Well then. A pleasant Thanksgiving to you too!
So we asked RyanAvenueA for a little background on this incident last night. Ryan and his wife were having dinner at an Avenue A restaurant. There were cones blocking the west side of Avenue A along (from Fourth Street on down) to restrict parking. There weren't any signs indicating what this was for, but all the cones were labeled "MC," Ryan said. A van was parked there, with an extension cord coming out of the rear passenger door that plugged into the panel at the base of a lamp post.
A little later, Ryan's wife goes outside for a cigarette. She asked crew members what they were doing, and they said they were "securing the location" for "A Gifted Man." To which she asked why they needed all the parking now. She said they should have permits up if they want to block the parking. They told her to get lost.
"As we walk out to go home, she slipped a little on the wet pavement, and the bigger buy (there's a few of them) goes, 'I hope you fall on your fucking head you stupid bitch.' I turn around and ask him what the fuck that was for, and he says I should ask my wife. He starts walking away and I ask him directly if they are there filming the CBS show 'A Gifted Man.' He just stares at me, and I repeat my question. He finally says yes and walks away."
As of this morning, the crews weren't set up yet for filming, though someone had posted permits.
59 comments:
I just forwarded the link to this story to CBS (attention The Gifted Man) via their feedback form at http://www.cbs.com/info/user_services/fb_global_form.php.
Very nasty!!they were previously on Ave. C and 3rd--don't think that talk would go over too well there either--fuckin asswipes!!They were rained on in the Ave. C location and so was I.
Hope Ryan's wife is ok.
I am usually pro union but not in this case. Nice work Teamsters.
How shocking that the film industry feels entitled. Their parking permits are over done...but even more fun is when they just cone an entire sidewalk the day before, just bc they feel like it.
Call the mayors office film permit dept and ask for contact information for the show's location manager. Or just complain to the permit dept directly. That'll screw up the show's ability to get future permits.
I work in film and TV, and I've always been instructed to be extra nice to passers by. I once stood in someone's path to keep him from walking directly through the frame while cameras were rolling - and I almost got fired for it. Most shows at least try to be nice about the nuisance they create. Mostly because enough complaints can shut down a production.
Complain. That parking PA shouldn't have a job after what he said to your wife.
There's something about this story that doesn't make sense. Either there are details being left out or the claim is untrue.
A family member of mine who makes a living in the film/television industry here in the city says the crews go out of their way to be nice to civilians because the repercussions can be swift, harsh and can involve penalties and fines.
I'm a bit surprised people would jump on the bandwagon and go out of their way to contact CBS. Something's not right with this story.
Thanks for reporting on this EV Grieve. I just sent the link to a friend who is a publicist at CBS and asked her to share it with the people at A Gifted Man.--CC
anonymous 5:59 PM and lux living - i have never experienced the courtesy you say that the film/television industry displays to our neighborhood residents.
the mayor's office of tv/film has told me that these shoots are good for the city and generate money to neighborhoods. i have not found that to be true.
i have found these "chosen people" to be entitled and arrogant. and loud. i've been asked to walk down another street with a heavy portable typewriter in hand, told to shut my windows for continuity, been advised that the brown water pouring from the taps on my block was not a result of a rain machine that ran for hours, and that the truck motors had to run constantly because they needed to cool the actors' quarters. i've also been told that the pollution from these trucks should not bother me because "the exhaust was facing the other side of the street". truly a direct quote!
that along with the damage to street trees and the noise. nothing like a "quiet on the set" yell at 2am or 6am.
I agree with Lux. Maybe this guy is leaving some things out. He didn't hear the initial conversation his wife had.
For someone working on the set to say something that strong while her husband was with her, well, I think it's possible his wife was stirring things up a bit.
I've had more than a dozen film sets on various streets I've lived on and no one ever spoke like that to a resident minding their own business.
This is not the whole story.
Lux Living, in theory film crews make nice. But in practice, it doesn't always work that way. You have got to remember you are dealing with people who think they are God's gift to the world because they are working in entertainment. There have been a number of incidents in the East Village where people have been driven crazy by lights, rude production assistants, etc. I am sure EV Grieve has documented many of these incidents over the years!
I have experienced both annoying and super sweet from film crews, I was pregnant and waiting for the M8 and one of the crew wanted me to help myself to craft services (didn't but it was cute) and then in the dead of winter an a-hole made me walk the whole perimeter of Tompkins to not interupt their filming.
