SAG-AFTRA has called a strike against video game companies signed to its collective bargaining agreement. The strike, which was announced on July 25 and went into effect one minute after midnight on July 26, came after the parties were unable to reach an agreement after more than 18 months of bargaining.
The convenience bargaining group with whom SAG-AFTRA is negotiating includes Activision Productions Inc., Blindlight LLC, Disney Character Voices Inc., Electronic Arts Productions Inc., Formosa Interactive LLC, Insomniac Games Inc., Llama Productions LLC, Take 2 Productions Inc., VoiceWorks Productions Inc., and WB Games Inc.
Any game company looking to employ SAG-AFTRA talent to perform covered work must sign on to the new Tiered-Budget Independent Interactive Media Agreement (see sidebar), the Interim Interactive Media Agreement or the Interim Interactive Localization Agreement. These agreements offer critical A.I. protections for members.
“We’re not going to consent to a contract that allows companies to abuse A.I. to the detriment of our members. Enough is enough. When these companies get serious about offering an agreement our members can live — and work — with, we will be here, ready to negotiate,” stated SAG-AFTRA President Fran Drescher. “The video game industry generates billions of dollars in profit annually. The driving force behind that success is th creative people who design and create those games. That includes the SAG-AFTRA members who bring memorable and beloved game characters to life, and they deserve and demand the same fundamental protections as performers in film, television, streaming and music: fair compensation and the right of informed consent for the A.I. use of their faces, voices and bodies. Frankly, it’s stunning that these video game studios haven’t learned anything from the lessons of last year — that our members can and will stand up and demand fair and equitable treatment with respect to A.I., and the public supports us in that,” said SAG-AFTRA National Executive Director & Chief Negotiator Duncan Crabtree-Ireland.
Negotiations began in October 2022 and, on Sept. 24, 2023, SAG-AFTRA members approved a video game strike authorization with a 98.32% yes vote. Although agreements have been reached on many issues important to SAG-AFTRA members, the employers refuse to plainly affirm, in clear and enforceable language, that they will protect all performers covered by this contract in their A.I. language.
At a press conference following the strike declaration, members of the Interactive Media Agreement Negotiating Committee emphasized that the union is demanding that companies provide members with consent, compensation and transparency with regard to digital replicas and generative A.I. systems used to create synthetic performances.
“Our A.I. proposals will provide comprehensive performer protection. The technology is complex, but regardless of the generative A.I. system in use, if your performance is being replicated, you deserve access to essential information, you deserve to give or not give your consent, and you need to be paid properly. Period,” said Committee Chair Sarah Elmaleh. “This is fair, this is feasible and anything less is exploitation.”
The next day, Elmaleh joined fellow performers Ashly Burch, Shannon Woodward and Noshir Dalal on a panel at San Diego Comic-Con, where they discussed the strike and the issues that led up to it.
Member meetings were held on July 31 and Aug. 6. Other unions were quick to publicly throw their support behind SAG-AFTRA. “We are proud to continue to stand shoulder to shoulder with our SAG-AFTRA sisters, brothers, and kin,” said IATSE International President Matthew D. Loeb. “Their fight against the misuse of A.I. in the video game industry is a shared fight all entertainment workers’ unions are taking head-on ... Standing together is the only way we can ensure technological development does not come at the expense of workers’ rights and livelihoods.”
Across the Atlantic in the U.K., Equity Assistant General Secretary John Barclay echoed those sentiments.
“Equity stands in total solidarity with SAG-AFTRA, who have taken the brave decision to authorize a strike against U.S. video games companies,” he said. “Voice and performance capture artists are a vital part of this multibillion-dollar industry, bringing to life characters that make games successful. We stand shoulder to shoulder with SAG-AFTRA as partners in a global fight to secure fair pay and protect our members’ rights, which could not be more urgent as we move forward with artificial intelligence innovation.”
Among the unions that issued statements of support were Actors’ Equity, ACTRA, AFM, AGMA, Communications Workers of America, DGA, WGAE, WGAW and many others, both domestically and internationally.
Photo: Interactive Agreement Media Committee Chair Sarah Elmaleh, right, joined by Interactive Media Agreement Negotiating Committee Chair Sarah Elmaleh, right, joined SAG-AFTRA members Ashly Burch, Shannon Woodward and Noshir Dalal on SAG-AFTRA’s 'Game Actors on Game Actors' panel at Comic-Con International in San Diego on July 26. Photo by Shutterstock.
This item originally featured in the SAG-AFTRA summer 2024 magazine issue.