SAG-AFTRA issues new agreements to permit members to work with students and game jams

SAG-AFTRA – the union that represents 160,000 actors, voiceover artists, and other media professionals – has issued two new agreements to permit members to work with students and game jams.

The Student Interactive Waiver Agreement and the Game Jam Waiver Agreement give video game developers “at every stage of their careers, the opportunity to work with union performers, even as the video game strike continues.”

The former applies to students currently taking video game courses at an accredited educational institution and recording a project “entirely” in the US, “providing an opportunity for students to work with SAG-AFTRA performers to satisfy course requirements during game development.”

The latter is for developers participating in game jams. Providing the project does not include material recorded prior to the commencement of the event, participants are able to work with SAG-AFTRA performers with session fees and secondary payments deferred providing that the project does not generate revenue.

SAG-AFTRA said that in the event that a game jam product does generate revenue, it 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,” said SAG-AFTRA national executive director and chief negotiator, Duncan Crabtree-Ireland.

“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.”

SAG-AFTRA voted to strike at the end of July after it failed to reach an agreement with the convenience bargaining group over rights and protection concerns raised by the industry’s exploration of AI technologies.

Earlier this month, SAG-AFTRA issued an update about the strike, saying it remained “frustratingly far apart” from video game studios and publishers. It came after two Zenless Zone Zero voice actors claimed they had been replaced for participating in the SAG-AFTRA strikes.