New demands force a walkout by the cast and crew
of the Paris studio's most popular attraction
Wednesday, July 16, 2003
by Lani Teshima, staff writer
Moteurs, Action…! Stunt Show Spectacular is the star of Walt
Disney Studios in Paris. Photo by Ian Parkinson.
“We try to annoy the boss as best as possible,
without doing unlawful things.”
Words from a dissatisfied cast member at Disney's California Adventure?
Think again — they are from a cast member in the Moteurs, Action...!
Stunt Show Spectacular show at the new Walt Disney Studios park in
Paris, in describing the mood of the cast members after a four-day strike
the show's highly skilled cast of stuntmen and performers held this past
month.
The show is “a 55-minute-long 'history of an action film shoot',”
explains the cast member. “We shoot stunts using cars, motorcycles,
burning man, height fall, window crash, truck jams, ramp jumps, etc. in
front of the audience. Then we broadcast them on a large screen and explain
some of the tricks, while the set is set up.”
A performer, surrounded by flames, skids down the pavement from his motorcycle
in this dangerous stunt in the Moteurs, Action…! Stunt Show Spectacular show. Photo © Disney.
Management approached the stuntmen and performers of the show on June
3 with an announcement: In an effort to minimize financial losses, EuroDisney
S.C.A, the park owner, was increasing the cast's workload from four days
on and three days off, to five days on and two days off.
The cast and crew had been hired to work the 4/3 format, and had signed
their contracts with this agreement. Not only did they want the three
days off in order to continue training and exercising so they could stay
in top form for the show — they also needed the days off in order
to recuperate from the dangerous and physically draining shows.
Worst of all, they were told their hours were increasing by 25 percent
— but they would not get any increase in pay.
The cast was devastated.
After more than two weeks of heated discussions among each other and
informally with management, the performers made the drastic decision of
walking out of the show on June 19.
Guests who attended Walt Disney Studios that day were told that the park's
most popular attraction was down because of technical difficulties. Those
who visited the park for the next three days—for the duration of
the strike—were offered a severely curtailed version that was put
on by the show's managers, who are not members of the union. Because this
diminished version was limited to a minimum of car acts—without the
show's regular stunt performances such as pyrotechnics, a “film team,”
or audience participation—guests were allowed to park hop to Disneyland
Paris park at 2:00 p.m. free of charge instead of having to wait until
the regular time of 5:00.
“We were hired on a basis of four days work and three days off per
week. Now, the management says, 'We lose too much money, so we rationalized
our costs. For that, they've decided that everybody, from the candy salesperson
to the artists, will work the same shifts,” said the cast member,
who spoke on the condition of anonymity. Unfortunately with the personnel
all working an extra day, there were suddenly too many people working
on the show. This has meant that many of the individuals are now spending
the whole day with little to do.
“Disney is a very peculiar enterprise, as far as I'm concerned,”
said the cast member, who describes the park managers as coming from the
hotel business, and having no background in show business. “An artist
has just as much work value as the candy salesperson for them — it's
not the shows that sell the candies, but the candies that attract the
people in the park.”
“It is the feeling we all have that our general manager, for instance,
has worked up the career ladder at Disney from being an extra in the convention
center, 12 years ago, to general manager of the most brilliant show ever
created on Earth about car and motor stunts,” he said. “[But]
she has not even a clue about show business. She just wanted the job;
she was simply a little more in the 'Disney mold' than the first general
manager we worked with to create the show.”
The first manager, he said, never liked to play “elbow games.”
For this reason, she was “perfect for the job. She was a show business
person from day one,” he said. “But she was not directing us
as a troupe of hotel extras, so she got moved [elsewhere] to a place best
suited for her, and replaced by someone capable of 'driving' us.”
That, he said, was the ambiance before the strike. The cast of stuntmen,
who are French and Belgian, and the cast of actors, who are French, German,
English, Belgian, and Quebecois, returned to work on the show after the
four-day walkout. And although EuroDisney S.C.A. did not meet their demands,
the cast is not looking for other jobs. Instead, he said, “we try
to annoy the boss as best as possible, without doing unlawful things…
and we'll see what they come up with tomorrow!”
Although the strike is over, the cast member said that other strategies
are in the works.
In our Park
Updates: Walt Disney World column on June 30, we reported that
Residential Street in the Florida Disney Studios park was shutting down
in preparation for a new attraction based on the French Moteurs, Action…!
Stunt Show Spectacular.
When the attraction opens next year in Florida, we suspect the cast and
crew of the American counterpart will work a five-day work week.
The following is the official letter submitted by the cast of the show
to park management:
Letter addressed to the Management of Parc Walt Disney
Studios
And to Managers responsable of
« Moteurs Action ! Stunt Show Spectacular » :
François Leroux
Jack Rouillé
Gaëtan Cordonnier
Evelyn De Haan
Marie-Pierre Varin
***
From the Stuntmen and Actors of
“Moteurs, Action…! Stunt Show Spectacular”
Represented by the Union Representatives of the
C.G.T Disneyland Paris :
Fabien Beiersdorff
Amadou N'Diaye
Giovanni Savoia
Steve Lowe
••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••••
Disneyland Resort Paris, 17th June 2003,
On the 3rd of June 2003, Gaëtan Cordonnier and Evelyn
DeHaan informed the Stuntmen and Actors of “Moteurs, Action…!
