Contract 18

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The contract 18 or contract 2018 is a voluntary commitment by German scriptwriters , which was signed by over 200 renowned German scriptwriters in June 2018. The authors undertake to only work on projects that allow them creative control and a say in the direction.

prehistory

On May 24, 2018, around 30 scriptwriters will meet at the Savoy Hotel in Berlin to found the “Kontrakt 18” initiative.

The trigger cited was the protest of co-signatory Kristin Derfler "against the anti-authoring practice of inviting the German Television Prize ", the changes that followed quickly, and the resulting increased self-confidence of the scriptwriters. The authors Kristin Derfler, Orkun Ertener , Annette Hess and Volker A. Zahn then founded the “Kontrakt '18” initiative in January 2018. At a large writers' meeting in the Savoy Hotel in Berlin on May 24th, 2018, which was attended by around thirty scriptwriters from all over Germany, the "Contract '18" was fine-tuned and jointly adopted. The scriptwriters' demands were published on June 9th, "Spiegel online" calls the initiative a "revolt of the authors", for the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung it is a "revolt in the 'developing country'".

content

The contract states that the signing scriptwriters will only sign contracts if the following is guaranteed:

  1. The author is responsible for the book up to the final version. All edits to the book must be authorized by the author.
  2. The author has a say in the selection of the director. The decision on the cast of the director is made by mutual agreement.
  3. The author is invited to the reading samples.
  4. The author is granted the right to see and comment on the patterns and the rough cut at the earliest possible time. The author is invited to the rough cut acceptance.
  5. The author is named in all publications in connection with the film project (press releases, program information, posters, etc.) and invited to all project-related public appointments.
  6. The signatories undertake to only accept orders for book revisions (rewrites, polishing, etc.) if they have previously agreed with their colleagues who are leaving the project.

Signatories and reactions

Numerous well-known authors signed the voluntary commitment. These include: Rolf Basedow , Bora Drachtkin , Anika Decker , Kristin Derfler , Doris Dörrie , Orkun Ertener , Annette Hess , Christian Jeltsch , Andreas Knaup , Arne Nolting , David Safier , Jan-Martin Scharf , Dorothee Schön , Marc Terjung , Ruth Toma , David Ungureit , Thorsten Wettcke , Marco Wiersch , Anna Winger as well as Volker A. Zahn and Eva Zahn .

According to co-initiator Volker A. Zahn, “Contract 18 is a political signal that is of course all the more conspicuous the more well-known the signatories are.” It is not a “revolution or a declaration of war”, but a “constructive one Offer. ”“ The progressive and clever creative partners from the areas of production, editing and directing, ”adds Eva Zahn,“ have no problems with our catalog of requirements. These people have long known that it is time to work on an equal footing with the authors. "

The authors' initiative “quickly found well-known supporters”, writes the Berlin newspaper “ tageszeitung ”. "Actress Maria Furtwängler and her colleague Henning Baum welcome the request, as does director Christian Schwochow , who, together with headwriter Oliver Kienle, was responsible for the series success ' Bad Banks ' on ZDF." a. the directors Dietrich Brüggemann , Uwe Janson and Torsten C. Fischer .

The Association of German Scriptwriters (VDD) welcomed “Kontrakt '18” and announced that the initiative was helping the film industry get going and criticizing the working conditions of the authors. In an official statement, the Bundesverband Regie e. V. (BVR) supports the contract 18 initiative of the screenwriters and "supports the demand that the director and screenplay as authors of their essential roles in the making of films be given appropriate recognition."

For Annette Hess , the demands in the form of a self-commitment are a reflection of the lack of trust in the authors. In anticipation of fundamental changes by the director, scripts would only be created “as sole ruler over the production” in the “service according to regulations”. This is one reason for the German productions falling in comparison with international quality series.

On the occasion of the first anniversary of the founding of Contract 18, it became known that in the first twelve months after the voluntary commitment came into force, more than a hundred film and series contracts were signed in accordance with the provisions of Contract 18. In addition, the initiative has moved almost all of the major broadcasters to reconsider their guidelines on how to involve authors. The number of signatories rose from around 90 at the beginning to over 200 authors. According to Volker A. Zahn, there has never been “a broader public appreciation of the creative power and importance of screenwriters in Germany. And never before has the fundamental role of the authors in the creation of high-quality film and series projects been discussed so intensely. ”And Annette Hess is certain:“ The change in the market due to streaming services means that there is a new community of interests for the authors who create content. Who want to take creative responsibility for the productions. "

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Website of the authors' initiative. In: kontrakt18.org, accessed on July 30, 2018 (message: "July 30, 2018: After publication and overwhelming press coverage, 194 authors have signed.").
  2. ↑ a b c d contract '18: "Series authors are today's novelists". In: ZEIT ONLINE. June 9, 2018, accessed June 11, 2018 .
  3. ↑ a b Alexander Krei: Screenwriters Association welcomes the “Kontrakt '18” initiative. In: DWDL.de. June 10, 2018, accessed June 11, 2018 .
  4. ↑ Carolin Ströbele: German TV Prize: Uprising of the storytellers. In: zeit.de. January 26, 2018, accessed June 11, 2018 .
  5. ↑ Jens Mayer: Because they are worth it. More control and co-determination rights: Numerous scriptwriters have come together to form the “Kontrakt 18” initiative. In: taz.de. June 9, 2018, accessed July 27, 2018.
  6. ↑ Jens Mayer: “Contract 18” applies. German scriptwriters demand cooperation on equal terms. The producers are ready to discuss. In: taz.de. July 4, 2018, accessed July 27, 2018.
  7. ↑ Contract 18 initiative of the screenwriters. Fair contractual conditions only in cooperation between the director and scriptwriter. In: regieverband.de. June 18, 2018, accessed June 18, 2018.
  8. ↑ Hans Hoff : “A success, but only the beginning”. In one year of “Contract 18”, over 100 contracts were concluded according to the specifications of the signatories. The aim is to improve appreciation and pay, but also more participation. In: Süddeutsche Zeitung . June 28, 2019, accessed July 23, 2019 .
  9. ↑ Frank Heine: Contract 18: "We hit a nerve". Annette Hess and Volker A. Zahn are among the co-founders of the scriptwriting initiative. In conversation with Blickpunkt: Film is about the first successes of “Kontrakt 18”, new ways of working with broadcasters, the absurdity of power struggles, a supposed black list and the tense relationship with the VDD. In: Blickpunkt: Film . July 18, 2019, accessed July 23, 2019 .