“I can’t believe she’s here!” An industry audience member whispered to his neighbor at the Telluride Film Festival’s Chuck Jones Theater on Thursday evening, as Julia Louis-Dreyfus took the stage. Louis-Dreyfus was the first Telluride actress to benefit from one of the Screen Actors Guild’s temporary agreements, which allows her to promote her film A24, Tuesday.
Louis-Dreyfus, a regular on the picket lines during the strike, was clearly prepared to explain himself to the crowd at Chuck Jones, almost all of whom assumed they were coming for the premiere of a small, starless movie. From an unknown first-time director, Dayna O. Busic.
“As a proud member of the Screen Actors Guild for the past 41 years, I stand here in solidarity with my union and the WGA,” Louis-Dreyfus said. “I want to thank my union for the fight they are waging for actors across the country, and for awarding our film, this film, TuesdayA temporary deal, so I can stay here. She went on to thank A24 for signing the agreement, which is binding until SAG and the Alliance of Motion Picture Television Producers strike a deal. “If small studios like A24 can agree to what my colleagues and sisters deserve, why can’t AMPTP?”
Over the past few weeks, SAG members and their representatives have been trying to figure out how to handle the fall festival season while on strike. As the first day of Telluride debuted on the 47th day of the SAG strike, Louis-Dreyfus and another actress, Emma Stone, provided some examples of how to do just that.
Stone also has a film here, a Yorgos Lanthimos film Bad things, which she starred in and produced for Searchlight. Searchlight, as a division of Disney, is part of AMPTP and is therefore a successful company. Stone bought herself a movie pass, flew the festival’s charter, and seemed, at least until Thursday night, to be flying under the radar for all but the most careful festival-goers. She does not participate in the Q&A for Bad things Or do press on behalf of the film. This simple strategy wouldn’t work at the Venice or Toronto festivals—much bigger festivals with red carpets and photo shoots—but here in Telluride, a Spanx-free environment, it’s doable.
There are other actors here as well, including Sandra Höller, whose films Area of interest (A24) F Anatomy of a fall (NEON) is distributed by companies that are not members of AMPTP.
Laura Linney and Maya Hawke are here on behalf of wildcat, Ethan Hawke’s standalone acquisition title that received a tentative SAG deal. The same goes for Dakota Johnson, her own independent business owner, Daddio, also offered for sale and covered by a temporary agreement. Buyers of films that have signed provisional agreements will need to abide by the terms set out in the agreements, which the AMPTP has already rejected, and it is unclear how these films will perform in the market.
When SAG initially introduced the interim agreements, some members, including Sarah Silverman, raised questions about them. Just over a week ago, SAG issued a statement encouraging members to take advantage of the agreements. “The interim agreement is a vital part of our strategic approach and was put in place for a number of reasons, all aimed at protecting the interests of our members,” Duncan Crabtree-Ireland, SAG’s national chief executive, said in a statement.
In Venice on Thursday, Adam Driver was promoted Ferrari, the film Neon, and his comments were similar to those of Louis-Dreyfus in Telluride. “I’m proud to be here, to be a visual representation of a film that’s not part of AMPTP,” Driver said.
Elsewhere in Telluride, signs of the strike were subtle. The Chuck Jones Theater where the Louis-Dreyfus film premiered is sponsored by Netflix and usually has their logo prominently featured. But the festival asked sponsors to forego logo banners this year, meaning Louis-Dreyfus was able to speak without the AMPTP logo looming behind her.
Across the city, there are signs that the strike has made local businesses more sensitive. “Oat milk is free for SAG-AFTRA members” is written on a chalkboard in front of a café.
“Lifelong beer expert. General travel enthusiast. Social media buff. Zombie maven. Communicator.”