23.06.05 SAGreed

Posted under: Game Industry

One item that’s been getting a lot of press recently is the reluctance of the Screen Actors’ Guild to accept the already-generous pay-rise proposal regarding actors’ hourly voice-over wage. Put simply, for those that have not been following this, Hollywood has seen the large revenues generated by some of the recent blockbuster videogames, and wants a piece of the pie. Only their greed extends beyond basic pay incentives, instead demanding residuals on that revenue.

Well, far be it from the alsoran to disrespect the ancient art of PRETENDING TO BE SOMEBODY ELSE for a few hours in a 2-3 year development cycle, but surely he wasn’t the only person in the game development community to notice that when representatives of such an insignificant role in the development cycle threatened (only threatened) to strike, the publishers get scared enough to offer an almost instant pay rise of over 30%?

Can you imagine the effect of a simultaneous strike by all videogame artists, or programmers, or animators? Now the alsoran is perfectly happy with his current working conditions, but he’s heard some horror stories - the kind that make you want to unionise just for those guys. Of course publishers are aware of this, so there is no way in hell that 4-hour contractors will be seeing any kind of residual pay before “real” developers, but then, that’s the largest unbalance of reward right there isn’t it…

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2 Comments on 'SAGreed'

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  1. Comment by Voicing Complaints at Game Anim on 24.05.08 at 6:53 am

    [...] years ago, when I first began this blog, I posted this about voice actors complaining over the videogame industry’s position of not providing the [...]

  2. Comment by Paolo on 24.05.08 at 11:45 am

    Hm. I think the point you miss out on here is that an actor doesn’t work 9 to 5; they don’t get salaries, health insurance, etc. Many are like gypsies, moving around wherever an opportunity can be found. Most don’t make much of a living out of their craft and either have to seek other forms of employment or stick with it despite the very poor return.

    While game developers could certainly do with a better system of return for efforts contributed, it’s a separate issue from those of the performers who contribute their craft.

    In the case of GTA IV, the voice of Niko sells the game and therefore brings more visibility to the efforts of all the developers who worked their asses off. Not paying the actor for the use of his voice in the many marketing spots is practically a crime (if not for the unfair contractual limitations). The animators, on the other hand, get paid salaries and are given benefits (such as health insurance) even when in-between projects. But not the actor. The actor gets paid hourly or via a flat fee (minus fees to their agent) and when the work is done, off they go to find more work elsewhere. Imagine having to work freelance like that–every time you complete a project, it’s back to the streets to find another company willing to hire you for your work. No thank you. Been there; done that.

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