Jon Avnet (l) and Todd Holland, co-chairs of the DGA Negotiations Committee
LOS ANGELES --
The Directors Guild of America has concluded a tentative agreement on the terms of a new three-year collective bargaining agreement with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers.
Negotiations, which began on February 10, concluded March 4 and were led by Negotiations Committee co-chairs Jon Avnet and Todd Holland, and the Guild’s chief negotiator, national executive director Russell Hollander.
Details of the tentative agreement will be released after the agreement has been submitted to the Guild’s National Board for approval at a special board meeting scheduled for Saturday, March 7, 2020.
The DGA’s current contracts expire on June 30, 2020.
Abdullah Saeed wasn't looking to write a groundbreaking comedy. He was just looking for a job.
The "Deli Boys" creator wrote a sample script in 2019, hoping to secure a staff position in a writers' room after transitioning from journalism to screenwriting. ("Nobody was buying my documentaries," jokes Saeed.) He had recently co-written a script for a feature film, but needed something to showcase his own voice.
Saeed sat down to write without worry about representing his entire community, and decided to freely create a show that was as lighthearted as he is.
"The pressure was off because I didn't think it was going to be a TV show. I was just like, 'OK, whatever, I think that's funny,'" said the Pakistani American writer.
"Deli Boys" soon landed in front of television writers and producers Jenni Konner ("Girls") and Nora Silver ("Single Drunk Female"), who immediately wanted to do more than hire Saeed. They wanted to develop the half-hour pilot and bring it to life.
"It was so unique and so funny and fresh, and (there is) nothing like that in the world, ever," said Konner who later brought on showrunner Michelle Nader ("2 Broke Girls").
The 10-episode Hulu original comedy presented by Onyx Collective stars Saagar Shaikh ("Ms. Marvel"), Asif Ali ("WandaVision") and Poorna Jagannathan. Premiering today (3/6), "Deli Boys" follows two Pakistani American brothers, Raj and Mir — played by Shaikh and Ali — who lose their comfortable lifestyles after their convenience store mogul father (Iqbal Theba) dies unexpectedly from a golfing accident. Raj and Mir must now work together to take over the family business, but soon learn they are in way over their heads when they discover the stores were a front for cocaine... Read More
