michaelius
Banned
Well ask yourself - if you are hyped for a game do you decide to not buy it after carefully checking list of voice actors ?
Or if you don't care about game but learn it has VA by actors you like do you suddenly buy it ?
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SAG-AFTRA (union repping 25% of VAs) goes on strike against video game companies
- Thread starter orthodoxy1095
- Start date
Well ask yourself - if you are hyped for a game do you decide to not buy it after carefully checking list of voice actors ?
Or if you don't care about game but learn it has VA by actors you like do you suddenly buy it ?
NinjaCoachZ
Member
I've certainly heard of many games and became interested them through the voice actors. I'm in kind of a funny situation that I feel pretty sure doesn't represent a massive amount of people though.
Not Spaceghost
Spaceghost
Well the way I see it, if you can get away with replacing an iconic voice actor in an iconic role like david hayter for MGSV and not have it impact that sales in any perceivable way then what hope do you have of your strike being taken seriously?
In some cases the staff not involved directly with development like community managers do some of the voice work anyways, that's the case for Warframe and I believe titanfall.
kaname-san
Member
This is great. I was sick of hearing Nolan north and Laura bailey in every single game anyway.
orthodoxy1095
Banned
You're simply spreading your own misinformation if you're not going to counter with any proof.
BreezyLimbo
Banned
From what I've gathered, Troy Baker(For example) has done projects that didn't have a union of actors...
So I don't think Troy Baker is SAG?
So I don't think Troy Baker is SAG?
NinjaCoachZ
Member
This video - Nolan North mentions specifically about his decision not to take part in the vote that SAG-AFTRA member stook regarding a strike.
Troy Baker's IMDB resume (submitted by himself/his representatives) - lists SAG/AFTRA membership
Not just that but basic inference regarding their status in the industry. All of Nolan North's credits are in SAG-AFTRA products (i.e. none are non-union). Troy Baker started his career in Texas but you become eligible to join the union after working under SAG-AFTRA authorized products (which he started working on soon after moving to California). Based on the sheer number of high-profile/union gigs he's worked on in recent years and his increasing history of turning down non-union jobs, it's an easy inference to make.
What source was there to give people the impression they weren't?
He first lived in Texas, moved to California around 2007/2008. It took him a few years (until 2012/2013) until he started becoming ubiquitous in SAG/AFTRA AAA games. Around that time was when his non-union/smaller gigs started tapering off. Similar to how VAs such as Steve Blum, Crispin Freeman, Kari Wahlgren were able to reach a good enough status in the industry that they could afford to no longer accept non-union jobs.
BlackLagoon
Member
While not full SAG members, fi-core folks can work on SAG projects and thus benefit from an improved SAG minimum contract.
I'd say the biggest thing is that financial core status has become more common and accepted in the industry. It used to be a mark of shame, a declaration that one was not good enough to get "real work". But as several fi-core anime actors made the jump to high profile video games this seems to have changed.
Dunno about North, but Baker worked on both union and non-union projects for a while. I would guess he's financial core.
NinjaCoachZ
Member
Ficore is a possibility. AFAIK many actors tend to be lowkey about if they are. Also note that Baker hasn't been ubiquitous in non-union/smaller jobs in years. The only ones he did since late 2012 (after Persona 4 Golden) were Disgaea D2 and Yaiba: Ninja Gaiden Z to my knowledge.
BlackLagoon
Member
Sure, he obviously doesn't need to do non-union work any more. But SAG's position so far is that once you go fi-core, there's no going back to being a full member again.
Massive Duck. C.M.
Banned
NinjaCoachZ
Member
Yeah.
Well to be clear, I probably should have put an enter there or something. Someone like, say, Matthew Mercer is ficore. I was agreeing with your point that some of the VAs who commonly do non-union stuff nowadays are either ficore or just not union members at all.
Referring to Cassandra Lee and Troy Baker though, the former is relatively-new to the industry and the latter is basically on top of the world at the moment, so I don't think either are ficore. (Baker definitely isn't afaik. As I mentioned above his resume lists him as SAG-AFTRA.) Actors' union status isn't something I tend to get too concerned about or actively look into but that's just what I think at the moment. Maybe I'm wrong but that's my two cents.
BlackLagoon
Member
Lee seems to have been working as a voice actress for a decade now going back to Yu-Gi-Oh for 4Kids, and her homepage lists roles in union productions like Doraemon and Infamous: Second Son. She's definitely not non-union.