How did this couple learn his title, Location Manager?
It always amazes me when film crews are rude to pedestrians - it serves absolutely no purpose.
People who secure parking spots are usually lowly (non union) PAs. The woman should have gotten the PA's name and told him she was going to lodge a complaint against him with the production company.
If it had been an actual shoot, she could have asked to speak to the production manager.
To some of those complaining above, I worked as a PA on low budget film crews and always was as apologetic as possible to pedestrians - it was not hard for me to be this way because I genuinely felt bad to be interfering with people's lives.
I think as a rule, most PA's are polite in a workmanship-like way, but on occasion I have come across some really rude ones, most memorably the nasty PAs on the Will Smith movie I Am Legend.
It is usually an outside company hired to hold parking...not Teamsters. Do you know how much it would cost to have Teamsters hold parking overnight?
Productions need to secure parking hours in advance (people leave cars for days, etc)to accommodate the space and adjacency needed for large grip trucks, etc..
There seems to be missing info here...Generally it is stressed by every department head on set to be extra courteous and not disrupt neighbors...it can bring hell to a production if one person does (like this situation)
I believe the jobs productions provide outweigh the inconvenience of the parking spots being held
Restatement: "I believe the jobs productions provide outweigh any civil rights violations of the parking spots being held."
Restatement: "I believe the jobs any industry may provide outweigh any civil rights violations."
Restatement: "I believe people's rights do not matter in respect to the jobs that might be provided."
Restatement: "I believe in a totalitarian state until my own rights are violated."
it only takes a few seconds to forward a URL as a complaint on a company's web site feedback form.
it takes far longer in terms of actual time spent to complain about someone else contacting said company.
thus, luxe living's bias in the form of fearing that cbs will move tv productions elsewhere is palpable.
a common but often disliked pattern by those with a bias supporting the status quo involves (a) an initial incident and/or cover up which is sometimes expressed superficially as unexcused selfish apathy, (b) then the start of some type of evidence trail or at least raised as a genuine authentic question that we need to know more, (c) then the role of the media, or in an expanded contemporary way the social media, which aids in answering or restating the genuine question, and (d) then finally the event becomes examined and potentially blows wide open. it is so much easier for the status quo to do nothing or to complain about others who try to do something.
moreover and in the end, it's very likely said worker walked away without continuing or furthering the conflict because he didn't want to get in trouble and then get fired. he possibly may have made an honest mistake by losing his temper. this happens to all of us, even the best of us. and i doubt if he's getting paid very much for his long hours and mostly unthanked efforts. in this economy, a job is a job is a job. however, cbs as the molachian type of corporate entity it is should be assumed to be more concerned about quickly removing the evidence of the problem rather than genuinely interested in the problem itself which can be characterized by saying that we all live in a noble free society that values good relations among men even over societal approved profit-making motivations and activities, the very DNA of the first puritans and dutch. in the end, it is not unlikely that this very worker will be found out and then fired anyway. but, again, this does not solve the problem which really needs to be carefully thought about and restated by luxe living et al.
While rudeness from a crew member of any sort is unacceptable, this person was clearly a parking pa, not the location manager of the tv show.
There are plenty of legit ways to handle the situation. Going online and blaming someone who wasn't involved is pretty much the worst way to deal with it.
If you watch movies or TV shows, shut the fuck up.
They film places, and sometimes it is near you. Its nothing crazy. And it life sometimes people argue with people who whine to them. And yes it does bring tax revenue, anonymous economist.
I once told a driver of an idling diesel semi, parked on Ave. A at 7th St. for some sort of shoot, that his exhaust was filling the block and restaurants. He told me if I did not leave he'd shoot me.
Lux Living is defending the TV production people because he has a family member who works in the biz and because this person is respectful and says people in the business are respectful, that means they are all respectful, according to Lux Living. I don't mean to get off topic, but this guy's line of thinking is off. Why would all of these people in the neighborhood lie about having issues with the production crews? I am glad you have a nice relative but get real, man!
going online is in fact the very *best* way of dealing with it. that's why we're having this excellent discussion now... instead of hiding quietly in our apartment doing and saying absolutely nothing. now you can come out and say and do absolutely nothing on the safety of a blog. good job participating! :)
i really can't imagine too many people on this blog like being told "i hope you fall on your fucking head you stupid bitch" regardless of whether they were right or wrong. the question is how to deal with. the fallacy that there is only one "right" way to deal with an issue is not a matter of economics. so if you have not have had to deal with rudeness, that doesn't mean that such situations doesn't exist. that's ridiculous. and to defend someone who has been in that situation seems not to be a matter of economics but a matter of what is right and proper. if you want to hide in your apartment and spend all day sparring with me on a blog, then go right ahead. it just brings more attention to the salient issue, dummy (sorry).
