Support Entertainment Workers

April 2nd ,2020 4pm: we are living in extraordinary times. I’m sure you know that. The election news that was once so prominent you couldn’t escape it, has fallen by the wayside. Covid-19 now blankets our tv screens. The evolving nature of the pandemic throughout the world has been astounding. Countless people are out of work, many are ill, some have died, many are recovering- we can all be thankful for that and for the countless frontline workers doing their best to save lives and not get sick themselves.

Many lives are changing, not least noticeably those in film, television, and live events. News casts are being brought to your tv screens from anchor’s own homes, the Olympics have been postponed, all major sports leagues have been postponed or canceled, Broadway and countless theaters across the country are closed, and movie theater doors have shut. Thank God for Netflix ammirite?

Unfortunately, the job losses and uncertainty this has brought the industry abound. While it is fun to mock big name actors singing ‘Imagine’ at us from their multi-million-dollar homes, it is easy to forget the many names that appear in the credits that you only sit through during Marvel movies. These workers in: film, television, theater, sports, and news, are the backbone of the industry. As they say, there are no small roles.

It is wonderful to see the likes of Mark Cuban paying arena staff, the MLB working out a way to pay their stadium vendors and trading making jerseys for masks, rookie Zion Williamson paying the Pelicans arena staff, etc.etc., but just like many stadium operations staff, media and theatrical professionals are often freelancers. Those lucky enough to be staff may be ok, for now. I count myself among them, I’m getting paid, I haven’t been laid off and I am beyond grateful that my company is finding a way to keep me employed. We’re seeing humanity right now, from companies big and small. We are getting to see CEOs’ and owners’ true colors in how they are treating their staff and what they are doing to protect people. Some are performing spectacularly (see Mark Cuban), some are not. But for those freelancers in the world, unemployment checks may not be enough, for the many folks not reporting to work, uncertain of when their next shift will come times are scary. I’ve seen a lot of Go Fund Me pages for workers in this situation, be they bartenders, hairdressers, musicians, or camera operators I hope you’ll help support them. Find a local go fund me for your favorite type of entertainment worker and give what you can. Gofundme.com

On the lighter side of Covid-19, there are so many people letting their creative juices flow and it is inspiring. Opportunities are always around you, even in the darkest of times and it is great to see so many people making the most out of their quarantine time with creativity. Keep it up, we’ll be ok!

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