As for Troy, all that resume says is that he is eligible for SAG-AFTRA roles. And he's been doing union stuff like Naruto since the late 00s, while doing non-uinion projects under his real name. Obviously it's not for me to say for certain... but I'm not seeing a lot of options here.
NinjaCoachZ
Member
Well the key thing to keep in mind is as far as I know you don't need to be a union member to work on non-union projects (you can become eligible to join by working on a union project, but the union isn't the barrier of entry there). A handful of titles usually isn't enough. The thing is to examine overall history, patterns and trends. Cassandra Lee is mainly active in non-union anime and game dubs. Chris Sabat was in inFamous as well, but he lives in Texas and thus isn't be a SAG-AFTRA member.
Most of the non-union games where Troy Baker worked on are uncredited with some exceptions (e.g. Catherine). He has been pretty open about talking about roles like Kanji and Yuri though. However Yaiba is an interesting example because he was the only cast member to be uncredited in that - it's his last non-union job to date. As I've been saying. Entirely possible that he can have joined the union at a later date than the majority of those roles took place. Who knows. I don't want to speculate but at the moment he's a member and his lack of non-union gigs recently is either down to that or just simply schedule/payment/creative issues.
Anyway that's my two cents. I'm not an insider but I like to study this stuff so maybe I'm wrong on some regards.
BlackLagoon
Member
That's being Taft-Hartley'd, and it is a one time thing that lets someone work on a single project for at most 30 days. After that they have to join to continue doing SAG work.
Sabat could have been Taft-Hartley'd. Or he could have recorded in his studio in Texas, which has a Right to Work law that means Taft-Hartly doesn't apply and non-members are free to work on union projects as much as they want without joining.
Especially when some games make big deals about who's voicing who in a game. That shit is...wow.
Also, I forgot which VA tweeted that some suit told them that anyone could mocap.
VAs who also mocap their performances help out that performance big time
Aizen.S.Kennedy
Banned
I'm all for the slight pay increase and better work conditions. But Royalties? Nah.Frankly only a handful of V.A are good/popular enough to Warrent that. I've personally never brought/didn't buy a game based on vioice actors and I'm pretty sure the % of ppl who do is really small. Seems like they should have just took the really decent counter offer.
After all the fuss about mg5 and hayter didn't it STILL sell gangbusters? Didn't grand theft auto 5 one of the biggest selling games of all time just hire basically random actors? And sorry if slink Johnson can handle the mocap with no previous experience doesn't that mean it's a little true that anybody can do it.
After all the fuss about mg5 and hayter didn't it STILL sell gangbusters? Didn't grand theft auto 5 one of the biggest selling games of all time just hire basically random actors? And sorry if slink Johnson can handle the mocap with no previous experience doesn't that mean it's a little true that anybody can do it.
dancrane212
Member
Especially when some games make big deals about who's voicing who in a game. That shit is...wow.
Also, I forgot which VA tweeted that some suit told them that anyone could mocap.
VAs who also mocap their performances help out that performance big time
Didn't this group want the restriction that if the project was using SAG members only those actors could do mocap roles no matter the size? I recall a developer taking issue with that; they didn't like that an animator wouldn't be able to, using the knowledge of what they needed on a technical level, motion capture themselves picking up a gun or falling over having been knocked back by a player, and would instead have to direct an actor to do it.
striferser
Huge Nickleback Fan
Thanks for the write up. Yeah, it seem fair if everyone get bonus when the game reach certain sales hallmark.
sensui-tomo
Member
isnt the sag union the exact reason why almost 95% of the metal gear cast had to use different names in the 90s(aka psx release) ? besides dave hayter and whoever did darpa chief.
Jest Chillin
Member
Hayter was replaced by Sutherland, who is a member of SAG... So I'm not really sure why that's being touted as an anti strike point.
Conkerkid11
Member
You say that now...
Aizen.S.Kennedy
Banned
It just shows how easy it Is to replace a voice actor and have It make zero difference in profit made. Do u think if Hayter or any other actor replaced Sutherland on season 5 on 24 the ratings would have just stayed the same ?? That's why it's being touted.
