Oh, good. I'm really glad you front-paged this.

The One True b!X | December 10, 12:01 CET

Fantastic. I'm watching this while I should be on my way to work.

Caroline | December 10, 12:03 CET

Meanwhile, I just came across this item (unsure if it showed up in a prior thread, but I don't remember seeing it) which includes this: "When the first group walked up the street to Fox at 10am, the strike captains clapped and cried, 'Look how many people are coming!' and that was a fraction of who eventually showed up."

The One True b!X | December 10, 12:18 CET

I was there when that happened, and the emotion on the face of the woman who said it was one of pure, unabashed joy. It was truly priceless.

lexigeek | December 10, 12:30 CET

Yeah, me too Caroline (only just caught the tram). That is a tremendously cool little doc. The woman that wrote for "The Black Donnellys" was obviously choked up, bless her.

(and just to lower the tone, is there a way Juliet Landau's legs could be longer ? *is jealous of zz9* ;)

Saje | December 10, 13:25 CET

Terrific clip -- and on a more shallow note, Captain Tightpants looked really, really good! (Even though I hear he's sick.)

Chelleatrix | December 10, 13:26 CET

Heh, personally I thought he looked like shit, poor fella's clearly as sick as a dog ;).

(absolutely no offence to Nathan intended BTW, that makes him all the more heroic just for turning up)

Saje | December 10, 13:29 CET

You know, "First March" is an important way to phrase it. With the AMPTP storming out of talks last Friday because the writers dared not to drop SIX points of negotiation, then planting even more lies than usual in the press (Daily Variety's story on the breakdown of talks reads like libel, IMO), this is going to be a loooooooong strike. We might need to have another shindig sometime in the New Year, if you ask me.

swanland | December 10, 14:04 CET

Really nice video. Really nice it featured some non-ME writers who were also striking there with the ME group.

Hope Nathan gets better, he looks sick, and was really making a great effort to be there.

Numfar PTB | December 10, 14:05 CET

Great video! I'm glad this was only part 1.

I'll have to re-watch it when I'm not so tired, and see if a glimpse of me is in it.

electricspacegirl | December 10, 14:43 CET

It was awesome to see the Bedlam Bards in this video. Right after the march, they came to Mesa Az and did a benefit for us. Helped the Az Browncoats raise over $700 for St. Judes. Thanks guys! No power in the Verse can stop you!

madmolly | December 10, 17:00 CET

Beautiful.

Pointy | December 10, 17:55 CET

That's amazing. I love the marshaling of the troops at the beginning.

Sunfire | December 10, 17:57 CET

Hey, I was there and Nathan looked positively handsome. Maybe the video didn't catch him right, but in person... hotness, and he did not look sick from what I saw. Just tall, chisled, bit of stuble growing in a GQ cool kinda way...

Oh, I'm back.

Anyway... awesome day, just amazing. So glad to have been there to add one more to the ranks of fans who get what this is about. Being there meant a lot to me as I was able to physically participate by adding my walking, shouting and sign carrying talents in addition to some rather passionate online postings made around the boards. Plus, seeing all the writers, directors and actors who have made art and enriched our lives all coming together was a sight to see.

Considering how the AMPTP is continuing to foster yet more levels of greed and shortsightedness, I'm totally there for more ways to aid this fight.

11thHour | December 10, 20:29 CET

Great documentary - well thought out questions and nicely put together. Roll on part two I say!

The Do That Girl | December 10, 20:30 CET

Yeah, watching Lexigeek command the troops was awesome. Good job, man.

Caroline | December 10, 20:34 CET

(and just to lower the tone, is there a way Juliet Landau's legs could be longer ? *is jealous of zz9* ;)

I would have talked to her but she grew up in England and so wouldn't have been bowled over by my accent, and that's pretty much all I got...
She was hot and she did a lot of marching.

zz9 | December 10, 20:38 CET

As someone who couldn't make it to LA Friday, thanks so much for putting the video together. It was awesome!

kvmc | December 10, 20:40 CET

What a wonderful video. I was alternating between tears and smiles throughout, all in empathy with the strikers and their emotions. Well done -- and I look forward to part 2.

palehorse | December 10, 21:25 CET

Very touching. I'm proud to be a part of this absolutely AMAZING group of people.

mister0 | December 10, 21:32 CET

I absolutely love this video, I cried all through it, and I can't wait for the sequel er part 2!
The AMPTP is spending a fortune on a high profile PR firm, and walking out of negotiations demanding that the writers take ALL their demands off the table (WTF? That is called negotiation? In what universe?). I felt compelled to write to the PR firm, which is:
Fabiani & Lehane LLC
Mark Fabiani’s direct line (858) 551-2818

