The AI Task Force’s report, ‘Critical Crossroads: The Impact of Generative AI and the Importance of Protecting the Animation Workforce’ describes the impact of GenAI on animation workers and the animation industry; report drops as The Animation Guild resumes previously failed negotiations with AMPTP.
The Animation Guild’s (TAG) AI Task Force has released “Critical Crossroads: The Impact of Generative AI and the Importance of Protecting the Animation Workforce.”
This comprehensive study describes the impact of Generative AI (GenAI) on animation workers and the animation industry. The report, released yesterday, comes as TAG resumes negotiations with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP).
The AI Task Force, composed of rank-and-file Guild members across a range of crafts, met regularly for a year inviting varied experts and leaders in their respective fields to inform the process.
Here’s a sampling of the report findings as outlined by TAG:
- AI is the top negotiations priority for Animation Guild members, underscoring the importance of addressing these issues in the Collective Bargaining Agreement.
- Addressing the impact of GenAI and ensuring the endurance of human-made art and labor in animation will require a multi-faceted approach that includes public policy, organized labor, public pressure, and awareness campaigns.
- Entry-level positions will be most susceptible to consolidation or elimination. As a result, AI systems are likely to disproportionately affect those from less affluent backgrounds and underrepresented communities who have traditionally used these roles as a means towards economic mobility.
“This report provides our Negotiations Committee, membership, and the public with a useful tool to understand the complex landscape around Generative AI products and how they relate to the animation industry and union job security,” said AI Task Force member Brandon Jarratt. “My hope is that the report gives animation workers everywhere confidence in TAG’s multi-pronged approach to meeting the challenge we face.”
“TAG's AI Task Force provides The Animation Guild membership and the public with our best understanding of how Generative AI will impact animation labor and what we can do about it,” added AI Task Force member Sam Tung. “While the stakes are high, we can see strong paths forward for animation workers—we do not have to resign ourselves to a future where the only job is the mundane checking of AI outputs. GenAI will never be able to do what we do, and by organizing, we can ensure a future where our art, stories, and work remain beautiful, meaningful, and human.”
The condensed version of the report is available to read here.
Source: The Animation Guild
Debbie Diamond Sarto is news editor at Animation World Network.
