Video Game Actors’ Strike Continues, SAG-AFTRA Extends Negotiations

SAG-AFTRA’s strike against major video game publishers is expected to continue as the actors union has extended contract negotiations with employers after three days of planned talks that concluded this week failed to resolve the ongoing dispute over their interactive media agreement to be attached.

According to SAG-AFTRA, the new dates for the video game companies’ return to the negotiating table will be announced as soon as they are confirmed.

Before returning to the table with the corporate gaming side on Wednesday, SAG-AFTRA announced that more than 120 video game titles had signed either SAG-AFTRA’s proposed Interim Media Agreement or the tiered-budget Independent Interactive aimed at indie developers The agreement was signed, as it is said. The editing is largely done title by title and not studio by studio.

According to the union, “The SAG-AFTRA strike against all signatories of the Interactive Media Agreement began in July and remains ongoing.” No further comment is available at this time.”

The video game companies’ negotiating committee includes Activision Productions, Blindlight, Disney Character Voices, Electronic Arts Productions, Formosa Interactive, Insomniac Games, Llama Productions, Take 2 Productions and WB Games.

The ongoing point of contention between SAG-AFTRA and the companies, which agreed on 24 points in a 25-point proposal, concerns the use of generative AI in games, particularly as it relates to motion and performance capture.

Duncan Crabtree-Ireland, executive director of SAG-AFTRA, said previously diversity Video game publishers’ argument as to why they can’t agree with AI language when it comes to motion and performance capture is unfounded. Publishers argue that motion capture work is largely used as an amalgamation of actors’ performances in video games and producers are unable to take this into account when making compensation.

At the time, Crabtree-Ireland also said that while there was no call for a boycott of gaming companies over the holiday season, that option is “a tool that is in our toolbox” for the SAG-AFTRA side as the strike continues.