Mercury Public Affairs
515 Flower Street
Los Angeles, CA. 90017
P 949 387-3779
F 949 387-3309

(I sent copies to Nick Counter and the members of the AMPTP)
and I told them, in part:
. I actually hope that you are really working for the networks and studios who make up the AMPTP because I do not believe they are being well represented by the gamesmanship style of ‘negotiation’ engaged in by Nick Counter and the AMPTP. The large ads full of half truths, misinformation, and fuzzy math are not fooling anyone. We’ve all seen the documentary about Enron, and no one is impressed by people who are tying to be ‘The Smartest Guys in the Room’ at the expense of all fairness, or concern about the lives of other people.

There is probably no chance that anyone reads the letters, but they do make me feel better!

embers | December 10, 21:53 CET

I have to agree with 11th Hour about Nathan. To me, he looked quite well on Friday and happy to be there, no signs of the illness others are reporting in Internet posts here and there. On one of the laps around the picketing oval, I overheard Nathan for about 2 seconds while he was chatting with Summer, and he didn't sound sick, either, just sounded like himself. Did I mention he looked stunningly handsome in direct sunlight? That, too. In fact, all our actors and actresses were overwhelmingly pretty in person. The writers as well. Loni Perestere was cute also. Hey, come to think of it, the fans were bringing the pretty, too! We are a handsome lot, make no mistakes. ;)

But I would say that from what I saw, Nathan was perfectly fine, not under the weather at all. Can we put this rumor to rest?

swanland | December 10, 23:02 CET

So great. Very well made. I just had a huge smile on my face the whole time I watched it. It just makes me so happy to be apart of this universe. Can't wait for the next parts.

hitnrun017 | December 10, 23:56 CET

Great video! I tried to get photos of as many different people as possible. If you see yourself in one, please add a note or comment if you can.

My Flickr Pix

danregal | December 10, 23:59 CET

Some fab pics of Amy Acker's new hair there (which I adore!), James!

That darn Ninja Turtle I had with me is such an attention hog, he keeps appearing everywhere!

RachVG | December 11, 00:28 CET

swanland, it could simply be that Nathan just is so very pretty that even a deathly illness wouldn't be enough to bring him down to the same level as us mere mortals. Seriously, I don't know if he was sick or not, but he definitely deserves major props for coming out if he was. Not that everyone who was there doesn't... Props and a half?

Wonderful video. It really captures the emotion of the event.

Lady Brick | December 11, 00:54 CET

(Here's an email we got at Fans4Writers.com from the video's creator - he wanted to thank the folks at whedonesque for their reception of his vid.)

Hello Whedoneque,

I would like to say thanks for the kind comments you've all written
about 'First March Of The Mutant Enemy'. Being there for the day was
an extreme privilege. I filmed with the intent of trying to put those
of you who couldn't make it to join the Fox picket right in the heart
of the event. My little camera didn't stand up too well to the wind,
the sun, the noise from the waterfall next to the picket line, and the
car horns...but you've all been very kind not to mention any of that.
:)

I did want to say that I called it 'First March...' because, having
participated, I think that there should be more events of this kind in
the future. Right now, we're at a point where the strike is still
fairly new. Our support will become increasingly important as time
rolls on. I humbly submit, if you haven't yet gone to visit a line,
and you get the chance, do so. These are great, creative people who
are in need of the support. I picketed for less than a day...it's
hard to describe the physical effect picketing takes out of one. It
was tough for the space of a day. I can't imagine doing it for five
weeks in a row.

It was a pleasure to meet so many of you on Friday. I haven't had
much time to go over the footage for Part 2, but I can tell you I'm
pretty sure it will be more atmospheric than Part 1. I spent most of
the second half of the day actually walking the line, which meant
fewer interviews. There's also a little footage of the fan picnic at
the end of the day where Mssrs. Whedon and Minnear showed up after a
long day to say thanks to all who participated, so if you were there,
have a peek and pick yourself out of the crowd.

It was great to meet everyone; I'm new to the Whedon phenom... just
started watching Firefly in earnest a few weeks ago. I was impressed
by the great sense of humor and the extremely giving nature of all who
showed up; indeed, you are, united, a strong community. Thank you for
your kind words.

It made my day to have you folks take a look at my little movie.
Consider it my own small effort to take the word to the people.

