How a recent animation rally has shed light on the mistreatment of many in the animation industry.
On Aug. 10, the Animation Guild held a rally called “Stand with Animation” as part of their larger fight against increased layoffs, outsourcing and the rise of AI.
Over 2,000 members attended the rally in Burbank, California, making it the largest animation rally since 1982.
Industry leaders like Rebecca Sugar, Genndy Tartakovsky, James Baxter, and Adam Conover spoke up about the industry’s ongoing problems and threats.
A.I. was one of the biggest concerns brought up during the rally. According to a Medium article by Stewart Townshend, a frequent AI commentator, “AI is being used in the film industry to take over many roles such as editing, sound design, script analysis, and casting that were originally done by humans.”
Because of AI, studios choose to work with a machine rather than human workers. By doing this, studios can get by cutting wages, increasing the workload, decreasing job opportunities, and overall stifling the creativity that goes into this puts many people’s livelihoods at stake.
Layoffs have become common within the industry. Pixar recently let go of 14% of its workers starting in late May 2024. According to an IGN article, “Though expected, the news was a blow for many employees, at least in part because they would not receive a bonus for “Inside Out 2” eventual success.”
Since Pixar is not unionized under the Animation Guild, many workers depend on the bonus they receive after working on a film to sustain themselves financially.
These layoffs could lead to a serious time crunch for the remaining Pixar workers, where roles and work of their absent coworkers are now pushed onto them.
Time crunches have become the industry standard, which causes the well-being of artists to plummet.
“As the release date remains fixed, the studio unofficially normalizes overtime during the third week and by the fourth week, animators find themselves working 10 to 14-hour days, including weekends, to meet the deadline,” CG Wire writer Gwénaëlle Dupré said.
Creativity and mental health suffer whenever crunch time is initiated. Many workers often experience burnout, and emotional and physical pain, and find themselves rushing the quality of their current project.
Animation has been a medium that influences people’s lives for decades. Through beautiful visuals, compelling storytelling, and engaging characters, animation has and will continue to change people’s lives. Anyone who works within the industry deserves to work under better circumstances.
The grueling hours of working on a single film or TV show are what makes production companies billions of dollars. By supporting the union members of the Animation Guild and maintaining solidarity, there is hope that animation will be saved. Everyone should Stand With Animation.
