MACON, Ga. — Hollywood writers and actors have been on strike for almost 100 days now, but one Macon independent film company says that hasn't slowed them down.
13WMAZ's Jessica Cha was on set to find out why.
Lights, camera, action!
“We are filming “A Fight Broke Out in Heaven'. It is a Christian musical film,” she says.
That's Pop of Genius Films CEO Stacy Jenkins directing 20-30 people on set.
She's also the camera person.
“I love giving people the ability to take on a character that they may have never taken on before,” Jenkins explains.
She says her company is a great place to get an actor’s foot in the door.
“A lot of the actors that I do work with, this is like their second career. Some of them are retired, or they’re getting out of their first career, and now they’re able to explore that art that they were never able to do.”
Jenkins says no time is better than during the Hollywood writer and actors' strike.
“While these great, talented union and non-union actors are striking, they're still looking for work, and they want to be able to work on their craft,” she says.
Actor Clay Stokes is in the cast.
“This is probably my fifth one I've worked with her on,” he says.
Stokes began acting 12 years ago in his early 60s– starting as a background actor, but later being in movies like ‘Anchorman’ and ‘Selma’.
“They bring someone from California. I could do that, I could say those words,” Stokes laughs.
He says he isn't in the union, but knows how tough the industry is.
"90% of actors make less than $25,000, and writers, they get paid so little."
Stokes says he fully supports the strike, but during that, independent film production companies are important to keep the industry alive.
“That's the only thing that's out there. This is the best for people just getting into the business, get some IMDB credit, and experiencing what it's like on set,” Stokes says.
Jenkins says it also funds struggling studio spaces and production people. Writer of the movie script, Roy Miller, says it fuels the soul.
“Just because you don't have a million dollars, or you don't get a deal with a major company, does not mean you have to give up,” Miller says.
There's still hope while the strikes are going on,” Jenkins says.
Jenkins says they do pay 95% of their staff fair wages; the others volunteer.
According to the Writers Guild of America Contract, in 2013, 33% of all T.V. series writers were paid minimum wage.
Now half are working at minimum wage.
They also say the median weekly writer-producer pay has declined 4% over the last decade.