Actors are on strike in Hollywood. He Screen Actors Guild – American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA) voted unanimously in favor of this measure on the morning of July 13, 2023. This came after four weeks of negotiations between the organization and the Motion Picture and Television Producers Alliance (AMPTP, an abbreviation in English). This is the first stop of this association since 1980.
The actors’ strike, which will officially begin at the first minute of midnight on July 14, 2023, comes at a time when Hollywood and its entertainment industry are going through a writers’ strike that began on May 2. Both measures of strength share commonalities in AMPTP claims. This scenario further strains relations between organizations, tormented by discussions that, when the time came, did not lead to any satisfactory result.
SAG-AFTRA has 160,000 affiliated translators. The decision taken by the union implies that none of these members should continue to work in the industries of which they are part; at least until the conflict reaches negotiations acceptable to all parties involved.
What is the conflict between actors and Hollywood producers?
V Film and Television Producers Alliance platforms are grouped streaming and studios including: Amazon, Apple, Disney, NBCUniversal, Netflix, Paramount, Sony and Warner Bros. discovery. According to the statement released this Thursday, July 13, 2023 by SAG-AFTRA, signed Fran Drescherpresident of the actors’ union, both unions negotiated a new labor agreement between June 7 and July 12, 2023.
After this period – always in accordance with the SAG-AFTRA statement – “[la AMPTP] it remains unwilling to offer a fair deal on key issues. (…) Because of this, we called a meeting this morning with our National Council to vote on the strike order.”
At this meeting, an official decision was made: to declare a strike by the actors’ union. During the press conference announcing the measure, Fran Drescher said: “The whole business model has changed due to streamingdigitization [de contenidos] and artificial intelligence. This is a historic moment. (…) This is serious and it will affect all the people involved [en las distintas áreas del sector del entretenimiento]”.
Below we share the entire press conference:
What does the union require?
In a statement, the organization detailed its main concerns. They serve, from his point of view, to justify the strike of Hollywood actors:
- Salary increase.
- Improvements in compensation for image rights in connection with their use through platforms streaming.
- An overview of the use of artificial intelligence in productions. The statement describes it as “an existential threat to the creative professions, and all actors and performers deserve contractual language that protects them from the exploitation of their personality and talent without consent and payment.”
Position of the Film and Television Producers Alliance
Having learned that the representation of translators left the negotiating table, the body in which the studios and venues were located streaming He said he was “deeply disappointed”. In accordance with ReutersThe Producers Alliance said it offered a “historic pay increase and residuals” as well as a “groundbreaking proposal for artificial intelligence that protects actors’ digital images.”
From the organization’s perspective, “Instead of continuing negotiations, SAG-AFTRA has set us on a course that will exacerbate the financial hardship of thousands of people who depend on the industry for their livelihoods.” After the collapse of negotiations to reach an agreement, Bob IgerDisney CEO told CNBC:It’s the worst time in the world to stick with this interruption“. This was said after comments that the sector is recovering from losses due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Writers and actors strike simultaneously for the first time in 63 years
The last time a writers’ and actors’ strike took place at the same time in Hollywood was in 1960. The writers’ strike began on May 2, 2023 when they announced a force. Their claims are similar to the above:
- higher wages
- Greater participation in the profits generated from the distribution of content over the Internet
The last time Hollywood went on strike was in 2007. Then it lasted 100 days. The conflict between this organization and the Motion Picture and Television Producers Alliance is estimated to have resulted in losses to the industry of approximately $2 billion.
Consequences of the strike of actors and screenwriters
As it is already happening, because of the writers’ strike, series and films produced by Hollywood studios are suffering shutdowns and delays. This directly affects release dates in theaters and streaming platforms. streaming. In addition, it may happen that a part of the affiliates of each trade union, from an economic and emotional point of view, suffers from a reduction in work.
While it is true that Hollywood’s leading actors may not feel a significant impact on their finances, this is not the reality for everyone who works in the industry. Those who are members of this union should not be involved in any industry-related activities, from promoting productions to filming.
A strike of actors and writers in Hollywood could lead to significant changes in the industry. Both translators and authors insist on reviewing compensation for the use of their work through services streaming, but artificial intelligence also intervened. It is unlikely that the growth of these two trends will stop in the coming years. The agreement they may reach at some point may have an impact on future generations interested in this area of work.
Source: Hiper Textual
