Convention: One Delegate’s Experience

Michigan Local convention delegates, from left, Peter Tocco, Jo-Jo Shutty-MacGregor, Jayne Bower, Diane Jones, Eric Wydra

"I had the privilege of representing the Michigan Local as a delegate to the second SAG-AFTRA National Convention in Los Angeles in October. The theme this year was Educate, Engage and Empower, and 400 of us gathered together from Oct. 1–4. Breakout sessions were held one afternoon and I chose to attend the session titled Labor Economics in the Media Business. As a practicing CPA, the economics portion of the title appealed to me, and I looked forward to being 'educated' by David Viviano, SAG-AFTRA’s chief economist," said Eric Wydra, Third Vice President of the Michigan Local.

"David’s presentation focused on two main topics: the impact of the Internet on media and entertainment and on economic inefficiency and how the media spending 'arms race' impacts employment and the compensation of talent. As we all know, the internet has allowed audiences to easily access content that appeals to them. Services such as Netflix and Amazon Studios, as well as online radio and streaming services, have provided a greater opportunity for the exhibition of content. The increase in the production of niche-audience content has increased the number of roles available for actors, but has also resulted in a shorter product lifecycle and less opportunity for performers to earn back-end payouts. So, although the Internet has been a net job creator for SAG-AFTRA performers, its impact in terms of compensation has been minimal. As audiences consume their entertainment via cable, the Internet and streaming services, the DVD market collapsed. The shorter shelf life for content and the collapse of the DVD market has resulted in lower average residuals per job.

"Another changing part of the media landscape is advertising and commercials. With the ability to watch TV online or on DVR, there is strong evidence that viewers are avoiding watching commercials. The return on investment for commercials is currently unclear. Despite all of this, spending on TV advertising continues to rise. This increase in spending is due to competition (the 'media arms race'). Even though the outcome is unclear, companies are afraid to abandon traditional TV advertising in case their competitors benefit by continuing to produce commercials. The result is great for performers, and employment in commercials continues to rise and session fees and residuals continue to increase in the commercial space.

"David’s session was extremely interesting and I found myself “engaged” throughout the entire 90 minutes. As I sat there listening, it dawned on me that many of us in Michigan are still disappointed that the film incentives are officially over. However, this session indicated that performer compensation in commercials is growing. I would like to 'empower' each and every SAG-AFTRA Michigan Local member to get involved and help to increase union commercial production in the state of Michigan. Efforts are already underway to increase commercial production here, but it will take many of us speaking as one powerful voice to help make this happen."

This item was originally featured in the January 2016 local newsletter.