From Dusk Till Dawn Went To Battle Against Hollywood Unions
Rodriguez and Tarantino have a long history with Hollywood unions. Most of Rodriguez’s early films were done with non-union crews, while Tarantino is not a member of the Writer’s Guild of America (he is a member of the Director’s Guild, however). From Dusk Till Dawn was another non-union production for Rodriguez, but that almost led to some problems.
In a report from Variety, the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees (IATSE) was not thrilled that an $18 million budgeted movie was shooting in Los Angeles with a non-union crew. IATSE attempted to bring the crew into the union, but were rebuked in their efforts by Tarantino and producer Lawrence Bender, saying it would add $300,000 to their budget, a number IATSE refuted.
Tensions between the two sides continued throughout production, though ultimately no action was taken by IATSE and, as shown in the making-of documentary Full Tilt Boogie, Miramax eventually agreed to provide healthcare to crew members.