Did You Hear? is a weekly examination of headlines in the entertainment industry and a take on what they could mean for the future of the industry and (often), the little geeky bubble that we occupy!
This week’s feature is going up later than usual because I wanted to make sure any potential news on the WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes came in by End of Day Pacific Time in order to give you the most complete update possible.
WGA Strike Resolved
On day 148 of the Writers Guild of America striking against the AMPTP, multiple rounds of bad faith negotiations, and sloughs and sloughs of discourse around AI a deal has been struck, signed, and writers across the entertainment industry are getting back to work.
On Tuesday of this week WGA boards voted unanimously to lift the strike order as demands were addressed which have been on the table for just less than half of the year. The AMPTP caved and acquiesced to most of what the WGA was asking for. Terms include:
- AI can’t write or rewrite literary material, and AI-generated material will not be considered source material under the MBA, meaning that AI-generated material can’t be used to undermine a writer’s credit or separated rights.
- A writer can choose to use AI when performing writing services, if the company consents and provided that the writer follows applicable company policies, but the company can’t require the writer to use AI software (e.g., ChatGPT) when performing writing services.
- The Company must disclose to the writer if any materials given to the writer have been generated by AI or incorporate AI-generated material.
- The WGA reserves the right to assert that exploitation of writers’ material to train AI is prohibited by MBA or other law.
(per Variety)
What’s most important to know about this resolution if you haven’t been following along is that the WGA got largely everything they ask for. The issues surrounding the increasing prevalence of AI is certain to be the subject of future regulations – and perhaps even another strike – but this issue aside the leaps and bounds won by the WGA are unprecedented.
SAG-AFTRA Strike Continues with an Eye on Video Games
While the WGA has an historic victory to celebrate, SAG-AFTRA is still in the trenches. As we eye day 80 SAG-AFTRA members remain on strike. Given the gains the WGA made many members are hopeful for a timely wrap up for actors and performers.
On Monday, per SAG-AFTRA, negotiations with the AMPTP will resume on Monday, now entering the month of October:
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This week saw the addition of video games to the striking crosshairs. With a strike authorization vote of over 93% SAG-AFRA has taken aim at one of the only industries members could still work in: Video Games.
In a statement from SAG-AFTRA:
“It’s time for the video game companies to stop playing games and get serious about reaching an agreement on this contract,” said SAG-AFTRA President Fran Drescher. “The result of this vote shows our membership understands the existential nature of these negotiations, and that the time is now for these companies — which are making billions of dollars and paying their CEOs lavishly — to give our performers an agreement that keeps performing in video games as a viable career.”
Now, it is worth clarifying that a strike authorization vote does not necessarily mean a strike. It does mean SAG-AFTRA has a heavily hand to play when presenting wants and needs to video game studios and producers. Given the way the rest of the entertainment industry has ground to a halt en lieu of the strikes against the AMPTP couple with the video game industry being one of the only sectors of entertainment to consistently make money this could shape up to not only be a double strike for actors and performers, but a groundbreaking setting of precedence for us alongside writers.
“After five rounds of bargaining, it has become abundantly clear that the video game companies aren’t willing to meaningfully engage on the critical issues: compensation undercut by inflation, unregulated use of AI and safety,” said SAG-AFTRA National Executive Director and Chief Negotiator Duncan Crabtree-Ireland. “I remain hopeful that we will be able to reach an agreement that meets members’ needs, but our members are done being exploited, and if these corporations aren’t willing to offer a fair deal, our next stop will be the picket lines.”
Rampant issues across video games have been public knowledge for years from a lack of adequate pay and royalty distribution to “crunch time” and the mistreatment of VFX and designers to industry wide misogyny at major and beloved gaming studios. My sincere hope is this strike authorization could launch a reckoning the industry so dearly needs.
And, of course, at the heart of the issue is AI rearing its head once again:
“Between the exploitative uses of AI and lagging wages, those who work in video games are facing many of the same issues as those who work in film and television,” said Chief Contracts Officer Ray Rodriguez. “This strike authorization makes an emphatic statement that we must reach an agreement that will fairly compensate these talented performers, provide common-sense safety measures, and allow them to work with dignity. Our members’ livelihoods depend on it.”
Times they are a’changin’ across the entertainment industry. There’s a chance by this time next week I’ll be writing about the resolution of the SAG-AFTRA strike and an influx of performers will be making announcements of appearances at New York Comic Con coming up in mid-October. There’s a chance we’ll be exploring this issue in more detail through the end of the year.
