User Reviews

This is the only documentary out there on the subject of the Writers Guild of America strike of 2007-2008. Pencils Down! is very well produced and directed, a quality work that's informative and worth your time if you are interested in Hollywood, behind-the-scenes, screen writing, labor issues, union issues, legal precedents and/or why this matters.

This is an important issue for everyone working in Hollywood or anyone who aspires to work in the film/TV business.

Pencils Down! should really be shown in every film school, law school labor relations class, and every union hall for any industry in the country. Most of us don't really understand what the fuss was all about. This documentary will inform and educate every viewer. The writer/director is a lawyer himself as well as a union member in Hollywood.

This movie follows the Writer's Guild Strike in 2007 and chronicles the process the writers went through throughout the 100 days. The focus of the strike was around the rights the creators of content have and how they get paid moving into the "internet" world we live in today and the digital rights for the future.

The movie shows actual footage of events during the strike as well as one-on-one interviews with those involved. Watching this movie takes you through the process and history during the time when hard working people/writers were fighting for their livelihood to gain the respect of their industry and gain the rights they deserve.

This is a good journey for anyone watching to see the decisions made to stand up for what you feel is right for the time and for the future.

Greetings again from the darkness. This documentary from director Brian S. Kalata (a successful Location Manager) details the 100 day strike of the Writers Guild of America, and more interestingly, provides a peek behind the curtain of the business side of the entertainment industry. It's an industry that continually cries financial wolf, while green-lighting the construction of new theatres and producing ever-bigger budget projects. Though this documentary won't clear up any of the voodoo economics (to borrow a phrase), it does shed some light on who the power players are and who are the ones typically drawing the short straw.

On November 9, 2007, 4000 picketers joined the rally outside the Fox Studios as the WGA strike began. Numerous interviews with industry insiders provide us a basic education on what makes the entertainment world unique when it comes to labor disputes. Here, the leading studios … competitors, mind you … bond together to go up against each of the separate unions (DGA, SAG, WGA, Teamsters, etc) at contract time. Historically, this has resulted in contracts that heavily favor and maintain the largest piece of the pie for the power studios – now run by major media conglomerates, rather than the hands-on studio heads of early Hollywood (Mayer, Warner, et al).

What made this particular strike more interesting was the strong support the WGA received from its members – both past and present, the acting community (SAG), and the viewing public, thanks to an online media blitz telling the story. At the heart of the negotiations was this (at the time) new and rapidly expanding digital media. The studios claimed they didn't have a business model yet for streaming, iTunes, Netflix, etc, so this was all to be categorized as "home video", which short-changed the writers from previous contracts.

Those being interviewed include Alan Rosenberg, Harlan Ellison, Howard Rodman and Patric Verrone … all key players in the strike and the vision for the WGA. Each is very forthright in the past shortcomings of contract negotiations, as well as how they felt this strike offered the first real opportunity for fairness.

Labor issues are commonplace in most industries, but the fascination here is derived from the creative artists going up against powerful corporate forces. Even with a show of solidarity between the various entertainment unions, the cause is severely impacted when the DGA cuts their own deal. The film acts as a primer on both entertainment economics and labor relations … two topics we rarely have much access to, though we only get the labor (writers) side of the story.

The film trudges through the different stages of the 100 days, and makes it clear that the WGA felt back-stabbed by the DGA at a time when the industry was in danger of having its most important event canceled … Oscar night. In the end, the writers got their "toe in the door" for digital media, but Julia-Louis Dreyfus said it best … "Without the writers, we are speechless."

Few of us who love movies understood what happened during the writers strike. This film goes way behind the scenes of the real behind the scenes. It shows us the real characters who create the characters we all love. (They sometimes are more interesting themselves than their on screen characters.) We come to understand the lives and the struggles of a "Hollywood" writer. We learn that making a living in "Show Biz" is like all management vs. labor conflicts. Management wants to pay a little as possible and the workers need to fight for their every dollar/right. It demonstrates that while you may live for your art, you need to be fairly and justly compensated so you can live. You will see a number of faces you know and many you have only known as a credit on the big screen. Keep your eyes open for some passionate words from people you recognize and share the passion as the writers tell their side of the script.

An informative and visually appealing film depicting the struggles of the writers in Hollywood. At a time when actors and directors were reaping the monetary benefits of films and TV productions, the writers were virtually ignored. Many of the actors, producers and directors joined the writers in their attempt to gain recognition and compensation for the work they did. The interviews were honest and informative and gave us a clear picture of how unfair things were for the writers guild. By banding together with others in the industry, the writers were able to shut down Hollywood. Something that studios did not think would happen. Without the writers everything stopped, no movie, no TV programs and no creative dialogue. An excellent teaching tool for future writers and others in the film industry.

I rarely watch documentaries; they are not my preferred type of movie. However, this was an exceptionally well done film about the writers guild strike. The film is both eye-opening and entertaining.

The perspective given from a multitude of different actors and various people in the business provides a balanced, credible account of what took place.

The writer and director, a member of the union himself, does a nice job shedding light on the situation from the early stages before the strike actually occurred, providing the viewers with a comprehensive understanding of the turn events that led to the strike and how Hollywood reacted. I would definitely recommend this film to others.

How many documentaries can say they include Popeye, Ronald Reagan,and Jason Alexander? This documentary spans the scope of not only the Writers' Strike, but the history of performers, writers and other artists unionizing, and why it's important. I don't know how the director got such high powered names to talk candidly, but it is refreshing to hear people being real and passionate, instead of canned and media trained. Super engaging and fun to watch, Justine Bateman also an intelligent and thoughtful highlight.Especially in the current political climate,it is a reminder to believe in the power of organizing to effect change at the highest levels, and how important it is to stay the course.