Directors Reach Deal With Movie, Television Studios

Jan 18, 07:42 AM

By LYNN ELBER

By Lynn Elber

The Associated Press

LOS ANGELES

Hollywood directors reached a tentative contract deal Thursday with studios, a development that could turn up the pressure on striking writers to settle their two-month-old walkout that has idled production on dozens of TV shows .

"Two words describe this agreement - 'groundbreaking' and 'substantial,' " said Gil Cates, chairman of the Directors Guild of America's negotiations committee. "There are no rollbacks of any kind."

In announcing the deal with directors, the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, which represents studios, expressed hope that it would help end what it called an extremely difficult period for the industry.

It also called on the writers guild to engage in informal discussions to determine if there was a reasonable basis for returning to the bargaining table.

The Writers Guild of America said it would evaluate the terms of the directors' deal.

the deal

Among other things, the three-year agreement establishes key provisions involving compensation for programs offered on the Internet. That issue has also been a key sticking point between striking writers and the studios, which broke off talks Dec. 7.