Striking writers picketed in Manhattan after going on strike following weeks of negotiations.

"This is work that we love," writer and director Ekwa Msangi said. "We love being able to tell stories, and to represent our cultures and our peoples and our communities."

Msangi said pay is negotiated with producers for a project or working for the minimum rate.

"Given our economy right now, it just doesn’t fit what we’re actually living through," Msangi said.

As of 12:01 a.m. on the West Coast, around 11,000 film and telivision writers went on strike, a first since 2007.

The Writers Guild of America was negotiating with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers, a group that represents major streaming platforms like Netflix, Amazon and Apple and traditional media companies like Disney, Discovery, Warner, NBC, Universal, Paramount and Sony.

But the Writers Guild accuses the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers of creating a gig economy by offering day rates for comedy variety shows and rejecting guaranteed employment in episodic television shows.

"Seasons are getting shorter and shorter, so writers have to hop from gig to get more frequently," television comedy writer Josh Gondelman said. "It's becoming almost a gig economy."

At Monday night's Met Gala before the strike, some popular names voiced support for the writers.

"They've got to get a fair deal," Tonight Show host Jimmy Fallon said.

Quinta Brunson, the actor and creator of the television show Abbott Elementary, said that she is "a member of the WGA and [supports] WGA."

Meanwhile, the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers says studios are offering better pay and residuals from streaming.

According to the alliance, the sticking points are mandatory staffing and the duration of employment, saying the guild wants shows staffed with a certain number of writers, whether or not they’re needed.

Msangi said these measures would protect her work.

"I support not only pay changes, but also the structures, and just the general protections that they’re trying to create for us especially during a time where AI and computer generated material is so prevalent," Msangi said.