Canada’s meeting place for freelance writers and creators

Established 2010

Last week Peter Driftmier's Story Board post about the death of his brother on a factual TV shoot got a lot of attention from people in the television production industry. Tweets about the post came from all corners of Canada, as well as the United States and England.

It seems the story struck a nerve with those who work in television production. Sadly, another fatal accident this week has once again drawn attention to unsafe working conditions for film and television workers. In a post called "We're Just Making Movies,' filmmaker Zachary Goldberg describes a film shoot near Savannah, Georgia where 27-year-old Sarah Jones, 2nd AC on the set of Midnight Rider, was killed on a train bridge. Reports out this week indicate that the production company may not have had permission to shoot on the railroad tracks.

In his blog post, Goldberg says that those in charge of a film or television production must take responsibility for ensuring the safety of their crew. In an industry where most crew members work on a freelance or contract-by-contract basis, it is rare for workers to speak up about safety concerns.

"Someone should have had her back and didn’t," says Goldberg.

Here in Canada, Peter Driftmier's post is still attracting attention. Driftmier has been interviewed about the post for CBC Radio and has been approached for an interview on Q with Jian Ghomeshi.

The second in the Canadian Media Guild's Freelance Friday workshop series is coming up next week in Toronto. This time, the topic is Freelance Contracts: How to value your work, get it in writing and get paid. CMG staff rep Keith Maskell will explore the nuts and bolts of freelance contracts and will give participants the tools they need to…
Once a week, we gather stories about the media business, journalism, writing, publishing, and freelancing—with a Canadian focus—and share them in Off the Wire. Who needs a water cooler?From Canada: Canadian University Press in financial crisis [J-Source] Self-publishing primer [PWAC Toronto] Bloomberg expands in Canada [J-Source] How to keep…
by Lesley Evans Ogden [caption id="attachment_8146" align="alignright" width="341"] Clockwise from top left: Anne Casselman, Ann Marie Redmond, Paolo Pietropaolo, Don Genova, Jay Ingram[/caption]The start of a new year is an interesting time. It's a period of looking both forward and back. For me, the dawn of 2014 marked a phase of furious…
by Peter Driftmier[caption id="attachment_8159" align="alignright" width="344"] Peter Driftmier with a newspaper report about the death of his brother, John.[/caption]One year ago, my talented and beautifully spirited brother, John Driftmier, died on the job shooting adventure factual TV. It was by no means an isolated accident, though a fatal…
Once a week, we gather stories about the media business, journalism, writing, publishing, and freelancing—with a Canadian focus—and share them in Off the Wire. Who needs a water cooler?From Canada: Writing resources roundup [PWAC Toronto] The Business of Freelance Writing: The Query Letter [Paul Lima] Top ten checklist for contracting…
by Rachel SandersHappy Valentine's Day, freelancers! On this day of homage to all things amorous, let's take a minute to think about love of our work. There was a brilliant article in Jacobin Magazine last month that scrutinized the popular mantra "Do What You Love" -- advice that's been offered to job seekers by everyone from Oprah Winfrey to…
This series of posts by the Born Freelancer shares personal experiences and thoughts on issues relevant to freelancers. Have something to add to the conversation? Your input is welcome in the comments.   I still use old-school email to promote myself to potential new clients as well as for keeping in touch with select past clients. They…
[View the story "Tax matters with Sunny Widerman" on Storify]
Freelance writers, photographers and web developers are advised that a Toronto-based startup magazine is behind on payments to its contributors.The Revelation Magazine, an online publication that bills itself as a "non-denomination Christian lifestyle magazine," published one issue in December before suspending publication in mid-January. More than…

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