that makes no sense by, the way. "if you watch tv or movies, then shut the fuck up." what does that mean anyway?! it doesn't take that much to ask, does that even make any sense. who are you protecting anyway other than your laziness and apathetic life. and the more you flame this comment section, the more you bring attention to the issue. so you are accomplishing the exact opposite of what you are trying to achieve. duh!
I'm not defending the crew member. All I am suggesting is that there is something about this story that seems off. For example, Location Manager.
Sticks and stones. I love how people preach about the first amendment only when it suits them best. Be the bigger person and walk away, you've probably heard worse from better.
99% of movies and tv shows are complete crap anyway. just think about it. it's mostly a waste of time. it brainwashes you as you are subjected to constant tv commercials trying to sell you stuff or make you eat while you are watching so that's why it plays a major role in obesity. and it's clear to me that the people who work in the industry aren't really the brightest bulbs either. this is not a highly educated workforce we are talking about -- and not a sustainable enterprise in a global economy. do you want to work for just yourselves or for china or india once they buy all the movie production companies. keep in mind that sony OWNS one of the largest media conglomerates in the world including sony pictures which used to include columbia. finally, remember nothing is truly anonymous on the internet. your ip address is being recorded. it may be much more embarrassing to find your name and address along with your comments posted on wikileaks or part of a subpoena looking into organized crime in the nyc film industry. you can hide for only so long...
i love the first amendment. bring it on.
also keep in mind that the first amendment right is only marginally beneficial compared to the level of discourse it supports. the more pointless the discourse, the less important the first amendment actually means...
again, if someone walked up to you and started cursing in your face, regardless of context, there would be a problem. if the context involves a party that should not be doing this like a tv production worker or even a police offer, there would be a problem -- there *should* be an investigation. it shouldn't all be hidden away and disregarded...
sure, more info, would be helpful... but who's responsibility is that? i think it's clear that at least several parties have a responsibility including this blog and cbs...
they will be back... the very next time an incident like this occurs and is posted on any blog... they will be back in the comments section... and they will return again to defend their indefensible stances in their awkward and unintelligible ways...
i f*cking hate these film crews with such zeal it is not even funny. it used to be really expensive to film in the city (AS WELL IT SHOULD BE). a few years back stupid f*cking bloomberg did away with all those fees/taxes and instead began giving out HUGE SUBSIDIES to directors, basically paying them exorbitant fees to come inconvenience us all, out of our tax dollars, surely part of his grand scheme to further along the rapid commoditization of new york, by ensuring that this neuterized version of hell we are enduring here is blasted on screens all across america to attrract more priviledged morons to become permanment toursists in the big ol' apple.
would love for this problem to be exposed by the media!!! never seen a mayor who appears to have more disregard, contempt even, for, well, New Yorkers. Just disgusting.
right on, glamma. well said. i got yer back!
Um, Glamma, exactly what "fees" or "taxes" did Bloomberg do away with to help the film industry?
The reality is that under Bloomberg the city has begun charging permit fees for the first time in the history of the film business. Permits used to be free, now they cost money. Under Bloomberg city buildings and properties, which used to be free to film in, now have rate schedules attached to their use. Under Bloomberg the NYPD has vastly cut down on the availability of free police for film shoots to use, and now encourages filmmakers to hire police at their own expense.
In other words, you are talking out of your ass.
first, the permit fees are merely nominal. it's well known in the industry that the fees are ridiculously low and they are really there to enforce the contractual obligation between the city and the film production -- in other words, a nominal fee should have always been charged and it was a legal mistake to not charge a nominal fee in the past. so whether they are free or nominal is besides the point -- the permit fees are not a real "fees" and do not generate a substantial source of revenue for the city. the fees likely don't even cover the actual costs for the city's involvement in all of this.
second, it's well known that the bloomberg administration provides sizeable tax credits to film production companies so that they can operate in nyc without having the overhead of that might be incurred in other cities, thus encouraging film production to be local instead of in another competing city like atlanta, toronto, or vancouver, two cities that have had increased film production not only due to tax credits but to lower overall costs for labor and materials.