Stunt Show” of the change to 5 working days per week for two days
off, informing this change applicable as of the 06 July 2003, now pushed
back to the 13th July 2003.
We, the Stuntmen and Actors of “Moteurs, Action…!”,
considering this to be a substantial requalification of our work contracts
: notably an increase of 47 extra days worked per year, thus corresponding
to a reduction of our daily salary levels, would have wished to have been
consulted beforehand.
By the present letter, we wish to raise certain observations
to the Management Team of “Moteurs, Action…!”:
- For an optimal functioning of the show, and considering
in particular, its specificity, Matthew Jessner and Marie Pierre Varin
for the Actors, Jack Rouillé, Marie Pierre Varin and Madeline
Aveson-Gruber for the Stuntmen, employed us with certain working conditions.
To note and include 4 working days with 3 days off as from the 15th
February 2002, Opening Date for the show, valid whatever the amount
of daily shows performed ( 2, 3, or 4). Proof is available concerning
this point via the monthly payslips.
- Outside of the financial losses that this change will
provoke for each concerned, the personal life of each member of the
Cast is also considerably altered — reorganisation of the family
situation for those with children, extra costs linked to working and
eating 47 extra days per year, and for some, even being obliged to move
house.
- The Stuntmen and Actors are in common unanimous agreement
that the particular and unique nature of the show “Moteurs, Action…!”
renders entirely necessary the need to benefit from three days off per
week. This is based on the level of risks taken, the increased danger
levels, the elevated noise levels on stage and backstage, and also the
atmospheric pollution levels due to the usage of vehicles, motorbikes
and pyrotechnic effects in the show.
Is it necessary for us to remind the Management of the unfortunate accidents
that occurred during the rehearsal period and also during the show?
The Management informs us that absenteeism levels for the summer period
of last year were as high as 30%. However, we have good reason to fear
that this level could be seriously increased if the new working organisation
plan would be in place.
The sole interest of the Walt Disney Studios seems to be that of ensuring
the quality of the best show on the Resort ( 95 to 98% of satisfaction
according to Guest Surveys). The same quality of the show “Moteurs,
Action…!” depends on our performance, and the impending exhaustion
of the teams already present coupled with the absence of correct rehearsal
periods can not be considered favourably to maintain this level of quality
or the safety of those in the show.
- The nature of our previously established work contracts
as Stuntmen or as Actors engaged our talents on a job-by-job, daily,
by show, or by presentation basis only. We deplore the usage of clock-in
machines so to control our investment in the show, qualified in minutes,
something that in terms of “show business” is an aberration.
We have all proven, at numerous occasions our level of professional
investment in our show- “Moteurs, Action…!”:
- Returning to work on days off to replace missing
Artists
- Full presence of the entire team on days affected
by national strike movements.
- Active participation and assistance in the training
of new Cast
- Immediate adaptation and reaction to last minute
changes in scheduling or in the show due to technical or mechanical
recurring problems.
- The majority of the Stuntmen and Actors of “Moteurs,
Action…!” benefited from a system of social benefits known
as “intermittence du spectacle”, which we have surrendered
to participate in the show “Moteurs, Action…!”. In exchange,
Disneyland Resort Paris guaranteed a full time contract, based on four
days of work with three days off per week.
Outside of the time necessary to recuperate from the show in itself,
these three days are imperative to maintain our professional sporting
levels, in races, extra training courses, and general fitness.
With only two days off per week, the possibility of maintaining the
high levels required for the show would no longer be possible. In the
short and long term, this would be non-beneficial to us, nor the general
quality of our performances, as Artists of “Moteurs, Action…!”.
- Since the start of the show “Moteurs, Action…”,
no show has ever been cancelled due to the absence of Actors or Stuntmen
alike. We consider that the increase of the daily staffing levels, which
remains to be justified by Management, would lead the Management to
engage in the near future in possible non-desired transfers, even to
a forced redundancy plan.
For all these reasons, and after consultation with the
fifty — three (53) Stuntmen and Actors, we demand the renegotiation
of our working contracts. We are in unanimous agreement to the pursuit
of the amendments of our working contracts so to include the following
mentions:
- Four days of work and three days of rest per week,
taking into consideration the particular nature of the show “Moteurs,
Action…”
- The contractual agreement is valid for the show known
as “Moteurs, Action…! Stunt Show Spectacular”, and this
show alone.
- In the context that a Stuntmen and/or Comedian is
solicited for participation in a “Special Event” outside of
his/her contractual requirements linked to “Moteurs, Action…!”
planned four weeks in advance, that he/she receives a supplementary
remuneration in agreement with Disneyland Resort Paris and the Artist
concerned.
Until the negotiation of the above mentioned points does
not lead to a point of common agreement between Management and the Stuntmen
and Comedian Teams of “Moteurs, Action…! Stunt Show Spectacular”,
we reserve the right to react accordingly.
In a France on strike, it is with regret that we take
this decision, especially considering the combined efforts of all parties
in making the show the success that it is.
We wish to remind Management that we have no extra demand,
except the desire to maintain our already-obtained advantages, and that
these advantages are marked in our working contracts.
We hold in our possession the legal codes and medical
documents relative to our reclamations.
Sincerely,
The Stuntmen and Actors of “Moteurs, Action…!
Stunt Show Spectacular”
|
Contact Lani at here.
|
