Hollywood: Actors seek agreement on the use of digital doubles – 06/06/2023 – Tech

Hollywood’s biggest union will kick off discussions on compensation in the age of artificial intelligence as part of contract talks with studios this week, debating how human artists should be compensated for the work of their “digital stunts”.

Concerns about AI’s disruptive potential have rattled Hollywood talent, who fear the technology could result in fewer jobs for writers, voice actors and others. Actors are also concerned about losing control of their image, as AI technology has been used to create “deepfake” videos featuring impersonations of actors such as Keanu Reeves and Tom Cruise.

“The rapid advances in generative AI over the past 18 months are something we’ve been seeing in real time [e] it’s already affecting our members,” said Duncan Crabtree-Ireland, chief negotiator at the actors’ union SAG-Aftra.

SAG-Aftra will meet with its Hollywood studio counterparts on Wednesday to begin finalizing a new three-year deal. The talks come at a tense time in Hollywood: The Writers Guild of America has been picketed for more than a month, and SAG-Aftra has asked its members to authorize a strike if an agreement is not reached by June 30.

If the actors go on strike, it would be their union’s first since 2000. It would bring Hollywood to a standstill as movie studios begin to recover from the pandemic. A new contract deal was reached on Sunday between the studios and the Directors Guild of America that some hope could form the basis of an agreement with actors and writers.

One of the actors union’s top priorities is to ensure that there is “informed consent” about the use of AI-created images from the performers and that they are paid fairly for the work of their digital stunt doubles, Crabtree-Ireland said.

“I don’t think we want to see our members race to the bottom with their own digital doubles,” he said. “All work by our members is subject to negotiation above a certain minimum [e] the starting point would be union-scale payments” for AI-created imitations.

Lawyers, producers and talent agency executives say such deals can be a windfall for top stars. It would be possible for an actor or actress to shoot a movie on location, while their digital version could make money shooting an advertisement, they say.

“Actors…can be in multiple places at once because these tools can help them execute different projects at different stages,” said Hilary Krane, legal director at Creative Artists Agency.

A veteran Hollywood dealmaker added: “George Clooney can probably only physically produce two or three movies a year. [mas com um dublê digital] maybe you can put him in six movies. As long as he gets fair value for it, it’s definitely an opportunity.”

There is less optimism about AI from Hollywood writers, who fear the technology could harm them. These concerns have increased since the launch of ChatGPT in November, which demonstrated the potential of generative AI.

The Writers Guild opposes the use of AI in the screenwriting process, except as a research tool, said Charles Slocum, the union’s assistant executive director. “To go beyond that is unwise,” he said, labeling generative AI software “plagiarism machines.”

The writers’ stance on AI — along with their concerns about the pay practices brought on by streaming — has led many to conclude that the strike could last well into the summer.

“The main concern [dos roteiristas] it’s that the studios are going to replace them with AI,” said the veteran Hollywood negotiator. “Now they see the AI ​​issue as an existential thing.”

The group representing studios and streamers, the Film and Television Producers Alliance, has offered to hold annual meetings on AI, saying the technology is advancing too fast to wait the three years between contract negotiations – a proposal that was received. with disdain for the writers’ union.

Ivy Kagan Bierman, entertainment employment attorney at Loeb & Loeb, said the AI ​​issue further alienated studios from unions.

“Understandably, studios don’t want to negotiate something that puts obstacles in the way of using AI technology,” she said. “On the other side of the table, you have the writers, directors and actors who fear that this technology will be used in ways that are not in their best interest.”

She advocated for an industry-wide task force to study the impact of AI, but the idea didn’t catch on. “AI is not something we should approach out of fear, nor is the negotiating table the best place to initially try to resolve concerns,” she said.

Translated by Luiz Roberto M. Gonçalves