Yabberwocky
Member
Oh, wow, I didn't realise the strike had gone ahead. I really hope it works out for them, and that they're able to get better protection for actors, especially in regards to long hours, brutal voice sessions, and mo-cap work. There seems to be a bit more protection in place for actors doing animation work (sensible recording sessions, etc), but the gaming industry is a bit more far behind. The gaming industry absolutely needs protection for its workers all round, devs very much included. Khris Brown (voice director, among a ton of other things has worked on a lot of Double Fine games) did a good post on Facebook about voice actors and devs are getting pitted against each other.
Urgh, that's some bullshit. It's also a bit of extra bullshit hypocrisy, because, sure, 'actors don't sell video games'. In some ways it is true - so, in turn, why do the same big companies who put such little stock in the saleability of working voice actors, then hire screen actors to try and sell their games? If actors don't sell a game, why bother? Of all franchises, nobody is picking up COD for Kevin Spacey or Kit Harington. Hiring good actors is what elevates a game, and makes it that bit more memorable.
...and yet Kojima still went and got Sutherland instead, even though voice actors in a game don't matter. He could have gotten any old voice actor. (Kojima also still cared enough about continuity to keep Akio Ōtsuka as Snake's Japanese voice actor.) I do get what you mean, though. For something like MGSV, the reason it sold so well was due to the fantastic gameplay. It really, really wasn't the story, good lord. A specific voice actor might not being a selling point for a particular game, but good actors in a story-focused game absolutely are. Good voice actors in any game are important, really. Nobody is playing Bayonetta for the story, but the haughty, confident school teacher charm that Helena Taylor gave Bayonetta is icing on the Platinum Games cake. It's a combination of Bayonetta's voice, design, and gameplay that makes her iconic.
Emphasising how easily actors can be replaced also diminishes how much actors can shape their characters and story, which in turn becomes a selling point for a game. Nolan North ad-libbed a lot of Nathan Drake's lines, and I don't think Uncharted would have had that extra bit of spark as a franchise without North voicing Drake. Troy Baker and Ashley Johnson had a lot of input into their characters for The Last of Us, and Ellie in particular would have been a lot more subdued with a different actress. Charles Martinet is technically replaceable as Mario if you have someone who can imitate the voice well, but part of the reason the character is so iconic is due to the voice and character Martinet created in the first place. It seems like every year Fox threatens to get recast of The Simpsons voice actors due to rising salary requests, but thankfully never goes through with it. The actors gave - and still give - these characters an intrinsic DNA to what they are, and the show wouldn't be as successful without it. If Dan Castellaneta hadn't interpreted his line of 'annoyed grunt' as 'D'oh!', Fox wouldn't be making money off merchandise with 'D'oh!' plastered everywhere.
For example, Robin Williams (rest in peace) made the Genie who and what he is today. It's because of this character framework (voice, speaking style, characterisation) that Williams created, that the Genie still lives on, even though he's now voiced by Dan Castellaneta. Eric Goldberg and the rest of Genie's animators were absolutely a part of that character, but the unique spark of life came from Williams himself. Whilst Genie doesn't have the spark he once had, but the essence of what the character is because of Williams. Same for Jim Henson with Kermit, and Frank Oz (thankfully still alive) with Miss Piggy. These are only one in a million examples! One of my favourites is Peter Cullen basing Optimus Prime's voice and character on his brother. Chris Latta passed away many years ago, but all the actors since that have played Starscream under the various continuities have used a similar high-pitched voiced style that he started, because the vocal choice that Latta made was so iconic. People always underestimate how much influence actors can have on a character. It's only a portion of the time that it's just showing up and reading a script. Even just showing up and reading a script isn't always that easy! I was always stressed out at having to cold read something to the class in high-school, I imagine it's even harder when you want someone to hire you for a job. Constantly having to cold read scripts even after you get your job is still an art in itself.
In regards to Hayter being replaced as Snake, it was partially due to his voice work that led to the character being so iconic. If MGSV was the first game in a series, it wouldn't have sold as well. The franchise's previous success is due to Kojima, and to the hard working devs at Konami. In regards to the series getting popular with an English speaking audience, a part of it was the localization, and also Snake as Hayter. I quite enjoyed Sutherland as Snake, but I don't think we would have had such parodies like Metal Gear Awesome if the more restrained Sutherland had been playing Snake all along. Hayter is a cog in the machine - yeah, it keeps running without him, but the machine wouldn't be able to run quite so well in the first place if he hadn't been there to start with. If MGSV was the first game in the series, and Sutherland replaced Hayter behind the scenes before the game released, Snake would have been a whole lot of nothing.
