the industry. It will make it realward … being able to meet the qualAnna Sophia Moltke | The Corsair ly hard for people who are graduating from Writers Guild of America members picket in front of Universal Studios in Studio City, Calif. on ifications to get those residuals is college, who want to be screenwriters, to May 2 following disagreements within negotiations between the Alliance of Motion Pictures and definitely not something that is super get their foot in the door in a writers’ room.” Television Producers. easy,” said Reed. “So that is one of the While the AMPTP claims they can not afford these come from an AI. You can't have an AI generate a bad negotiation points that I think is a really big deal, beproposals, according to the WGA’s report, industry script, and then just pay a writer less money to actu- cause these big corporations are making money off profits went from $5 billion in 2000 to $28 billion in ally make it good.” of this intellectual property time and time and time 2021 and remained at a high throughout the pandemBut among the picket lines and cleverly worded again, but nobody else is.” ic.

Behind the scenes of hit shows and blockbuster signs is a sense of community between writers and Another point that has been heavily discussed by other Hollywood unions. Many members of the DGA, films are a slew of writers, cast, and crew putting their the media is the use of AI in scriptwriting. The WGA Screen Actors Guild - American Federation of Televi- hearts and souls into the projects and contributing to proposed to “regulate use of artificial intelligence on sion and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA), and teamsters their success. The demands of the WGA are not unMBA (Minimum Basic Agreement) - covered projects: are refusing to cross picket lines as their own contract reasonable; they are simply seeking to protect a vital AI can’t write or rewrite literary material; can’t be used negotiations are set to begin later in the year. pillar of the industry. as source material; and MBA-covered material can’t “I guess the message I just want to get across is, “The DGA starts our negotiations on May 10, which be used to train AI.” is Wednesday, and we will see how they go,” Shaw said. at the end of the day, we're fighting for the survival of The AMPTP rejected the proposal and offered “an- “Our contract, this cycle, ends on June 30. SAG-AF- writers. At the end of the day, we're fighting for writers nual meetings to discuss advancements in technol- TRA, they go to the mat on June 7 with negotiations to be able to make the living they deserve,” Donnelly ogy.” said. “I'm certain we're going to achieve that.” with the AMPTP.” “I think it's clear the reason they're fighting so hard Those looking to join the picket lines can find their Jillian Rose Reed, a SAG-AFTRA actress known for against it is they must be planning to use it,” Donnel- her portrayal of Tamara in the MTV show “Awkward,” schedule on the WGA website. ly said. “What we've asked for as a guild, and again, attended the picket alongside members of Cynthia is reasonable and common sense, is that the original Bain’s Young Actors Studio where she teaches. source material, the original literary material can't “It was so nice to get out there and see some fa-

Baleigh O'Brien | The Corsair

(Above) Writers Guild of America members picketing at Radford Studio Center in Studio City, Calif., on May 11. The strike began after failed contract negotiations with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers.

Baleigh O'Brien | The Corsair

(Above) Writers Guild of America (WGA) Board Member Travis Donnelly at Radford Studio Center on May 11. Donnelly has been a member of the WGA prior to the 2007-2008 strike.

(Left) Protesters march in front of Fox Studios on Pico Blvd in Los Angeles, Calif., on May 2.

Akemi Rico | The Corsair

May 17, 2023

OPINION

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13

Illustration by Alejandro Contreras

F

The Case for Compassion at Coachella

Shaylee Guerrero | Staff Writer

rank Ocean was set to headline Coachella on April 16, the last day of the first weekend, but felt the pressure of the event, leading to a performance many had issues with. Afterward, his scheduled performance during the second weekend of Coachella two weeks later was cancelled entirely.

Ocean is a 35-year-old alternative R&B artist who has won two Grammys and two studio albums listed on Rolling Stone’s 2020 “500 Greatest Albums of All Time.”

Ocean’s performance was highly anticipated due to his last performance being in 2017 at the Fall Festival in Helsinki, Finland. He was set to perform at Coachella in 2020, but the performance was canceled because of the pandemic.

He came out to perform an hour late, which caused his performance to be shortened due to Coachella’s strict enforcement of curfew.

People who attended the event felt disappointed, confused and angry. Thousands of people spent large amounts of money and attended the festival just to see Ocean. He also canceled his performance at weekend two entirely.

As a headliner performer, there is an expectation to have a performance that surpasses the previous performances. Concert-goers felt that they did not experience that at Coachella. But why is there this expectation and pressure? And is it fair towards artists like Ocean?

The official reason for Ocean’s rushed performance from his representative was that he fractured his leg. Fans noted his performance did not go as planned because he expressed onstage how Coachella was his brother’s favorite music festival, who passed away in 2020 in a car accident.

Ocean performed his song “Godspeed” during his first weekend per-

formance. The song originally had the meaning of wishing a loved one good luck on a journey. But since his brother’s death, “Godspeed” has taken on a new meaning of trying to find closure after loss.

Performances in today’s time in every category must be seen as over the top. Production, instruments, lights, and sound. Top performances of voice and dance moves are expected as well.

Things to take into account for an artist is how pressure could affect a performance and what could be going on in their life. Ocean still performed regardless of his leg injury due to the immense pressure of almost 100,000 people attending his set.

The message behind fans’ disappointment is that regardless of circumstance, it’s an artist's job to be an excellent performer. I think that is unfair and dehumanizes performers. They are humans too, who

have things going on in their lives. It could have been better to let Frank pull out of the show and perform on weekend two, to try to pull himself out of the hole he felt inside due to grief.

What could be done for performers, in general, is checking in if they are feeling ready to perform. There is pressure on them and they may not admit when they add not feeling up to it unless they feel they have the safe space to do so.

I think it’s respectable that Frank Ocean pulled out of performing on weekend two. He did what was best for his mental health. Even if he could give a good performance, he knew he could not give it his all.

“It was chaotic. There is some beauty in chaos,” Ocean said in a statement. “It isn't what I intended to show but I enjoy being out there and I'll see you soon.”

OPINION

14 THE | CORSAIR

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May 17, 2023