The US actors union (SAG-AFTRA) approved its new collective agreement with studios and streaming platforms this Tuesday Officially ending the crippling of the Hollywood industry that lasted more than six months with millions of dollars in losses.
In its statement, SAG-AFTRA, which announced that 78.33 percent of union members are unionized, said, “We are closing one of the most important pages in the recent history of the entertainment industry (…) This agreement marks the beginning of a new era.” actors voted in favor and 21.67% voted against.
Seeking better working conditions and concrete regulation on the use of artificial intelligence (AI), among other important issues, the translators’ union decided to cease its activities on July 14. first joint strike in the industry in sixty years.
And about two and a half months ago, the Hollywood Screenwriters Guild (WGA) went on strike with the American Film and Television Producers Guild (AMPTP) due to the failure to reach an agreement on sections that modeled in practice the situations that worried the actors. .
This blockade situation brought some things with it loss of at least 6.5 billion dollars (about 6.02 billion euros) California economy and 45,000 workers laid off —including transportation, logistics, apparel or makeup professionals—according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics (U.S. Department of Labor). By the end of last September, Hollywood writers managed to reach a consensus with AMPTP that would clear the way for actors and thus save the 2024 television season and film calendar.
On November 8, the actors’ union reached a tentative agreement with the studios to renew the collective agreement that ended the 118-day strike. Just 48 hours later, the SAG-AFTRA negotiating committee confirmed that the board had approved a majority (86% of its members) of this 128-page document and that 160,000 union members had until Tuesday, December 5, to approve it.
The currently approved contract, which runs from November 9, 2023 to June 30, 2026, envisions a multibillion-dollar plan to fund new wages and health or retirement plans. Additionally includes: Immediate 7% increase in minimum wage This year for actors overall – 11% for extras – this is accompanied by increases of 4% in July next year and 3.5% in the same month in 2025.
A “reasonably specific” clause against artificial intelligence
The most problematic sections were mandatory A special regulation that will protect actors from artificial intelligence and an improvement in remaining rights, the additional bonuses each professional receives when the production they worked on is released on a platform or market again.
The negotiating committee, chaired by chairman Fran Drescher and Irish national executive Duncan Crabtree, and the studios led by bigwigs such as Netflix co-CEO Ted Sarandos or Disney CEO Bob Iger, waged intense wrangling until they reached agreement. The unauthorized use of artificial intelligence, which could digitally replicate performers based on previous scenes, was temporarily resolved with a “reasonably specific” clause. will allow players to decide whether to participate in it and receive a larger reward.
Recognition of successful broadcast productions
Regarding the remaining rights, SAG-AFTRA worked hard to ensure that these payments would be funded by 2% of the revenue streaming services receive for each new subscriber, but this was categorically rejected by AMPTP, stalling the negotiation. Well-known type-A actors like George Clooney, who was the highest-paid in the industry, stepped in and pressured the SAG-AFTRA board to accept what the studios themselves called the “last, best and definitive” offer. table.
Actors accepted extra payments for successful productions on the platforms, that is, productions that added total views equivalent to 20% of that platform’s national subscribers within the first three months in their country of origin. This fee will mean: twice the remains they have already collected It was stated that 75 percent would be distributed to actors and 75 percent to translators, and 25 percent would be distributed to a fund among the remaining members of the union, who hope to pocket about $40 million a year.
Doubts about the future of the industry
Experts on economics and digital trends, such as Kevin Klowden, head of global strategy at the Milken Institute in California, expressed skepticism to EFE about whether the content of this agreement will serve to meet the needs of the sector in the next three years. Klowden said, “One of the main reasons studios opposed the initial residual revenue requirements was their own uncertainty about streaming revenue. This, and the issue of continued technological changes, will not change.” he explained.
With just over a month until awards season kicks off with the 81st anniversary of the Golden Globes, Hollywood will be trying to get back to normal as quickly as possible, trying to regain its pulse with possibly blockbuster premieres like the second installments of ‘Dune.’ ‘Bug juice’ or ‘Joker’.
The industry now faces the challenge of asserting the originality of its creations against AI-generated imagery, according to entertainment expert Mark Young of the Marshall School of Business (University of Southern California). Young was optimistic about the future of the industry, stating: “The only thing that players have in their favor is their fame. Fans want to interact with real people, not artificial intelligence-generated images.”