Writers and actors stand with musicians...
The Hollywood musicians' union, the American Federation of Musicians (AFM), will start bargaining talks Monday to demand streaming residuals and protections against artificial intelligence, Variety reported.
The AFM began the talk with a rally in the rain at Sherman Oaks Galleria, where the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) are headquartered. The AMPTP represents the major studios in bargaining talks.
The AFM have laid out the same issues as the ones that compelled Hollywood writers and actors to go on strike in 2023, which froze industry work for half the year.
American Federation of Musicians and artificial intelligence
The union's international president Tino Gagliardi said, “We're not Luddites.”
The goal is not to completely totally block artificial intelligence (AI) or “instrument replacement technology.” Rather, the union wants ensure that musicians are able to use them as tools, and that they are not discarded in the process.
Gagliardi continued, “In fact, a lot of our people are developing this stuff. We need consent. We need compensation. And we need credit.”
The union has approximately 70,000 members across the US and Canada. This includes recording musicians, touring artists as well as orchestra and nightclub performers.
The AFM's contract for TV and film was supposed to expire Nov. 13. However, they agreed to extend it by six months due to the Writers Guild of America and SAG-AFTRA strikes.
Negotiations are set to occur over the next two weeks.
Talking points: residuals, wage increase and protections from AI
The AMPTP released a statement that said: “The AMPTP looks forward to productive negotiations with the Federation, with the goal of concluding an agreement that will ensure an active year ahead for the industry and recognize the value that musicians add to motion pictures and television.”
The union also wants to make sure that they will benefit with the entertainment industry's changing model due to streaming shows. Unlike the other guilds such as the WGA and SAG-AFTRA, the AFM members do not get streaming residuals for their work.
Gagliardi said, “The business model has changed for all of us. Musicians are making 75% less now than they were before the streaming model. We need to have a residual on streaming.”
The AFM also want to bargain for increases in their wages. AFM Chicago local president B.J. Levy stated that writers and actors have bargaining power in that they can stop production. However, musicians don't have that because by the time they're needed production on the film and series would have already been almost completed.
Hollywood unions like the WGA, SAG-AFTRA and the Teamsters were also present at the rain-soaked rally. AFM members could also be seen at the writers' and actors' picket lines during their strike.
WGA West vice president Michele Mulroney said, “All of Hollywood labor is fighting for the same stuff at the end of the day. It just comes down to really basic respect and fairness… We'll stand with them for as long as it takes or them to get the fair deal they deserve.”
Here's to hoping that it does get resolved fast. As Levy pointed out, musicians don't have the same leverage as writers and actors. While music is universal in the sense that it transcends language and borders, it's patently unfair that this could be used to shaft the AFM.
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