Video game voice actors are now on strike

[McDaddio]

well i did say basically. i did drama in school and was damn good at it. it was just a shame i was so grotesquely fat that i learned to hate myself that i stopped looking in the mirror and only went outside when it was time for the groceries to be bought or i was required at the family business(im not acting her by the way). i think in general that the majority of actor sportsmen are hella overpaid. kevin hart are you serious 87 mil a year. the dude is the same character in every movie and is only "funny becuase of his voice and his height". i dont think sportsmen at all deserve 200k+ a week. thats bonkers. i said that if a person is not willing to do the job as is they are dispensable. that is business dude/ette.

On the surface you certainly have a point on what sportsman and even some actors are paid... BUT these people do have a unique skill which is DIRECTLY generating revenue, and coupled with that the VAST sums of money that result... so in reality it is only relative and in recognition of their contribution given they are an integral element to that success. That's how it works... a newly signed footballer doesn't make 400k a week, nor does an actor make millions his first film, on the contrary you would be surprised what many do actually make before they make a name for themselves... but the point relating to this strike action in the game industry is that a system is in place where contracts can be negotiated for film/TV roles, and the same goes for sportsman. It is only fair that voice actors should be allowed the same opportunity for computer games. Why not? Because a farmer doesn't make a million quid a year getting up at 3am to feed his cows every morning...? No, even if he deserves that, it's not a valid or sensible argument (I know you didn't say this, I'm just highlighting the absurdity of that kind of rhetoric lol).

And yes, one could certainly argue that any of the thousands of Chinese assembling the iPhone 7 are a vital part of its success therefore deserve to be paid more (I totally believe they should), but that's a wholly disparate and more complex issue, one that is as much political as anything else.

 

[SparkleDJackson]

I read into it first and I understand about people having to do the grind first drake style started from the bottom. I read that the average va in los angeles earns 120k a year. But in los angeles. Thats not a huge wage. So in my opinion give them 20% more or the option for residuals and let them know the project they will be voicing. Life is getting more expensive 20% would help a lot

 

[steverebo]

In all honesty this arguement is pointless the same as the striking taking place it wont achieve anything the skill is not that unique so the gaming companies can just hire someone else who isnt behaving like a baby. AND at the end of the day if you dont like the job or the hours or the way your treated GET ANOTHER JOB one that you do like

 

[McDaddio]

An average salary is just that though... average... there aren't two actors alike, it's quite a unique industry in that sense, although sports does have some parallels. Also worth mentioning that actors and sportsman have absolutely ZERO job security... there is no guarantee of work, of duration of work (outside of that in a contract but even that isn't 100% if the project goes belly up), no pension, no benefits, no perks other than the CASH. OK, it can be very lucrative if you are lucky, but certainly in the acting profession it invariably is not. And to illustrate that, some statistics... approximately only 6% of Equity members earn over £30,000 a year... 52% earn less than £6,000 a year... UK actors/actresses work only an average of just over 11 weeks in a year. Sounds like fun!

It is a bit odd to be talking about acting and sportsman in the same sentence though... they are very different models. With sportsman, there are essentially two categories... amateur and pro. Amateurs do other jobs, even if they make some money in their chosen sport, while pros are full time... the pay scale and range varies MASSIVELY. With acting there are set minimums laid out by the Screen Actor's Guild, Equity etc. remunerations, residuals etc. All of that is in stipulated in a contract. It is the subject of this contract specifically relating to the games industry that is at the core of this whole discussion, and bringing it in line with film and TV. It's really that simple.

 

[McDaddio]

In all honesty this arguement is pointless the same as the striking taking place it wont achieve anything the skill is not that unique so the gaming companies can just hire someone else who isnt behaving like a baby. AND at the end of the day if you dont like the job or the hours or the way your treated GET ANOTHER JOB one that you do like

This is dismissive argument which you can use to invalidate any strike, whether that be doctors/nurses on the NHS, rail workers, women seeking equal pay, or any other issue that you might actually support, never-mind your OWN profession should circumstances arise under which you felt action needed to be taken... but based on your position it suggests you wouldn't protest and you'd simply just get another career. Yup, that works.

 

[Kaapstad]

This is dismissive argument which you can use to invalidate any strike, whether that be doctors/nurses on the NHS, rail workers, women seeking equal pay, or any other issue that you might actually support, never-mind your OWN profession should circumstances arise under which you felt action needed to be taken... but based on your position it suggests you wouldn't protest and you'd simply just get another career. Yup, that works.

If these actors feel so strongly about the matter why are so few of them in the union?

 

[McDaddio]

If these actors feel so strongly about the matter why are so few of them in the union?

Only about 25% of video games use Union performers, and this strike action won't actually effect the majority of titles. If the actors/actresses they utilise are not in the Union then that is the choice of the actor/actress... why they are not in the Union I do not know, but it certainly can't be assumed it's because they DON'T want fairness and equality on par with film and television. You'd have to ask them why they are not in it. It certainly doesn't make those that are in the Union wrong.

Thing is though, when you start reading in to this, money was not actually the main issue. It was a small part of it, but not the driving force behind the strike action. The main issues were actually vocal stress (recording sessions where actors are screaming or shouting for hours at a time which screws up their ability to do other work) and stunt coordinators for MOCAP sessions. They wanted to limit the amount of time spent on these stressful vocal sessions as it could have a permanent effect on the talent. Regarding MOCAP, they are asking for the same rules to be used as are used on any commercial, television or film shoot. If there are stunts, there needs to be a stunt coordinator, which apparently there is no requirement for at present.

These are health and welfare issues not financial issues. By latching on to the financial issues it stokes the flames of jealousy painting it as an issue of greed, so its easy to turn others against them. When you reframe it as a health and welfare issue it's much harder to do that.

 

[AlienALX]

If these actors feel so strongly about the matter why are so few of them in the union?

Trust me, America does everything it can to stamp out unions. If you even so much as talked about it at a job I had they would sack you on the spot. They didn't want you 'influencing' other employees.

 

[NeverBackDown]

Trust me, America does everything it can to stamp out unions. If you even so much as talked about it at a job I had they would sack you on the spot. They didn't want you 'influencing' other employees.

Yeah that's not true. That notion of thought was a couple decades ago.
If they really did do that to you, you should stand up to them. They can't do anything. I would have personally cussed them out. And I have. Matter of fact I did this 3 weeks ago(don't recommend this method, but I have authority at my work, I can get away with this, anywhere else and I would be fired). They could not fire you nor could they really say much about it, you are entitled to freely voice your opinion, Union or not, so long as it's not a threat. Talking about Unionizing is not that. You are exercising your freedom of speech, but now a days that amendment means very little, so probably not a great argument anymore. But I won't get into that political stuff.