The director is a primary author of the creation of an audiovisual work. The protection of authors’ rights is the most important issue of UNI-MEI’s directors’ unions and guilds around the world. Thus UNI-MEI is very active at the European and at WIPO level to influence legislation on intellectual property in order to protect the interest of directors. UNI-MEI is also seeking to facilitate the co-operation between unions and guilds on the one hand and collecting societies on the other hand. It is important that collecting societies respect and ensure the democratic participation of creators’ unions and guilds, without engaging in monopolistic practices, but rather, effectively supporting the activities of such organizations.
UNI-MEI is campaigning for the right of directors to organise everywhere to bargain collectively. At the UNI-MEI General Assembly in Los Angeles, October 2003 UNI-MEI members agreed that the organisation provides member unions and associations know how to negotiate collective agreements with international production companies. These agreements need to ensure minimum terms and conditions covering audiovisual authors’ creative and economic rights and acknowledge the unwaivable right for creators to obtain a remuneration in proportion to the revenues generated by the exploitation of the work on any form of reuse.