Voice Actors Strike and Protections Against AI
This isnt Hales first rodeo when striking with her colleagues.
She was a part of the committee for the games contract during the 2017 strike.
As Hale recalls, the 2017 strike was also the longest strike on record, spanning 11 months.
© Diana Ragland
We are paid to be not our likeness a large percentage of the time.
That doesnt help us.
Theyre burning the platform were standing on and leading us to fall into the abyss without anything.
© Marvel
This is thanks to two union offers: a tiered budget agreement and an interim agreement.
The latter allows developers to work with SAGs version of what they want out of their negotiated contracts.
What that says is that devs and people who work in this [industry] every dayget it.
© BioWare
Unfortunately, its your high-budget, high-level, corporate-level [publishers] that are given a sticking point.
Some of those corporations oversee smaller companies that are the actual devs.
Everybody wants to get that work.
© Konami
Everybody appreciates and respects each other.
Were not fancy high-price actors, Hale said.
While that rate sounds impressive, actors are lucky to get booked several times a month.
© Marvel
People forget we dont make that every hour.
While actors in animation receive residuals, those rates have decreased with the age of streaming.
The same cant be said for video game voice actors because they have no residuals under their current contracts.
© Activision Blizzard
It just doesnt seem right, and it certainly doesnt seem humane, and it absolutely is not sustainable.
AI is a tool like a hammers a tool.
And the decision point is a human being holding the tool.
© BioWare
Were not helpless in this by any stretch.
She also hopes that they will set a precedent for other avenues of the arts against AI.
Hale also encourages fans to make their voices heard by not supporting AI-generated content in their daily digital lives.
What were simply seeking control of how our voices are used.
I have complete faith.
We just have to hold fast and get through this.
Want more io9 news?
News from the future, delivered to your present.
