The entertainment industry is at a standstill as actors join writers on the picket lines.
At noon today, SAG-AFTRA announces that the actors’ union is on strike. After the union’s Television/Theatrical/Streaming contracts expired without a successor agreement last night at 11:59 p.m. P.T., more than 160,000 actors will step off set and join the writers on the picket lines in a fight against the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers.
This is the first time in 63 years that actors are joining an ongoing walkout by Hollywood writers.
You can watch the announcement at of the strike at the conference below:
Earlier this week, SAG-AFTRA set strike rules that require union actors to step away from all film and television productions worldwide, not take part in any promotional work (this includes press junkets, film premieres, and fan events like San Diego Comic-Con as a part of panels that promote a specific film, television show, or current or future work), cancel any press or acting work after a strike is ordered, and request that no work is promoted on social media.
However, indie productions that have no studios and streamers attached as producers or distributors quality to continue working with actors during this time.
While fans of the Barbie promotion are feeling a wave of sadness, this strike is absolutely necessary.
We laid out why the actors’ are striking this morning, but many of the issues mirror the similar topics that writers are fighting against. From the potential dangers of artificial intelligence to streaming residuals, the labor force in the entertainment industry is fighting to get properly paid. Listen below to hear one of the AMPTP’s proposal for AI usage in the industry and its effects on background actors:
While executives ratted themselves out yesterday by saying that they will holdout on returning to the negotiation table with writers and actors until late fall, we can still do our part by canceling the streaming service, renting physical media, donating and promoting strike funds, and joining our fellow creatives at the picket lines to demand that our labor be properly compensated.
We are not free. We are not indispensable. We are necessary for cinema’s and TV’s survival. We are necessary for those executives who want us to starve and become unhoused to get paid their billion-dollar paychecks.
Never forget how powerful filmmakers, writers, actors, and other creatives are when we stand together.
No Film School stands in solidarity with both SAG-AFTRA and the WGA during these trying times and will continue to cover any updates that will determine the evolving world of entertainment.
What are some strike funds that you are donating to? Let us know in the comments below!