please see: http://www.nyc.gov/html/film/html/incentives/tax_credit_overview.shtml ("In August 2010 new legislation extended the program through 2014, allocating $420 million per year."_
so what glamma meant to say was "tax credits" instead of reduced "permit fees" but she is entirely correct in her general statement about "tax breaks."
it's not so much as "talking out of her ass," as trying to explain very complicated partnerships between municipalities and companies that the ordinary man intuitively understands to be a priori problematic even though they cannot necessarily match this with the full a posteriori evidence which very few people can do anyway or have the inclination to want to do.
her general thesis should be enough for the purposes of this blog and its audience.
also, i really don't think the NYPD resources should be used for film shoots anyway. that seems like a waste of municipal time and resources. if you need help managing your film shoots to be more cost effective, contact me via this blog and i can try to solve your process issues and problems free-of-charge.
TONY STARK WAS ABLE TO BUILD THIS IN A CAVE WITH A BOX OF SCRAPS!!!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GgEyMcXQU60
@ anon 9:39:
The tax credits you cite are STATE incentives, not city incentives. Maybe you shouldn't try to explain such "complicated partnerships" until you understand them yourself.
actually, technically they are BOTH state and city tax credits since while they are state funded they only apply to only film productions in nyc. must we play this game? really.
for example, there are sales tax exemptions that allow for film production activities/expenses that are exempt from both new york state and local NYC sales and use taxes. state and city tax credits are not necessarily mutually exclusive, my non-friend.
plus i would love to explain more "complicated partnerships" to you. i could teach you them all day long. let's keep doing this. it's fun. :)
plus i'd guess that almost all film production in new york state occurs in new york city. so whether it's state or city or both state or city, the net is the same. you know what net means right? :)
to further clarify on the point of nyc tax incentives, they must meet program and threshold requirements which for all purposes really are intended to apply to nyc productions, particularly level 2 thresholds, where a production budget must be over $15 million or is being produced by a company in which more than five percent of the beneficial ownership is owned, directly or indirectly, by a publicly traded entity.
in other words, what do you call a tax incentive that is only really applicable to NYC no matter whether the incentive is funded at the state or city level. keep in mind that state and city expenses are interchangeable to a great extent... for example, keep in mind that the MTA is a state agency but controls the NYC subway system.
pattern: come back every day and leave a half-baked post like you've been doing and i'll reply with an intelligent thoughtful response that will make you look really silly... you must really like self-torture. ;)
unfortunately for you, it does seem that gemma is quite a bit smarter than you which i think was your original salient point. well taken!
oh i also sent the link to this story to gawker's tip line. i can't wait for them to publish this entire comment trail to show how thoroughly you said anonymous were CRUSHED.
your move...
CLARK (taken aback) Well, as a matter of fact, I won't,
because Wood drastically underestimates the impact
of--
WILL "Wood drastically underestimates the impact of
social distinctions predicated upon wealth, especially
inherited wealth..." You got that from "Work in Essex
County," Page 421, right? Do you have any thoughts of
your own on the subject or were you just gonna
plagiarize the whole book for me?
Clark is stunned.
WILL Look, don't try to pass yourself off as some kind
of an intellect at the expense of my friend just to
impress these girls.
Clark is lost now, searching for a graceful exit, any exit.
actually, i take back the comment about wishing that gawker would publish this full comments trail. it's not good karma. and it's just too easy to tear you apart, anon, and i feel guilty about it. i really do. so go ahead take your very best shot and will not respond even though i know it would be so much fun to keep putting you in your place, mostly because it's so easy and the effort required is truly minimal.
"to further clarify on the point of nyc tax incentives, they must meet program and threshold requirements which for all purposes really are intended to apply to nyc productions,"
WRONG. Completely untrue and misleading. The City of New York has a very limited, highly restricted tax incentive with a small cap. It is for all intents and purposes meaningless. The State of New York has a very generous, easily achievable tax incentive with a large cap. In practical terms, Massachusetts has the most easily achievable large cap tax incentive followed by Louisiana, Connecticut, Pennsylvania then New York. All STATE incentives. NOTHING whatsoever about the NY State Tax Incentive restricts it's application to NYC.
The original argument was that Bloomberg is giving favorable treatment to filmmakers through tax credits. I have established that:
Bloomberg is not responsible for the tax credits, they are a state program.
