A Letter From Your New England Local President

Happy 2024! We’re excited to get back to work and to a lot of member events in New England!

Your local board and committees are planning a variety of events for the coming year, and our first conservatory event will be in February. We’ll be talking about the Micro-Budget Project Agreement — how you can work under that contract, how to flip non-union jobs and how to produce your own content. Be on the lookout for an event announcement as well as information on programming for the year ahead.

The 2024 SAG Awards are scheduled for Saturday, Feb. 24. We can’t wait to celebrate all of the nominees. Please make sure to register for the party here.

As work picks back up, now is the right time to familiarize yourself with the new parameters on self-tape auditions and interviews, which you can find below. The gains in the 2023 TV/Theatrical/Streaming Agreement ensure that performers have equal access to auditions and interviews while also seeking to eliminate any undue burdens in creating such self-tapes.

Please make sure to report to newengland@sagaftra.org when these parameters are not being followed. Here’s to a prosperous 2024!

SELF-TAPE PARAMETERS

• Sides/scripts must be provided no less than 48 hours prior to the submission deadline, excluding weekends and holidays (72 hours for minors).
  • Deadlines do not apply if casting deadlines do not permit (e.g., casting a new role or replacing a role).

• Self-tape page limits:

  • Eight industry-standard pages for the first self-tape for TV/Theatrical/Streaming contracts.

  • Twelve industry-standard pages for the second and subsequent self-tapes for TV/Theatrical/Streaming contracts.

  • Five industry-standard pages for the first self-tape for promulgated low budget entertainment contracts (i.e., Low Budget, Moderate Low Budget, Ultra Low Budget, Short, Student and Micro).

• Reasonable accommodations must be made for performers with disabilities.

• Performer cannot be asked to record at a higher resolution than 720p or asked to use any editing software or specific equipment or to use a specific uploading site that is not free.

• Slate can only include name, height, city of residence, current location, age and birthday for minors, information about special skills, and a head-and-shoulders and/or full-body shot in portrait orientation

• Producers must provide opportunities to interview virtually or in-person on a first-come, first-served basis, with accommodations for performers with disabilities, senior performers and minors. 

FOR ALL SELF-TAPES, VIRTUAL INTERVIEWS & AUDITIONS

• Performer may not be asked to memorize lines or be prohibited from holding sides.

• If a performer is required to memorize lines in advance for a virtual interview or audition, compensation shall be due per the applicable contract provisions.

• Performers may not be requested to appear in a self-tape or in an audition in less than a swimsuit that would be typically worn at a public pool.

• Performers may not be asked to perform stunts in a self-tape or audition.

• Self-tapes and virtual interviews or auditions, if recorded, must be stored in a secure facility/system.

• Producers will endeavor to respond to inquiries from a performer regarding whether the role has already been cast.

GENERAL CASTING CALLS

• When a producer conducts a casting call, performers may not be charged a fee to access the casting notice (or information relating to the casting call) and may not be charged a fee to upload a self-tape or otherwise submit themselves for the role being cast. Producers may not give preferential treatment to a performer on the basis of whether they have paid a fee to a casting service.

In Solidarity,

Andrea Lyman

SAG-AFTRA New England President