"When ya can't run, ya crawl. And when ya can't crawl..."

Well, you know the rest.

Best,
AlphaTone

QuoterGal | December 11, 01:37 CET

I filmed with the intent of trying to put those of you who couldn't make it to join the Fox picket right in the heart of the event.

Mission accomplished, no messing. That's exactly what it did AlphaTone, we who are unable to picket salute you ;).

Thanks man.

Saje | December 11, 01:47 CET

Thank you so so much AlphaTone. I've been reading all about it & looking at the pictures, but in the end, there's nothing like a good TV show :-). It was just great to see this.

Also, have to agree with everyone awed by the extreme good-lookingness-in-spite-of-sickness of NF. How can he not be a major Hollywood star? I just don't understand.

jcs | December 11, 02:07 CET

Yeah, I think this was a close to being there as the internet could bring us. Great footage, excellent editing. A little weepiness on my part, which I'll tell you is hard to get.

Sunfire | December 11, 02:12 CET

this is an awesome vid and i eagerly anticipate the next one! and thank you for not making me look like a total ass-hat (evidently this is not the vid where i started yelling and flailing, which is a good thing).

and yes, amy acker's hair was adorable! i'm not sure if nathan was sick or not, i was still stuck on how tall he was...

cymerin | December 11, 02:15 CET

(evidently this is not the vid where i started yelling and flailing, which is a good thing)

I want to see this one.

The One True b!X | December 11, 02:39 CET

Great vid -- despite my non-appearance, which was probably fortunate from a technical and aesthetic point of view -- but reading the comments got me peeved. 11th was there? And I didn't meet her? Dammit!

OK, that's it. Now we have to do it again.

C. A. Bridges | December 11, 02:42 CET

Another picket/picnic sounds good to me--maybe I'll actually be able to go next time.

'Course, I'd much prefer AMPTP to come to its collective senses and quickly reach a fair and equitable contract with the writers, but I'm not sanguine about that prospect...

kvmc | December 11, 03:03 CET

Those who don't want to click through several hundred pictures to find out what's so adorable about Amy Acker's hair can start here.

And on the subject of hair, it turns out Morena doesn't even need any. And every inch of Juliet Landau, both hair and non-hairy, is super-cool and would make an excellent housedoll. Or doll-keeper. (Dollmother? Dollmistress?) And that redhead with the web series is awesome too and I'd look up her name if I hadn't worn out both index fingers clicking around for adorable hair. (Hers: fabulous as well.)

I believe I may have wandered off-point.

Pointy | December 11, 03:19 CET

Thank you for a great video. I couldn't make the strike and seeing it makes me hope that a New York one will be planned.

DavidB | December 11, 03:49 CET

The red-headed Guild Gal is Felicia Day, and she was one of the most assiduous actor-marchers. She did not let up, and since she isn't as well-known as some of the other folks, she wasn't getting hit up as much to stop for interviews and photo ops, so she just kept marching and marching... I was totally impressed by her perseverance.

And can I say about Juliet Landeau? Not only did she look wonderful from head to toe, she smelled delightful, too. When I first got there, and she walked by me, this sweet, elusive kindof fragrance wafted by with her.

We were all kindof worried about her marching for so long in her heels, but if she says they're comfy, allrighty then...

ET: fix spelling. I'm forgetting how...

[ edited by QuoterGal on 2007-12-11 00:59 ]

QuoterGal | December 11, 03:58 CET

Home from MEDay and just now finally getting to catch up on posts. I've apparently got the "Con Crud" that began with Cedric and Hawke and was passed along to my husband and myself. Blech. At least I have something in common with Nathan, I guess.

Anyhow, good vid. Thanks for putting it together, guy!

MadMolly - a quick note. You said, "It was awesome to see the Bedlam Bards in this video." Well, it wasn't actually the Bedlam Bards. It was Cedric and Julie (me). ;) Hawke was sick in bed. I put together lyric sheets of the ME Day theme songs, handed them out to our strikers, and Cedric and I bellowed them out as best as possible. Lemme tell you, singing while marching a picket line is more difficult than you might imagine.

In any case, it all went well, and I'm so glad I was able to be a part of it!

Julesong | December 11, 05:38 CET

Julesong, you, Cedric and the other singers did a great job. I admire your perseverance.
And I applaud AlphaTone's editing skills. He cut me off just as I started to meander. (Some 5 words into my reply!)

