Animation Guild board defends Hollywood deal amid frustrations

The Board of Directors of the Animation Guild (IATSE Local 839) released a statement defending its tentative agreement with Hollywood studios after a number of committee members expressed disappointment.

The statement came Wednesday after some committee members posted their thoughts on the deal on social media and announced they planned to vote “no” to ratify it. The tentative agreement was initially reached with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers on November 22.

“We believe this agreement is the strongest contract the union has negotiated in the last decade, with significant job improvements, substantial wage increases and critical new protections,” the statement reads. the message. “The Board of Directors supports the agreement because Guild members as a whole will greatly benefit from its terms, in all trades. As elected leaders, the Board of Directors acts on behalf of the members we work with every day, hoping to ensure a strong future for animation workers.

Complaints from committee members like Mike Rianda – director of “The Mitchells vs. the Machines” — began appearing on social media Tuesday as the ratification process began. Rianda posted on Instagram that he believed the agreement did not provide enough safeguards against artificial intelligence.

“Studios can replace workers with AI,” he writes. “Studios can force you to use AI. Studios can give you AI work to complete on any schedule. We didn’t get a minimum headcount to protect team sizes against AI job losses… It was exhausting.

When contacted by TheWrap, Rianda declined to provide further comment.

Animation Guild committee support staff member Joey Clift added to Bluesky that the current agreement does not provide necessary safeguards for animation workers. The guild’s summary of the memorandum of understanding (MOA) states that producers must inform animation employees if generative AI will be used on a project and allow employees to request consultation for alternatives that do not involve technology.

Any work using GenAI will remain union-covered work and will not affect an employee’s pay or credit, but there is no provision giving facilitators the authority to refuse to use GenAI in their work.

“I’ve talked to many TAG members about this, and people are scared,” Clift wrote. “Afraid of losing their careers, they spent decades of their lives working so that a few rich people could save a few dollars. We fought tooth and nail and received some small protections from AI in this contract, but they are not the strong, common-sense safeguards we need to protect animation workers.

The board, however, categorically defended the tentative agreement, saying it remained committed to providing protections for the entire guild.

Their statement echoed explanations given by the guild in an FAQ on their contract website, which clarified that TAG could not push to ban generative AI from any union production “not only because the producers would never have accepted this, but because it would also result in work entrusted to non-unionized workers, without the protection or benefits of a collective agreement, “

“Generative AI is a complex and deeply concerning issue for our industry, and we recognize the passion and apprehension it has generated among our members,” the statement continued. “We are absolutely committed to protecting our industry. It’s also important to understand that union contracts alone cannot solve this problem, as recent contracts from other entertainment unions with far greater membership and clout than ours demonstrate. Real long-term change requires broader solutions, alongside the GenAI safeguards we gained in this contract. Changes include those within the Union – enforcing existing protections, lobbying through TAG’s AI Oversight Committee, organizing studios across the US – and beyond, such as strict government regulations , public support for human-created work, and tax incentives that support human creativity.

The message concluded: “This contract balances progress and leverage, addresses challenges and generates significant gains that we have worked on for years over many contract cycles. We are confident that our members will see this as a significant step forward and will vote “yes” to ratify the agreement. »

The debate among moderators over whether the AI ​​protections in the MOA are sufficient echoes that of other IATSE locals earlier this year regarding basic agreements and standards Hollywood regional authorities, which govern wages and working conditions in live-action productions.

Last July, members of the Art Directors Guild (IATSE 800) told TheWrap that they opposed ratifying the bargaining agreements because they believed the AI ​​protections negotiated in the contract were insufficient to protect the long-term viability of their professions.

A member who was part of the ADG’s AI task force said his group recommended contract language similar to that negotiated last year by the Writers Guild of America, which prevented writers from being forced by studios to use AI in their writing or use AI-generated sources. material as adaptation material.

Members who spoke to TheWrap also warned that even though IATSE negotiated generous pay increases, more rigorous safety protocols and double/triple overtime pay for filming days that last more than 12 hours , the number of union members able to take advantage of these benefits would decline as studios turn to AI to reduce the number of crew workers who must be hired in an effort to reduce budgets.

As Hollywood workers experience financial hardship due to rising costs of living and significant loss of financial savings due to the 2023 writers’ and actors’ strikes, both IATSE contracts have been ratified with 85% of members voting in favor.

The Animation Guild’s ratification process began on Tuesday and will conclude on December 22.