Video Game Voice Actors Go On Strike, Demand “Fair Compensation And The Right Of Informed Consent For The A.I. Use Of Their Faces, Voices, And Bodies”
SAG-AFTRA voice actors and actresses have once again gone on strike, this time over employers using Artificial Intelligence (AI).
Voice actors and actresses from the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA) previously went on strike in October 2016, eventually settling in September 2017. The three-year contract with major publishers and developers agreed to increased pay, protections for dangerous voice and stunt work, and more.
However, one point that wasn’t addressed exactly as requested was limitations on the use of AI. As the Interactive Media Agreement ended in November 2022 (as reported by Kotaku), negotiations in September 2023 broke down, which requested more pay, on-set medics for stunt work, and once again, limitations on AI.
Despite an agreement in January of this year to “safely explore new employment opportunities for their digital voice replicas with industry-leading protections,” SAG-AFTRA voice actors and actresses have once again gone on strike.
In a statement to Kotaku, chief negotiator Duncan Crabtree-Ireland noted, “The video game industry generates billions of dollars in profit annually. The driving force behind that success is the 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,” Crabtree-Ireland demanded.
The negotiator then balked, “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.”
Negotiating committee chair Sarah Elmaleh also stated “Eighteen months of negotiations have shown us that our employers are not interested in fair, reasonable A.I. protections, but rather flagrant exploitation. We refuse this paradigm- we will not leave any of our members behind, nor will we wait for sufficient protection any longer.”
“We look forward to collaborating with teams on our Interim and Independent contracts, which provide A.I. transparency, consent and compensation to all performers, and to continuing to negotiate in good faith with this bargaining group when they are ready to join us in the world we all deserve,” Elmaleh declared.
AP News reports that in a news conference SAG-AFTRA Chief Contracts Officer Ray Rodriguez claimed, “The industry has told us point blank that they do not necessarily consider everyone who is rendering movement performance to be a performer that is covered by the collective bargaining agreement.”
He further added that some physical performances were being treated as “data.” Along with an AI imitating an actor or actress’ voice or appearance without their consent, motion capture could hypothetically be used to train an AI into producing new animations, without needing to pay a real person.
Rodriguez emphasized, “We strike as a matter of last resort. We have given this process absolutely as much time as we responsibly can. We have exhausted the other possibilities, and that is why we’re doing it now.”
Audrey Cooling, a spokesperson for the companies in the Interactive Media Agreement, told Kotaku, “We are disappointed the union has chosen to walk away when we are so close to a deal, and we remain prepared to resume negotiations.”
“We have already found common ground on 24 out of 25 proposals, including historic wage increases and additional safety provisions.”
“Our offer is directly responsive to SAG-AFTRA’s concerns and extends meaningful AI protections that include requiring consent and fair compensation to all performers working under the IMA. These terms are among the strongest in the entertainment industry,” Cooling insists.
The strike snubs the likes of Activision, Disney, Electronic Arts, Take-Two Interactive, and Warner Bros. – but will not affect games that began development prior to September 2023. This includes Grand Theft Auto VI. Kotaku also notes this wouldn’t affect Dragon Age: The Veilguard, as voice actors have likely completed their work.
One of the affected companies is Epic Games. Founder and CEO Tim Sweeney had tweeted just days before the strike, “Epic supports the Screen Actors Guild’s view that game companies shouldn’t receive generative AI voice training rights on dialog recording sessions.
“If a company wants to offer to license an actor’s or actress’s voice for generative AI training, there should be a very clear and specific contract for that, they should be free to say ‘no’ (perhaps in stronger words!) and if they agree then they should be compensated accordingly.” Sweeney then linked to an article on SAG-AFTRA’s then-imminent strike.
NEXT: Nintendo President Shuntaro Furukawa Reveals Company’s Stance on AI
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