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Atlanta, GA – Screen actors, writers and trade unionists rallied August 22 at the Teamster Local 728 union hall in support of the ongoing WGA and SAG-AFTRA strikes. The rally was part of a national day of solidarity called by the two unions on strike in conjunction with the AFL-CIO and its affiliates.

The WGA has been on strike against the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP) since May 2 and SAG-AFTRA since July 14. The AMPTP represents over 350 television and film production companies including major motion picture studios, broadcast television networks, and streaming companies.

The main issues the writers and screen actors are striking over are residuals from streaming content and the use of artificial intelligence to replace human jobs. Studio executives want to use AI to generate written content for productions and scan actors’ faces to digitally generate performances.

This work stoppage is the first time screen actors have gone on strike since 1980 and the first time writers and screen actors have gone on strike simultaneously since 1960. Over 190,000 writers and screen actors are currently on strike making this the largest interruption to film and television production since the COVID-19 pandemic.

#AtlantaGA #Teamsters #SAGAFTRA