SAG-AFTRA Requests Investigation Concerning Harmful Vocal Work In Video Games

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Harmful vocal work? Studios gave special candies that stop the actors from feeling the damage they were inflicting on their vocal cords? Is it just me or does this whole thing sound made up to you?

SAG-AFTRA, the union representing actors and other performers in Hollywood, recently asked the state of California to open an investigation into allegedly unsafe vocal recording sessions held by companies in the video game industry. In a letter sent to the state’s Division of Occupational Safety and Health on May 25, SAG-AFTRA said that long hours, coupled with the need to record loud and strenuous noises such as violent screaming and inhuman voices, were damaging the vocal cords of its members.
 
Could be that the union members want to be treated like movie actors and this combined with the strike last year is their attempt to get better compensation for their work by leveraging the power of its members and now the government. Or they could have evidence of actual grievances within the industry. Or or the actors doing voiceovers have no actual voiceover work experience, so they're doing the damage themselves by not following best practices and went crying to their union who then saw an opportunity to get more money. Either way it will be interesting to see how this plays out.
 
Could be true but why go after the industry? If AFTRA is involved then there are complaints being made but why not towards those individual studios?
 
translates as, "We need twice the time for twice the pay to allow our vocal cords to rest"
 
Or you are the lead singer of a rock n roll band like say, um, AC/DC who was forced to scream over and over for the sake of record company profits and then you lose your voice permanently and replaced by a Fat Axl.

Definitely need to investigate that!!
 
As someone who sometimes works in parallel with the voice-acting industry I can, for certain, say that they need this protection. I know several people that, as a result of repeated stress on their vocal cords, had to take months off to rest and recuperate. Often the line you, as a viewer/listener, end up hearing is the result of tens of takes. Sometimes more. When you hear a character scream or yell, the voice actor might have had to do that thirty times to get it 'right'. I know of one particular instance for a AAA game being mastered in Santa Monica (you can go ahead and guess the dev) where the actor was required to record blood-curdling screams for nearly two hours - he had to lay off voice work for the better part of a year as a result of that job.

Of course not all voice acting jobs are like this, and most directors I know are sensitive to these issues - however, there are always outliers who push an actor too far - and newer actors will often forego voicing their concerns out of fear that they could be let go.
 
Like all moving parts, vocal folds wear. Being a biological system they heal, it behoves a voice actor to both receive training and rest their equipment regularly to preserve their meal ticket.

I don't know any specifics of this situation, but I wonder what percentage of these voice actors are getting training to keep their voice in working condition.

I also know that production schedules can be brutal for everyone involved, especially in video games. I wonder what the hours look like for someone doing voice work come crunch time...
 
DrLobotomy said:
Or you are the lead singer of a rock n roll band like say, um, AC/DC who was forced to scream over and over for the sake of record company profits and then you lose your voice permanently and replaced by a Fat Axl.

Definitely need to investigate that!!
Click to expand...
Brian Johnson is taking time off from AC/DC because he was about to go completely deaf. It had nothing to do with his voice. If that singing of his was actually stressing his voice, he would have had problems decades ago. He's been the lead singer since 1980. That's a career spanning 36 years (not including previous bands).
 
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I'd hate to inconvenience a voice actor, so I'm fine with simply a softly whispered "darn it" the next time my character dies in a game.
 
Here are two factors that I think are likely at play:
1. Video game directors are still relatively new to handling actors and compensating for physical limitations (those possessed by all humans as opposed to specific disabilities). It's not like there aren't stories all the time about video games being produced under conditions that would seem oppressive to people who spent years in a Soviet prison camp.
2. Recording voice acting is much, much cheaper than recording live action, even with liberal use of green screens (reducing set complexity). That could make it seem cost efficient to directors and producers to get a dozen takes even when the first one was good.

Also, seeing this as a money grab (based on the article) is some cynical bullshit given that what they're requesting is an investigation. They seem to be looking for the state to see whether or not the conditions are unreasonable. That's about as reasonable as a union can and should be.
 
If you were to spend some time researching the issues being discussed, you just might learn how some of the demands being placed on voice actors are dangerous and damaging. Wil Wheaton's blog post about it was illuminating, as was reading several threads on reddit from folks in the industry.

Abuses can take place on both sides. That is why we need a balanced approach and an investigation is just the first steps in that. I for one would enjoy having our voice actors around for many years to come...rather then burning them out young.

And I disagree this is a result of inexperience. When money is on the line people push hard and cut corners. That very thing led to the stuntwomen in Back to the Future splattering all over the ground from 30 feet up. Some protections are likely necessary.

What I don't understand is - these blockbuster games with large voice acting parts always take many years to develop. Why is it such a problem to spread the work out over a few more weeks if it makes everyone happy?
 
CaptNumbNutz said:
Brian Johnson is taking time off from AC/DC because he was about to go completely deaf. It had nothing to do with his voice. If that singing of his was actually stressing his voice, he would have had problems decades ago. He's been the lead singer since 1980. That's a career spanning 36 years (not including previous bands).
Click to expand...

Yea, you got me. Apparently my motivation to make a snarky comment got convoluted with facts and I had a senior moment. It all sounded right in my head. :whistle:
 
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