Under Bloomberg the city has started charging production companies for permits for the first time in NYC history.
Under Bloomberg the city has started charging production companies for Police services for the first time in NYC history.
Under Bloomberg the city has started charging production companies scheduled fees to shoot in city properties for the first time in NYC history.
Those are FACTS. Feel free to try to prove any of them wrong.
ok, i try to help you a little since i'm not fundamentally a mean-spirited person. just re-read the entire discussion again. much more carefully this time. take your time this time, take deep breaths. try to ignore the easy digs against your intelligence; you only have one or two rhetorical strategies -- and you simply re-use them over and over again. for the most part in your last message, you're merely repeating yourself. try to be a little more a priori... it will help you see the world a little bit better. maybe it will make you a better person. it certainly won't make you any smarter but at least you can try to take full advantage of your limited god-given gifts in the arena of rhetoric. hopefully, you have talents that lie elsewhere. i'd guess that they're the non-verbal kind.
xxxfartsdeathbyfartsxxx
for you, dear anon...
http://laughingsquid.com/saturday-night-live-talk-show-skit-parodies-internet-comment-trolls/
ok, i have a little bit of time on my hands. so before i leave for good, i will try to help you out one more time, ok? i will go slow. and try to breathe. this will help you beyond here. so probably the best way to show you things is by revealing small but vital edits to your statements. by the way, the original argument was that you wanted to make glamma look bad because she made a mostly insignificant mistake in her statement about bloomberg giving favorable treatment to the filmmakers through tax credits.
1. Bloomberg is responsible for the tax credits, as even he claims credit for, they are in effect the result of a standard type of state-municipal partnership which is a basic floor for all city programs.
2. Under Bloomberg the city has started charging production companies nominal fees for permits for the first time in NYC history which make sense as a way of enforcing contracts and covering city administration costs.
3. Under Bloomberg the city has started charging production companies for Police services for the first time in NYC history which is a very good idea since police resources should not be used for non-essential services like film production. The police should be focused on fighting crime and enforcing civic law and order and not overseeing film shoots. This is not unfavorable to film production companies because now they can use their own film crews to oversee shoots and insult New Yorkers without a clear line of responsibility for their actions.
4. Under Bloomberg the city has started charging production companies nominal scheduled fees to shoot in city properties for the first time in NYC history which is a good idea for the same reasons as stated in #1. Further, it shows how the complexity state and municipal partnerships define tax incentives as the city has an opportunity to gain some tax revenue at the expense of state tax credits.
Now, I know you want to just repeat your rigamorole. Just be mindful that if you want to be a contrarian that's great. But if you want to support real discourse at some point you'll need to drop your pretenses, otherwise you'll just be saying the same things over and over again and no one wants to be that guy. Ok? I wish you the very best of luck in not commenting on this blog anymore. It's simply not helping you. One day you'll realize what a waste of time it is and then watch out! You might actually go outside and do something wonderful!
In other words, my facts were correct and you admit I was right?
Great, thanks.
The locations people work insane, long hours and deal with people being rude to them all day for doing their job. Maybe your wife had it coming. And way to go tattling to CBS when so many people are unemployed right now and struggling to make ends meet.
Anon @4:29 you are dead wrong, you have no idea what you are talking about. for the "record." LEMMING
@glamma. Actually you are dead wrong and have no idea what you are talking about. I'm not sure what happened to you, but you are clearly filled with a lot of hate. Many of the film crew members you "f*cking hate with such zeal" are in fact your neighbors. The East Village is full of hard working technicians who moved here long ago and were some of the people who made this neighborhood the interesting place it was, and quite frankly remains. If you believe that the people who are hired to secure parking spaces for productions (a necessary evil without which no production would be possible) do not face daily abuse from people like yourself, then you are living in your own private New York. I'm not excusing the behavior of the parking PA (not location manager) who had words with Ryan's wife (though I agree with LuxLife that we're only hearing part of the story), but the film industry is in fact filled with people just doing their jobs who are in no way being rude to anyone. I've both lived in this neighborhood and worked in the film business for over 20 years and have never had any altercation with anyone and have in fact witnessed very few real arguments beyond momentary aggravation, which is endemic to many New Yorkers. Most of the time I spend the day having my work interrupted by curious onlookers politely and, not so politely, asking what I'm doing which I and most others try to answer politely, all the while trying to complete our tasks.
So, please. stop the hate. It's going to shorten your life.
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