Award-winning production company Clive Morris Productions is currently on stand-still after actors and crew members downed their tools following no payment on productions. 

TOOLS DOWN

It's a few months since the new show, Queendom premiered but cast and crew have had to stay home due to non-payment. After bagging new roles on Queendom, actors Sindi Dlathu and Linda Mtoba, who were unemployed after the discontinuation of The River now have to deal with money issues on the new set of the telenovela. An insider at the company says the staff is tired of complaining. "They sent out letters saying payments were delayed, but this is nonsense," he says. "Why do we always have to go to the media to expose them for us to be paid? We worked so pay, it's that simple."

EXPLANATION

The insider says there are three productions in total where staff have not been paid by Clive Morris. "It's two shows on Mzansi Magic and one on BET. It doesn't make sense that two channels can miss payments." The insider says executive producer Khayelihle Dominique Gumede and Clive Morris visited the set of Queendom to explain. "Clive was crying there. But we don't understand the story. We last got paid before Easter and we are relying on the weekly salaries for our families," he adds. "Another production, Empini, started shooting two weeks ago and we have not been paid. It is not even on air yet."

?AGAIN?

A few years ago, the same company made headlines for failing to pay cast and crew members of The Estate and Isono during the holiday season. Another insider says they waited six months for Isono salaries to be paid. "This has been going on for years and it's not fair. It means there might be a deeper problem," Executive producer Khayelihle Dominique Gumede tells ZiMoja. "There was a slight delay coming from Easter break. Cast and crew on Queendom and Empini have been fully paid as of today," he says. However, the source says they have not. "There are some outstanding payments on our third production, it's a cost timing issue but the production needs to just match expenses. We are in conversation with the client, and we are trying to communicate robustly. But there is also a sense that one is resolving the problem as easily as possible," Gumede adds. "With The Estate it was well reported that SABC was going through their own financial issues. There was also an issue on Isono which dates back to Covid-19. We dealt with those. No one has remained unpaid as a supplier. The truth is that it's a very tough market. We dealt with those and what was reported at the time. In this instance, we are dealing with the issue as soon as possible. Multichoice is in very good standing, they paid us. Empini specifically had nothing to do with the broadcaster. Payment delays are being sorted."