IATSE Local 600.

Finnegan

Finnegan

Well-known member
Hey everyone, I'm getting to that point in my career where I need to start compiling information on the application process to Local 600. I've heard from professors and other professionals in the past that all it takes is 100 paid days in whatever position you're applying for (cam op, cam assistant, DP) plus the fee for that position. Is it really that simple? A lot of productions that I've been on have paid me by personal check or sometimes even cash and though I do have signed papers regarding my contract for pay from the producers, I don't have pay stubs.

Can any of you union guys give me the run down on how some of the finer details work in the application process?
 
Is it easy. Haha, yes and no.

First of all, you need all of those days on Union shows. You need lots of proof, such as a check from the production company and a call sheet.

If you are working on non-union gigs, like many of the ones I do, the number of days increases, and you still need legit checks from a company, and call sheets. Personal checks and cash gigs are pretty much useless.

You also need to be careful when you join. They don't get you work. So make sure when you join, you have industry contacts who will hire you. Otherwise, you'll be paying expensive annual dues (not to mention the one to get in) and then you won't be working.

The union isn't really a GOOD thing for the individual, until you work many Union jobs. The more you work, the more it benefits you. The transition stage people struggle at first.
 
What's the day requirement for non-union productions? It all seems a little strange that to get into the union, you have to work on union shoots, and to work on union shoots you more often than not have to be union.
 
You need 100 non-union paid days. Proof of that comes with a check stub from a known payroll company (there's only a few of them). If your employer doesn't go through payroll or is paying you 1099 checks like so many indies these days, then you need a letter signed by the producer on the company's stationary. This is not an easy thing to get because 1) lots of non union producers are anti-union and don't want to be bothered or 2) lots of indie producers are just individuals, not companies. So go for the more well financed indies to get your paperwork and get chummy with the producer.

Or... you need 30 union paid days. How do you work union days when you're no in the union? The show has to "flip". When a shop flips, it starts out as a non-union show, then someone leaks the real budget to the unions, the unions organize and threaten the producers, the producers decide that it's more of headache firing everybody, then just paying the extra amounts for union health premiums (remember, some non-union shows pay almost as well as union shows), and then the producers decide - OK we'll go union to keep the show going smoothly.

I had amassed my paper work for 100 non union days, when the last show I was on flipped and turned union. So instead of finishing off my non-union day paperwork, I just submitted my 30 union days, and got in.

Now should you join? It really depends on whether or not you're working enough union jobs. $7000 + quarterly dues is a LOT OF MONEY. It can be spread out over a few years but the bills and dues stack up way faster than you would think. I personally regret joining as a 1st AC, because most of the stuff I shoot is non-union DP work. On top of that, I got a lucrative gig doing color work at a post production house, which has sidelined my work temporarily, so joining was a bad idea for me. Luckily, the work in post right now is so abundant that the 7K + dues doesn't hurt much anymore, so perhaps in the end it gives me options I wouldn't have. Just think about it, because often if you're not taking advantage of being in the union, you're basically just financing the health and pensions and salaries of those who are.
 
Just to add the non-union paid days must be $100 or more per day - that might have changed since I joined three years ago (f*ck time flies).
Also, call sheets are no longer accepted, but I would call contract services to verify.
 
Thanks for all the responses guys - my situation is a little strange so I apologize for all these nuance questions. A lot of the work I've been doing the past couple months has been for a company that does primarily web distribution, through Youtube. However, I have been paid relatively well and these projects are narrative shorts and sketches. In addition, these projects do generate an adequate amount of revenue for both the company and the talent. Would these paid days count as non-union days, or do the projects have to be feature films, or bigger short films?
 
There's quite a lot of shooting for webisodes as you know, and they are almost all non-union.
I think they will count for days. It would be far better to submit payroll stubs if they pay through a payroll company, for legitimacy. Either way, get the producers to write a letter listing the days you've worked, your rate per day, name, SS#, address, save your returned checks and see if contract services accepts them as days. Best thing is just to ask contract services, by phone or you can go in person to their office on Ventura near the 405. I forgot the exact address - they may have moved since three years ago though :).

More details can be found at: http://www.csatf.org/

Even if you haven't worked all hundred days, start building up the record / your file at CS and start taking the classes at CSATF - it took me forever to finish the classes due to my work schedules so it's best to get started even before you get all your days.

Finnegan said:
Thanks for all the responses guys - my situation is a little strange so I apologize for all these nuance questions. A lot of the work I've been doing the past couple months has been for a company that does primarily web distribution, through Youtube. However, I have been paid relatively well and these projects are narrative shorts and sketches. In addition, these projects do generate an adequate amount of revenue for both the company and the talent. Would these paid days count as non-union days, or do the projects have to be feature films, or bigger short films?
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