Below the Line, Above the Line, and A Warning
Behind the scenes of film journalism at Below the Line and Above the Line.
I don't know how long this link will stay active but my colleague, Edward Douglas, finally went public about what's been happening with both Above the Line and Below the Line.
The past few months have been especially frustrating as a freelance film journalist. I was silent after Jeff Sneider tweeted his frustration a few months ago but that silence came out of respect to Ed as he was working his tuchas off to get the writing staff paid. I didn't say anything in public when I saw the screenshots--I'm sorry, Jeff--but Patrick Graham's antisemitic language was disturbing and it needs to be called out for what it is. Trust me, I won't be working for him again.
Ed and Jeff both made me a better writer especially in their editing. I have a bad habit of keeping in the small talk when I transcribe interviews but they knew when to take it out. I've even become a better interviewer in general as a result of writing for BTL and ATL. There are now questions that have become standard in my interviews with DPs, editors, and composers--three BTL crew positions that have more or less become a specialty of mine. I've interviewed production and costume designers, too, but the other positions are among my favorite positions to interview.
I hope someone buys BTL/ATL from Patrick, pays the writing staff, and is able to bring us back. Believe me, I didn't like quitting a freelance gig that I enjoyed doing since late 2020--well, aside from the part about not getting paid for months at a time. The not getting paid part is a contributing factor in pushing paid subscriptions for this newsletter, be it when I wrote on Substack or right now on Buttondown. It was especially not fun having to end 2023 and start 2024 on a spending freeze.
To anyone thinking of editing or writing for either site: DON'T. Not unless there is a change in ownership. And even then, future owners will have to make sure that we get paid first and foremost. I would love nothing more than to come back and write for either site but that cannot happen until both get new ownership.
What I wrote after seeing Ed's post on Facebook today and also shared on the Solzy at the Movies Facebook page:
Patrick still owes me money for work dating back to August 2023. During this time, another freelance outlet went on a publication pause and had their own financial issues, giving me multiple outlets that were not paying me money for work for months at a time. It's not fun when you have bills to pay and don't know where the money to pay them is coming from.
The strikes had a major impact on the entertainment ecosystem as a whole. Interview opps and assignments really dried up for a few months after Emmy season ended. An Oscar season that is usually my most profitable because of interviews conducted during the timeframe...has been turned into the worst Oscar season since coming on board.
To publishers out there: the BTL/ATL writing staff has put in hard work for a number of years. Interviewing DPs, editors, and composers have become a personal specialty of mine and I'm grateful, again, to Ed for editing my work and taking out the bits of small talk that I always keep in the transcript.