I guess my TL;DR version is that yes, you can replace voice actors, but good actors are a selling point in story-focused games, and people always severely underestimate how much of a role actors play in making characters what they are.
Yeah, absolutely. Fantastically put. Even with a game as huge as GTAV, a portion of word of mouth positivity towards the game was due to the actors, Steven Ogg as Trevor especially. People would absolutely be buying the game regardless, but it wouldn't have had that added layer of positivity on all fronts. Sometimes the story/voice work can be a game's saving grace - poor Mafia's III positive word of mouth seems to be primarily centred around the game's story and actors. I know FFXII isn't everyone's thing, but it's a selling point to the game that the localization and the voice work is universally considered to be fantastic.
I absolutely agree that everyone you mentioned should be getting some kind of residuals, especially when a game ends up making a certain amount of money. Along with the issues other people have mentioned in regards to voice actors and residuals, an issue can be that is quite unique to actors (and models, and artists with a very distinctive style, etc), is that you kind of become a brand, and then people stop wanting to use you, regardless of quality. I mean, every single career a person can choose absolutely has its bullshit issues, but not getting work due to exposure is usually quite rare. Normally it's the opposite! This sentiment obviously goes for actors who do both voice and screen. Sometimes casting directors, directors, etc, just go, 'eh, we've used them too much, let's get something else'. Rob Paulsen and Frank Welker have talked about this, and Rob Paulsen has covered it in a few of his podcasts. Paulsen talked about the fact he had a few years where he was getting very little work at all, even after the big successes of TMNT, Pinky and the Brain, Animaniacs, etc. The lull was one of the reasons he originally began the podcast, though he has since been doing very well again. I'm not paraphrasing him very well, but Paulsen talked about how they want you, then they want someone that sounds like you, then they don't want you at all, until you end up back at 'wait, who are you?' Sometimes you're financially in a position where you can wade it out, but a lot of people aren't. Residuals can help a little to compensate for the fleeting nature of the industry, even though the amount is usually really small. Type-casting is also an issue in advertising, though advertising pays better. You can become quite prominent for one or two things, and then other brands won't use you as your face/voice is too reminiscent of another brand.
I mean, we all joke about it, but how often do we all go 'urgh, Nolan North/Troy Baker again'? It's not an issue of the quality of work they put out - they're both incredible actors, with an impressive range - but actors almost become a brand, and sometimes people want something new. Just this week I had a 'oh, come on, Jennifer Lawrence again?!' moment with a film trailer. It's not an issue with the quality of her work, she's fantastic. It's just the constant exposure can feel a bit same-y. The Friends cast is kinda an example of why it's good to get residuals - most of them don't do a lot of work anymore, and it's impossible for them to escape the 'Friends' label. Doesn't matter financially, they're rolling in money made due to syndication. It's well deserved, as the actors are part of the reason the characters became so iconic. Whilst there is a lot more freedom in voice acting - due to your brand not being your face - it still becomes an issue of a different kind.
At any rate, the same sort of financial protection should be going towards devs, too. It's appalling that so many devs get treated like disposable dishrags when a project is over, let alone the treatment during the project. The whole industry is an unwieldy mess. I hope the strike works out well for the actors, and that positive steps are made to protect devs.
Ah, yes, there's already enough of an issue with licensing, contracts, voice actors, and companies in general with Japanese games getting Western releases, let's make it worse! I enjoy listening to Japanese voice actors as much as English, but the vast majority of people prefer dubs, and dubbed anime tends to sell better. Adult Swim sticks to airing dubs of anime because they get better ratings. At any rate, the strike isn't really even about voice actors who do a lot of dubbing, it's everyone who does voice work in gaming across the board.
It would be interesting to know how actors in Japan have to deal with the same issues. In some ways they seem to be more respected and protected, but I imagine it wouldn't be all sunshine and roses, either.
So, er, that's all quite long. Poor GAF. TL;DR version - support voice actors, support devs, stay in school, eat your vegetables.
Urgh, that's some bullshit. It's also a bit of extra bullshit hypocrisy, because, sure, 'actors don't sell video games'. In some ways it is true - so, in turn, why do the same big companies who put such little stock in the saleability of working voice actors, then hire screen actors to try and sell their games? If actors don't sell a game, why bother? Of all franchises, nobody is picking up COD for Kevin Spacey or Kit Harington. Hiring good actors is what elevates a game, and makes it that bit more memorable.
