A.I.’s Impact on Performers Discussed at SXSW

SAG-AFTRA National Executive Director & Chief Negotiator Duncan Crabtree-Ireland spoke at a fireside chat, A.I.’s Role in the Future of Hollywood, at the 2024 South by Southwest Conference & Festival on March 10. His conversation with Fast Company Editor-in-Chief Brendan Vaughan covered the rapid changes in the industry as A.I. proliferates and becomes more widely available, and the impact on performers and other industry creatives and laborers.

“Implementing these technologies comes at a cost. It requires changes to business processes that have been long established, and when you make big changes to these processes, things get messed up. I think what the industry is focused on now  — and this is what we discovered during our negotiation process — is the use of replication to streamline the process more so than the use of full synthesis to replace performances,” said Crabtree-Ireland when discussing the union’s 2023 negotiations with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers.  

The implementation of key A.I. provisions and protections in the 2023 TV/Theatrical Contracts, SAG-AFTRA’s recent agreement with video game voiceover studio Replica Studios, and the new Tiered-Budget Independent Interactive Media Agreement were also key topics of the conversation. At the end of their chat, Crabtree-Ireland reemphasized the union’s ongoing work and commitment to address the use of A.I. in other sectors, including the music and video game industries.

“One of the things we need to know is where the companies are going before they get there, and that is especially true for generative A.I. because I think that [their endgame has] yet to be determined,” said Crabtree-Ireland. “So having the right to meet with them every six months and get a download on what they’re up to, with respect to A.I. in general and generative A.I. in particular, is crucial for us and planning for our next round of bargaining in two and a half years.”

A Q&A session followed the panel. 

SXSW is an annual March event that features sessions, music and comedy showcases, film and television screenings, world-class exhibitions and much more. The 2024 conference took place from March 8–16 in Austin, Texas.
 

Other videos are available on sagaftra.org/videos. 

Photo: SAG-AFTRA National Executive Director & Chief Negotiator Duncan Crabtree-Ireland with ‘Fast Company’ Editor-in-Chief Brendan Vaughan at the SXSW fireside chat, ‘A.I.’s Role in the Future of Hollywood,’ on March 10. 

All photos by Drew Elaine.

The views expressed by the guests are their own and not that of SAG-AFTRA. Any mention of products or services does not imply SAG-AFTRA’s endorsement.