Lioness | December 11, 06:01 CET

AlphaTone- what car honks? What waterfall? :)

Julesong- I didn't see Hawke, just said the collective name as I did see Joyce (Cedric's wife and muse). And at the group dinner Saturday night, Cedic had said nothing about singing while they walked. So I was so very pleasantly surprised to see him strumming and singing. And especially the new song "Freedom Costs".

I really am jealous of all who attended.

madmolly | December 11, 06:38 CET

So, does anyone know who the very British fellow was who walked with Nicholas Brendon for a while and with Joss? He was all buttoned up and had a Burberry coat and an umbrella.

Lioness | December 11, 06:53 CET

Amazing video, thank you for posting. So proud to be a Browncoat.

Oh, and I wasn't sure what thread to post this in, but there is another great internet campaign floating featuring actors supporting the writers called "Speechless." It's a collection of shorts showing different takes on film without writers. #14 + #16 were cracking me up!

http://speechlesswithoutwriters.com/

Lunakitty | December 11, 07:06 CET

Rumor control, trying for more truthiness in reporting: James Gunn definitely was NOT at our picket, even though he has been an ardent supporter of the WGA Strike. (I suspect that the rumor started when someone excited to see J. August Richards called him "Gunn" instead of, you know, J. August Richards. Understandable!)

And, perhaps it's true, perhaps Nathan's pretty outweighs the effect of any virus in the world. ;)

AlphaTone, you are a wise one (as well as a wonderful videographer). There must be more picket/picnics, I say! :)

swanland | December 11, 07:06 CET

Another Brit? He must have been hot in a Burbury, I was wearing a T-shirt and a shirt and was warm.

zz9 | December 11, 07:23 CET

British? Burberry? Brolly? Clearly there were many viewers and one, um, watcher.

Chelleatrix | December 11, 07:34 CET

MadMolly - Joyce was back at the hotel sick in bed during the picket, too. Her evil twin must've accidentally gotten on film. Sheesh, they've gotta be more careful about that... ;)

It really was a wonderful feeling to be able to picket with everybody. I restrained myself from squeeing, didn't ask for autographs or photos (well, did one with Tim when he *wasn't* marching), as did most everybody. It was truly unifying.

At the picnic, though, I was finally able to personally give Joss a copy of Big Damn Chefs and he said that yes, indeed, he'd heard about the book, which made me no end of proud. :) B!x took a good photo of him with it under his arm as he made his way away from the gathering. :)

And Lioness: "Julesong, you, Cedric and the other singers did a great job. I admire your perseverance." Thank you! I think the music added a special sumthin' to the picket line, for sure.

Update: MadMolly... I think I just figured out something. The person who I believe you thought was Joyce beside Cedric at the march is, in all likelihood, actually me. We're both short, large women, although Joyce is prettier than myself. :) The short, large woman walking and singing alongside him is me - I was wearing an orange-ish jacket, red scarf, and have short blondish red hair.

[ edited by Julesong on 2007-12-11 05:26 ]

[ edited by Julesong on 2007-12-11 11:18 ]

Julesong | December 11, 08:24 CET

Ah, Julesong, I was so tired at La Cantina, I forgot to mention that I have the cookbook, and it's excellent. I'm sure Joss will enjoy it. It goes to some strange places, but that's what you'd expect from a space ship cookbook.

dreamlogic | December 11, 08:34 CET

As someone who participated in the ME Strike event (you can briefly see me twice in the background of this video), I would very much be interested in another Mutant Enemy Day down in L.A., especially if the strike goes on for a while, and also given the positive feedback we've received so far from the strikers. It seems to have been a great success.

Is it too soon about thinking about coordinating something like this again? It would be a great opportunity for people who couldn't make the first one to attend and show their support. I just thought I'd suggest it now, and put that out there. Something to consider for the future anyway.

[ edited by ElectricSpaceGirl on 2007-12-11 06:10 ]

electricspacegirl | December 11, 09:08 CET

If there is another Mutant Enemy Day on the picket lines, perhaps there can be some coordinating effort for finding out-of-towners a place to stay, locals sharing floor space for staying overnight and such? I might be able to afford to get airfare for another trip down, but paying for hotel rooms cost as much or more. Even if it meant floor space at somewhere like a church basement or school - it could be a big Browncoat sleepover. ;)

Julesong | December 11, 11:54 CET

Julesong- you are correct. It is you I see. And you are not an evil twin! :)

If there is a second ME day, I will be there. I have the perfect shoes for marching. And a red shirt that says Crew member #6.

madmolly | December 11, 16:45 CET