[Fmpro] revolt of the LA Film musicians??

[Phil Kelly]

hmmm ..the revolt of the killer "blowmatos" ????

everything old is new again part deux ...

( I do wonder what will happen to their EPW contributions should they 
secede )

Phil Kelly
www.philkellymusic.com
NW Prevailing Winds
SW Santa Ana Winds
Origin Records


Musicians to tune out AFM union
Over 200 join Professional Musicians Guild
By JON BURLINGAME
Local 47 will have a lot to talk about at tonight's meeting.

L.A. musicians have placed the American Federation of Musicians on 
notice: Shape up or face possible decertification as their 
collective-bargaining agent for film and TV recordings.

More than 200 of the estimated 900 professional musicians who are most 
active on film-scoring dates have already joined the new Professional 
Musicians Guild, according to PMG president Andrew Malloy.

The PMG was formed late last year by L.A. players who have been 
frustrated by what they see as a series of failures on the part of the 
national leadership of the AFM. They include "sweetheart deals" and 
"secret backroom deals" -- to use two phrases from the PMG's membership 
pitch -- that, if true, are in violation of existing AFM contracts.

PMG has been recruiting members for videogame recordings under a 2002 
contract created by the Recording Musicians Assn., a player conference 
within the AFM. It led to more than $1 million in musicians' wages over 
three years, according to the PMG.

The AFM, however, adopted another videogame agreement in December that 
severely undercut the original game contract. This, plus what PMG 
officials call an "actively hostile" attitude by national AFM 
officials, led to the formation of the new guild.

L.A. musicians are angry that the AFM cut a deal for the 2006 "MTV 
Video Music Awards" that undercut the existing agreement for music in 
videotaped shows, and that the AFM has allowed several films to utilize 
music from earlier L.A.-recorded scores (notably "Miss Congeniality 2: 
Armed & Fabulous") without repaying the musicians, as required under 
AFM contracts.

PMG members are not being asked to leave the AFM, and letters from AFM 
to PMG officers have not, thus far, threatened them with expulsion. 
Musicians in both are still eligible to perform film and TV recordings 
under AFM contracts.

"The people who are interested in this new organization are very strong 
unionists," Malloy said, "and have been active supporters of the 
federation, most of us since high school. (The PMG wouldn't exist) if 
they had people truly working on behalf of the musicians who are doing 
the work in this town," he said.

Local 47, the L.A. local of AFM, generated nearly $1 million in work 
dues for the national federation last year, more than any other local, 
according to Local 47 president Hal Espinosa.

Espinosa said he is "not happy" that there is a new guild -- the 
beginnings of a possible revolt against an unresponsive AFM -- but also 
pointed out that "it could have been avoided, at least four years ago, 
if the musicians here felt that they had support from their 
leadership."

Espinosa is planning a run for the national AFM presidency against 
current president Thomas Lee. "Tom has been very divisive," he said. 
"He's lost the respect of other entertainment unions, and certainly has 
lost the respect of a lot of the recording musicians in L.A."

Lee did not respond to phone calls seeking comment. These issues are 
expected to come up at a Local 47 membership meeting at 7 tonight at 
the union offices on Vine Street.

If the PMG continues to attract members among L.A. recording musicians, 
it will pose a significant threat to the AFM's long-held dominance over 
recording in L.A.

The current agreement between the AFM and the Alliance of Motion 
Picture & Television Producers, under which U.S. musicians record film 
and TV scores, expires in 2009. Some PMG members feel that if the AFM 
continues its current practices, they should vote to decertify the 
union as its collective-bargaining agent and choose PMG instead to 
negotiate with producers.

Read the full article at:
http://www.variety.com/article/VR1117963587.html