Boys & Girls

 

I've had different producers, both male and female. Some are great to work with and others aren't. I do know that women have a harder time, but from my point of view I've seen a lot of waste. I've never really put anybody down, male or female. I don't like writers who want to make it a contest nor do I not like drinkers. Yeah, you see them now and then. Mostly because of pressure although that's mostly that they're not that good.

On one series, I was fired before I was to join. It was with 2 male writers from Toronto and one of them had never written. How did that happen? He talked himself into being a producer-writer. Never had written anything!

The other one was a man who drank a lot on the job. They both didn't like me. I packed my bags and was ready to go. Next morning they "decided" to keep me for a while. I unpacked and stayed for about four months. I found out that the head producer in Toronto wanted me.

It was a hell of a job as the three of us were not fun. The head writer and I had to rewrite every page. And then the bad one would tell everyone he had written it.

There's probably a lot more women working in the film industry, line producers, A.D.'s and others. And again, they seem to become stronger just through practice.

I've never written movies or TV with women as far as I know, but I had one story that might be of interest. I was working in Vancouver on a action TV series with 3 male writer/producers (basically fake credits).  The network wanted me in for a 2-story episode. I had done more work on two episodes than they did.

I had been given a small office, enough for me to work in. The other three were working in "the big room" while I worked in my little office. I knew one writer, and h wasn't really very good but managed to keep working. The other two were people I didn't know.

There was also a young woman there and she seemed to get coffee and do errands for the other three. She passed me a couple of times, said "hi". I finally asked her what she did. She said she was a writer-in-training.

I asked her why she wasn't doing anything except coffee and lunch and anything they wanted.  She said that's all they tell me to do. It wasn't very long for me to work with her, she didn't have to bring coffee, rather she watched me write and what I wrote. We did this until I had to leave and she thanked me. 

It was a long time before I saw her on another Vancouver series when I was visiting a friend of mine, also writing. Then a voice came and I turned to see her. She was now writing and was also a writer producer. She even told the others that I helped her.

So that's basically how it can work, not always, sometimes never, but this time it did.

On the other hand I was working for a woman producer who didn't like anyone, not writers or anyone. She would be playing some kind of digital games all day long. We got into an argument over a scene that I had to fix but she didn't think it had to fix, I said yes, the actors had it down and a director, but she kept at me until I really got mad and finally hurled the phone book (which was handy) past her. This show had a lot of arguments in the "writer's department", which consisted of a large bedroom fixed up with a few desks. 

The odd thing was that I was the only one working in the room. The "writer" who didn't know anything was also being a producer. He and the woman producer were always arguing.  The head writer was rarely seen until someone brought me his writing. He'd show up at the bar.

I had one woman who was 2nd in costumes and other areas with a man as head. I found out the hard way when I heard 2nd was going to take over the 1st. I mentioned that the 1st head let her do the work.

She glared at me and wanted to know if she was good enough.

I had mentioned that she was taking over for a while - that I wondered if she could handle it. But I said that it was great she can do it. Not "you can't do it", but "you can do it." She managed a smile.

From what I see now on TV is a lot of women writing in both countries. But I also saw women head writers really feel pressure but that goes to men writers as much as to younger men writers. There are more women writers now, certainly in Canada and I've watched their shows and they're not bad. Never hired me though.

By the way, the woman I helped didn't hire me!

One last story. I was working in Luxembourg re-writing three screenplays. It was a great gig, working close to France and Belgium and Germany. These screenplays were originally written by other writers. It's quite common. I had a car and an office in a studio and life was great. 

Then a producer with very little experience but somehow managed getting a gig. I had met him in L.A. and a few people told me he's more trouble then help. He came around the last month and found a young guy to be his helper. He was instantly trying to change the script but I managed to keep it going. I also had the help of the director and actors.

Then one morning I saw the lead actress coming up to me and asking me why the script was changed. I didn't know, but knew who it was. She and I had worked about 6 pages for her to read.  I realized it was the producer, using his kid to help. He cut the words down to a page and a half.

I couldn't do anything but I had one thing that would change it.

The lead actress was called Kate Mulgrew. You might know of her - Kathryn Janeway. Yes. Kate was the first woman Captain on Star Trek. And she was still working and found some time to get a gig for a character story between series.

You know what happens. Kate (I had a few dinners with her) was furious. That one thing is this -- you don't tell the lead actor in a huge TV series. So she and I brought the script back again. Maybe a few changes of his... but completely what it was before.  

She even took my original script and walked out on set and told everybody what scene we are going to use, Jim's script.  Ouch.

Producer did not like it. But I managed to stay but I had two screenplays that I had written back in L.A. I decided to go back because they were going to shoot my first film in Winnipeg and I think I did some fixing up on another script there. 

By accident both of my scripts where filmed about a hundred miles away from where I grew up and lived up to twelve years before going to Ontario. 

Funny how movies pop up and down. I did the Belgium movies, two movies of mine in Canada and one in Mexico. One year.

Okay, maybe we're a little bit older.