March 25, 2016

Entertainment industry takes on anti-LGBT legislation

Variety - An MPAA official  said that the studios oppose “any law that legitimizes discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, gender identity or gender expression.”

The comment from Vans Stevenson, senior vice president for state government affairs, came in response to North Carolina’s passage of a bill that invalidates local LGBT anti-discrimination protections.

Gov. Pat McCrory signed the legislation, drawing a rebuke from LGBT activists and corporations like American Airlines as well as the NBA.

It came just as studios were mounting their opposition to a religious freedom bill in Georgia. That state’s governor, Nathan Deal, has not said whether he would sign that bill or veto it. The Walt Disney Co., The Weinstein Co. and Netflix said that they would not shoot projects in the state if Deal signed the legislation, while a host of other studios and media companies condemned the bill.

Like Georgia, North Carolina has been a production hub, although it has slowed in recent years since the state scaled back its incentive program.

Earlier, director Rob Reiner said that he would not shoot in North Carolina until the new law was repealed.

No comments: