Residuals And Artificial Intelligence The Focus On New York Picket Line
Image Source: Vanity Fair
The Big Apple is abuzz with protestors as the actor’s guild SAG-AFTRA begins their strike. Many members are not new to the picket lines as they have been there to support WGA members in their strike since May. SAG-AFTRA was previously in talks with AMPTP to negotiate their contracts in light of new technology. The deadline for the agreement passed, and, now, the union is on strike across the country.
Actors present on the picket lines in New York City shared their concerns with the industry. One major focus was residuals, payment actors get from rebroadcasts of their programs. The residual agreements haven’t been updated to keep up with the change to streaming or the steady inflation of the past three years. One SAG-AFTRA member Chris Henry Coffinf claimed to be receiving a worse wage in 2023 than he was in 2000. Unbelievable star Merritt Weaver said that the strike was about having a living wage and being able to continue acting as a career. She recalled an incident of depositing residuals small enough that the machine wouldn’t recognize it as money. Another protestor, background actor Gary Farris, complained about low wages, “We’re the workhorses of the industry. We work like dogs, and you know, they pay us pretty good, but it didn’t meet inflation at all.”
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Image Source: Head Topics
Another major concern among creative professionals is the advancement of AI technology. Many actors fear the technology could be used to capture performers’ likenesses and put them in films without consent or compensation. AMPTP denies this claim and says that an actor’s digital likeness can only be used for programs the actor is working on, and the use of the technology must be bargained on with the actor. Nevertheless, SAG-AFTRA members are demanding protection against AI as part of the strike. Union member Jonathan Kain shared his thoughts on AI, “Our likeness is our lifeblood in this specific instance. And to give it away, not knowing what it will be used for down the line is folly, in my opinion.” AI has been a major contention for the writers on strike as well.
Aside from the concerns around AI, and fair residuals, SAG-AFTRA is focused on better pensions and healthcare plans as well as regulations around self-tape auditions. Union members from both the actor’s guild and the writer’s guild are hopeful that the dual strike will force Hollywood studios to begin fair and honest negotiations.
In the meantime, the actors say they know how to get by without work. Some actors, like Jagged Little Pill star Lauren Patten, are turning to Broadway to pay the bills. Patten has a hopeful message for the union, “We are, as actors, people who know how to withstand not having a job, it’s a big part of our lives. And so as far as what to do during the strike, I think we’ll have a lot of solidarity, a lot of resolve and we’ll be able to practice other ways of making our art and will be resilient.”
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Source(s): The Hollywood Reporter, Vulture
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