SAG-AFTRA – the union that represents 160,000 American media professionals, including voiceover artists – has launched two new agreements: the Student Interactive Waiver Agreement and the Game Jam Waiver Agreement.
The union said the new agreements “provide video game developers at every stage of their careers the opportunity to work with union performers, even as the video game strike continues”.
The Student Interactive Waiver Agreement has been designed for students currently taking video game courses at accredited educational institutions and “provides an opportunity for students to work with SAG-AFTRA performers to satisfy course requirements during game development” providing the project is recorded entirely in the US and is owned by the student.
The Game Jam Waiver Agreement, on the other hand, is designed for developers contributing to game jams. Under this agreement, participants can work with SAG-AFTRA performers and session fees and secondary payments are deferred “provided that the project does not generate revenue” and material is not recorded prior to the commencement of the event.
In the event that a project does generate revenue, SAG-AFTRA will work with participants to “sign the project to the appropriate agreement”.
“With these new agreements, SAG-AFTRA can help support game developers at all levels who want to work with union talent and who want to learn more about producing video games under a union contract. Plus, our members are passionate about this industry and they want to be able to participate in these types of projects where the future of video games is being shaped,” said SAG-AFTRA national executive director and chief negotiator, Duncan Crabtree-Ireland.
Earlier this month, the actors’ union stated the strike would continue due to “alarming loopholes” allowing for “AI abuse”. Negotiators on behalf of the bargaining video game companies, meanwhile, stated “meaningful progress” had been made, but voice actors on games like Genshin Impact and Zenless Zone Zero have been replaced due to the ongoing SAG-AFTRA actors’ union strike.
For more on why the strike remains ongoing, check out our interview with Mass Effect’s Jennifer Hale, who told our Ed that AI was “an existential issue for all of us”.