As agent-less writers try to negotiate their own TV pilot deals with the help of their managers and attorneys, the WGA has put out a guide to the compensation they might expect for writing and producing those pilots. The guide is based on a 2018 survey the guild conducted of nearly 1,000 members who provided details about their pilot deals. The WGA and the Association of Talent Agents will return to the bargaining table on Friday in an attempt to work out an agreement so that writers can return to the agents they fired en mass on April 13 who refuse to sign the guild’s Code of Conduct.

“As we head into network development season, the guild has prepared information on key pilot deal terms for guild members and their representatives for reference when making deals,” the guild told its members tonight. “Adjusting that information to reflect the annual minimum increases in the minimum basic agreement, the tables below provide key compensation terms, including pilot script fees, pilot producing fees, episodic fees in the event the pilot is picked up to series, and series sales bonus terms, for all half-hour and one-hour pilot deals.”

Broadcast Network Pilots

As for broadcast network pilots, the guild said that writers “should be aware that the medians for pilot scripts and producing fees are higher than those reported for all markets.”

“When all agencies agree to provide the guild with member contracts and data, as Verve and agencies signed to the Code of Conduct have done, we will be able to offer even more robust and complete information on development deal terms to members on an annual basis,” the guild said.