...and yet Kojima still went and got Sutherland instead, even though voice actors in a game don't matter. He could have gotten any old voice actor. (Kojima also still cared enough about continuity to keep Akio Ōtsuka as Snake's Japanese voice actor.) I do get what you mean, though. For something like MGSV, the reason it sold so well was due to the fantastic gameplay. It really, really wasn't the story, good lord. A specific voice actor might not being a selling point for a particular game, but good actors in a story-focused game absolutely are. Good voice actors in any game are important, really. Nobody is playing Bayonetta for the story, but the haughty, confident school teacher charm that Helena Taylor gave Bayonetta is icing on the Platinum Games cake. It's a combination of Bayonetta's voice, design, and gameplay that makes her iconic.
Emphasising how easily actors can be replaced also diminishes how much actors can shape their characters and story, which in turn becomes a selling point for a game. Nolan North ad-libbed a lot of Nathan Drake's lines, and I don't think Uncharted would have had that extra bit of spark as a franchise without North voicing Drake. Troy Baker and Ashley Johnson had a lot of input into their characters for The Last of Us, and Ellie in particular would have been a lot more subdued with a different actress. Charles Martinet is technically replaceable as Mario if you have someone who can imitate the voice well, but part of the reason the character is so iconic is due to the voice and character Martinet created in the first place. It seems like every year Fox threatens to get recast of The Simpsons voice actors due to rising salary requests, but thankfully never goes through with it. The actors gave - and still give - these characters an intrinsic DNA to what they are, and the show wouldn't be as successful without it. If Dan Castellaneta hadn't interpreted his line of 'annoyed grunt' as 'D'oh!', Fox wouldn't be making money off merchandise with 'D'oh!' plastered everywhere.
For example, Robin Williams (rest in peace) made the Genie who and what he is today. It's because of this character framework (voice, speaking style, characterisation) that Williams created, that the Genie still lives on, even though he's now voiced by Dan Castellaneta. Eric Goldberg and the rest of Genie's animators were absolutely a part of that character, but the unique spark of life came from Williams himself. Whilst Genie doesn't have the spark he once had, but the essence of what the character is because of Williams. Same for Jim Henson with Kermit, and Frank Oz (thankfully still alive) with Miss Piggy. These are only one in a million examples! One of my favourites is Peter Cullen basing Optimus Prime's voice and character on his brother. Chris Latta passed away many years ago, but all the actors since that have played Starscream under the various continuities have used a similar high-pitched voiced style that he started, because the vocal choice that Latta made was so iconic. People always underestimate how much influence actors can have on a character. It's only a portion of the time that it's just showing up and reading a script. Even just showing up and reading a script isn't always that easy! I was always stressed out at having to cold read something to the class in high-school, I imagine it's even harder when you want someone to hire you for a job. Constantly having to cold read scripts even after you get your job is still an art in itself.
In regards to Hayter being replaced as Snake, it was partially due to his voice work that led to the character being so iconic. If MGSV was the first game in a series, it wouldn't have sold as well. The franchise's previous success is due to Kojima, and to the hard working devs at Konami. In regards to the series getting popular with an English speaking audience, a part of it was the localization, and also Snake as Hayter. I quite enjoyed Sutherland as Snake, but I don't think we would have had such parodies like Metal Gear Awesome if the more restrained Sutherland had been playing Snake all along. Hayter is a cog in the machine - yeah, it keeps running without him, but the machine wouldn't be able to run quite so well in the first place if he hadn't been there to start with. If MGSV was the first game in the series, and Sutherland replaced Hayter behind the scenes before the game released, Snake would have been a whole lot of nothing.
I guess my TL;DR version is that yes, you can replace voice actors, but good actors are a selling point in story-focused games, and people always severely underestimate how much of a role actors play in making characters what they are.
Yeah, absolutely. Fantastically put. Even with a game as huge as GTAV, a portion of word of mouth positivity towards the game was due to the actors, Steven Ogg as Trevor especially. People would absolutely be buying the game regardless, but it wouldn't have had that added layer of positivity on all fronts. Sometimes the story/voice work can be a game's saving grace - poor Mafia's III positive word of mouth seems to be primarily centred around the game's story and actors. I know FFXII isn't everyone's thing, but it's a selling point to the game that the localization and the voice work is universally considered to be fantastic.
