Why SAG-AFTRA Is Joining the Writers on Strike and How This Impacts Everybody
With new strike action, THE FILM AND TELEVISION INDUSTRY WILL BE ‘CLOSED’ FOR THE FIRST TIME IN OVER SIX DECADES.
As The Writers Guild of America (WGA) continues its nearly two and a half month strike against The Alliance Of Motion Picture and Television Producers, the much more high profile actors union SAG-AFTRA has taken the current Hollywood labour action up to a level not seen in decades. After a month plus of negotiations that failed to deliver a new contract for the 160,000 members of the union, the National Board have called for a strike effective Friday at midnight. This marks the first actors strike against film and television producers since 1980 and the first joint shutdown with both the actors and writers unions since 1960.
This is obviously uncharted territory as this work stoppage is going to affect so many events, businesses and you the viewers. This article will give you the lowdown on the history of SAG-AFTRA’s labor history, the issues at stake, what led to the strike, what will be affected and why this fight is ultimately for the right reasons.
For those unfamiliar, SAG-AFTRA is a union that represents film and television actors, background performers, stunt performers, puppeteers, singers, dancers, journalists, radio disc jockeys and many other professions. The union as it is now was formed in 2012 from a historic merger between The Screen Actors Guild and The American Federation of Television and Radio Artists. SAG was formed in 1933 during the worst days of the Great Depression when performers found themselves at the mercy of the Hollywood studios where they were forced to work long hours with sometimes unsafe working conditions.
Over the years, the union gained a reputation for being a powerful force in the business fighting for performers. In 1960, under the leadership of Ronald Reagan(yes, that Ronald Reagan), SAG along with the WGA issued the first industrywide work stoppage. That strike saw the guilds achieve historic gains such as residuals for films played on television, pension plans and health insurance. The last time the actors struck the studios and networks was in 1980 over the then new markets of home video and pay cable. That one lasted three months.
Cut to today and its a whole new industry. Along with the traditional film studios and networks, we have tech companies like Netflix, Amazon and Apple that have changed the way consumers watch content and thus has affected the income of the talent that brings it to life. As a result, writers and performers have started to feel grifted. What SAG-AFTRA and the WGA have asked for in this negotiation is a change in a way members are compensated for when their work for streamers is successful. While certain issues are specific to the respective guilds like the WGA’s demands for minimum staffing of television shows to reflect the decreasing episode count of most new shows and SAG-AFTRA’s proposal of regulating self audition tapes, two core issues seem to be at the heart of this negotiation cycle and why labor action has now paralyzed movie and TV production.
The first issue is residuals and transparency over how streaming shows and movies do. Both unions argue that the residual structure for streaming programs is low compared to shows that air on broadcast and cable networks despite the growth in streaming shows over the last decade. They have proposed a fixed residual structure where the shows that have the most viewers get a higher share of residuals. The AMPTP turned down both offers. The second and perhaps most eye opening issue is the rise of Artificial Intelligence(AI) which will no doubt have ramifications on the industry if not treated properly. SAG-AFTRA is especially concerned with the rise of deepfakes and want actors to have the ability to give consent to use of their images and if they are fine with AI, they can negotiate a payment for the use of their image. The only thing Management offered is for background actors to accept a one time payment that allows the companies exclusive rights to use their likeness forever without consent or additional pay.
While the WGA has been out on the picket lines since May 2, many were eyeing how SAG-AFTRA would handle their contract talks with the AMPTP. The union, led by president Fran Drescher (The Nanny) and National Executive Director and Chief Negotiator Duncan Crabtree-Ireland, immediately showed support for the writers and even joined them on the picket lines. In mid-May, SAG-AFTRA’s national board unanimously approved a strike authorization vote in order to give negotiators leverage at the table. On June 5, the referendum passed with a record high 98% approval rate and the union entered negotiations two days later. While it looked like a dual strike could be avoided as Drescher and Crabtree-Ireland posted in a video saying that talks were productive, things started to heat up towards the end of the months when a letter signed by 2,000 members including A-listers like Jennifer Lawrence, Meryl Streep, Mark Ruffalo, Jane Fonda and more urged leadership to hold the line and not accept anything less than a transformative deal. While initially set to expire on June 30th, it was extended to July 12th. Things went sour over the last few days as Drescher received criticism for attending a fashion show in Italy but the union issued a statement that it was a prior commitment she made as a brand ambassador. Trying to avert a last minute strike, SAG-AFTRA agreed to the AMPTP’s request to have a mediator try to push things forward which ultimately didn’t succeed.
On Thursday, the national board of SAG-AFTRA approved the plan to strike. In a passionate tearful speech, Drescher denounced Management’s unwillingness to address the union’s issues. “How they plead poverty, that they’re losing money left and right when giving hundreds of millions of dollars to their CEOs. It is disgusting. Shame on them”, she stated.
As a result of the actors strike, all shows and films that are part of the TV/Theatrical agreements will have to immediately suspend production until a fair deal is reached. In addition, actors are prohibited to promote projects in magazine interviews, talk shows, conventions and red carpet premieres. The cast of Christopher Nolan’s epic drama “Oppenheimer” had to walk out of the premiere in London once the strike was called. San Diego Comic Con will now have no talent attend as a result of the work stoppage. The Primetime Emmy Awards, which announced their nominations the day before an actors strike was called, is scheduled to air September 17 on Fox but the labor unrest is causing the Academy and network to consider alternatives in the likely event a contract isn’t reached by then. One is either delay the ceremony to November or January where it will have competition from the Golden Globes and Grammy Awards. And finally, there is the question of the fall film festivals which usher in Oscar season. The Venice Film Festival, TIFF and Telluride are all in jeopardy as stars will not be able to attend the event. Each festival is assessing the situation and will decide where to go from here.
In closing, while it is a shame that it came to this, especially since it didn’t need to be this way, this strike may end being beneficial to all parties in the end. Both SAG-AFTRA and the WGA have strong support from many factions of the industry and country. The hope is that both unions together on the picket lines will bring the employers back to the negotiating table as soon as possible and give both unions what they need to stay in the industry. Only talent can create something of value to millions and once Management realizes that, they will be ready to end this strike and allow for more quality film and television in the future. Until that happens, we at FilmSpeak stand by the unions in their fight for a fair contract and know they will prevail.