I absolutely agree that everyone you mentioned should be getting some kind of residuals, especially when a game ends up making a certain amount of money. Along with the issues other people have mentioned in regards to voice actors and residuals, an issue can be that is quite unique to actors (and models, and artists with a very distinctive style, etc), is that you kind of become a brand, and then people stop wanting to use you, regardless of quality. I mean, every single career a person can choose absolutely has its bullshit issues, but not getting work due to exposure is usually quite rare. Normally it's the opposite! This sentiment obviously goes for actors who do both voice and screen. Sometimes casting directors, directors, etc, just go, 'eh, we've used them too much, let's get something else'. Rob Paulsen and Frank Welker have talked about this, and Rob Paulsen has covered it in a few of his podcasts. Paulsen talked about the fact he had a few years where he was getting very little work at all, even after the big successes of TMNT, Pinky and the Brain, Animaniacs, etc. The lull was one of the reasons he originally began the podcast, though he has since been doing very well again. I'm not paraphrasing him very well, but Paulsen talked about how they want you, then they want someone that sounds like you, then they don't want you at all, until you end up back at 'wait, who are you?' Sometimes you're financially in a position where you can wade it out, but a lot of people aren't. Residuals can help a little to compensate for the fleeting nature of the industry, even though the amount is usually really small. Type-casting is also an issue in advertising, though advertising pays better. You can become quite prominent for one or two things, and then other brands won't use you as your face/voice is too reminiscent of another brand.
I mean, we all joke about it, but how often do we all go 'urgh, Nolan North/Troy Baker again'? It's not an issue of the quality of work they put out - they're both incredible actors, with an impressive range - but actors almost become a brand, and sometimes people want something new. Just this week I had a 'oh, come on, Jennifer Lawrence again?!' moment with a film trailer. It's not an issue with the quality of her work, she's fantastic. It's just the constant exposure can feel a bit same-y. The Friends cast is kinda an example of why it's good to get residuals - most of them don't do a lot of work anymore, and it's impossible for them to escape the 'Friends' label. Doesn't matter financially, they're rolling in money made due to syndication. It's well deserved, as the actors are part of the reason the characters became so iconic. Whilst there is a lot more freedom in voice acting - due to your brand not being your face - it still becomes an issue of a different kind.
At any rate, the same sort of financial protection should be going towards devs, too. It's appalling that so many devs get treated like disposable dishrags when a project is over, let alone the treatment during the project. The whole industry is an unwieldy mess. I hope the strike works out well for the actors, and that positive steps are made to protect devs.
Ah, yes, there's already enough of an issue with licensing, contracts, voice actors, and companies in general with Japanese games getting Western releases, let's make it worse! I enjoy listening to Japanese voice actors as much as English, but the vast majority of people prefer dubs, and dubbed anime tends to sell better. Adult Swim sticks to airing dubs of anime because they get better ratings. At any rate, the strike isn't really even about voice actors who do a lot of dubbing, it's everyone who does voice work in gaming across the board.
It would be interesting to know how actors in Japan have to deal with the same issues. In some ways they seem to be more respected and protected, but I imagine it wouldn't be all sunshine and roses, either.
So, er, that's all quite long. Poor GAF. TL;DR version - support voice actors, support devs, stay in school, eat your vegetables.
sensui-tomo
Member
oh no, i was just asking in general, if you've seen my past post i was argueing against someone saying that VA's dont put in effort in their jobs. I totally believe they should go on strike, but was also wondering (and have for a long time) If sag still has those assine rules that force VAs to come up with fake names in order to do more work, which surprisingly didnt harm them oddly enough (or at least as far as i know)
Again this isnt means as anti strike, just some curiosity)
spyroflame0487
Member
Rob Paulsen (You probably know him as Yakko from the Animaniacs) shared this today:
http://www.gameactorsforall.com/
Looks like where they're going to be posting info at. Steve Blum recorded a 7 minute audio thing that sounds like it's about to explain whats going on.
http://www.gameactorsforall.com/
Looks like where they're going to be posting info at. Steve Blum recorded a 7 minute audio thing that sounds like it's about to explain whats going on.
Crunch, constant layoffs and studios going under every second week?
Jest Chillin
Member
It really doesn't show how easy it is to replace a voice actor because they went from an one of the most well known VA's in Hayter to an actor who is even MORE well known to the general public AND made him part of the promotion of the game.
That won't be an option during this strike as SAG members in Film and TV won't cross the picket lines. So if Hayter was replaced by an unknown VA, you can bet there would've been an even bigger backlash.
Beyond that, I don't think people realize just how many voices in these games are done by the same groups of actors and how many of these actors also double as Directors. Add in that a lot of games hire film and tv actors who aren't huge names but still are SAG members and there will be a noticeable loss in the quality of AAA game voices work during this strike and players will notice it and complain.
cj_iwakura
Member
Will the non-union VAs also stop taking work as a show of solidarity? Unlikely, but it'd be nice.
I don't see much incentive for them to get evicted and go on food stamps to support a union they're not part of.
This is their livelihood.
The union actors can have a fair amount of other work to do, so while losing 33% of your income would be very painful, it wouldn't be as immediately devastating as it would for a lot of non-union workers.
The only power labour ultimately has is it's own withdrawal. I wholly support SAG-AFTRA in this action and hope they're successful in getting the protections their members deserve.
If you're part of the labour force and can join a union I would always encourage you to do so, unions are one of the few checks and balances against capital we have as a society.
If you're part of the labour force and can join a union I would always encourage you to do so, unions are one of the few checks and balances against capital we have as a society.
I'm always impressed how eager some people are to dismiss.
BlackLagoon
Member
Non-union actors in Los Angeles and New York might, since they usually aspire to greater things, which would typically involve union membership. Antagonizing SAG could affect their future career prospects. Obviously those who are not part of the established voice over industry would have no such dilemmas.
ElBoxyBrown
Banned
I gaurentee you the Uncharted games would not be the same high quality standard if you got some random Joe to do Mocap instead of Nolan North.
orthodoxy1095
Banned
This seems like a major visibility problem. Most casual fans of movies can recognize a bunch of actors, most casual fans of video games probably can not.
It gives the perception of facelessness and replaceability.
thebigmachine
Member
If a game has one SAG-AFTRA member on cast the whole cast has to be 100% made up of members?
Currently it sounds like it's a mix of both members (under fake names) and non members. This seems like a major change to how it currently works.
Currently it sounds like it's a mix of both members (under fake names) and non members. This seems like a major change to how it currently works.
I meant to post this when the thread was first created.
I fully support them, and hope they get everything they ask for.
I wish devs would union up, it's the only way they're going to stop being exploited.
I fully support them, and hope they get everything they ask for.
I wish devs would union up, it's the only way they're going to stop being exploited.
cartman414
Member
Good man.
Frankly, I'm not sure how forming a union could happen. Too many aspiring developers willing to pull a scab during a strike. I'd like for it to come to pass.
Freshmaker
I am Korean.
Because companies control their access to joy juice.
BlackLagoon
Member
I believe this is about stopping the publishers from moving voice recording for affected projects ("struck work") to Canada. Games that were already using Canadian casts should be unaffected, though few AAA games are. Deus Ex is the only recent example I can think of.
If you use one union actor, SAG insists that the whole project be union (film, tv, game, etc.).
SAG said:
Which is part of the reason it is difficult for new faces to break in to Hollywood. You need to be in SAG to get a major role, but you can't be in SAG unless you've got some established roles.
It makes sense that SAG would want a monopoly on video game VA work.
NinjaCoachZ
Member
That's why union members working on non-union things either go uncredited or use an alias, isn't it? So they can cover their asses.
Huh, to be honest I was unaware of this. Let me get this straight. A non-union member can work on one union project. After that they can either join the union (and continue doing SAG-AFTRA work), or they can not join (at least for the moment - no idea if they can delay their joining until later) and continue as a non-member doing non-union work? Something like that?
This has applied to me in both anime and video games many times. Hell, I'd watch an anime I normally wouldn't watch if the opening song is done by somebody I like.
BreezyLimbo
Banned
Ah yes, the Catch-22.
Its possible to get SAG cards as an extra, and once youve gotten a certain amount you can get ito SAG.
The other way is if, lets say you audition for a part in a SAG production and the director/casting wants you, they have to make a case to SAG why you have something that no other SAG member has. Alot harder that way, but not an impossibility.