SAG-AFTRA has launched a new contract that lets game developers hire union actors before their game has any funding. The Pre-Funding Pitch Interactive Media Agreement covers early material made to win over publishers and investors, from an internal teaser trailer to a playable vertical slice.
In practice, that means a small studio pitching its first game could put a professional voice actor or motion-capture performer in its demo, on union terms, before a single publisher has signed on. The one major exception is crowdfunding. Games funded through platforms such as Kickstarter are not covered.
The agreement is built for the earliest stage of development, when a studio has an idea and a prototype but no money to finish the game. Developers can bring in union talent to perform in pitch material that shows backers what the finished game could look like.
SAG-AFTRA has not published rates or the full terms alongside the announcement, as reported by VGC. It is also unclear exactly what counts as a pitch demo and what happens to a performance if the game later gets funded. Those details will matter most to the studios and actors who use it.
SAG-AFTRA president Sean Astin, best known for playing Sam in The Lord of the Rings, said the deal is about “bringing in professional voice and motion performance talent earlier in the process.”
Duncan Crabtree-Ireland, the union’s national executive director and chief negotiator, said the agreement “streamlines the hiring of professional union talent.” In other words, a developer who wants a union actor in a pitch no longer has to work out which full contract applies to a project that may never exist.
Funding is one of the hardest problems in games right now. Developers have spent the past few years dealing with layoffs, cancelled projects and publishers that are far more cautious with new IP. A polished pitch can be the difference between a signed deal and a shelved idea, and a recognisable performer can help a demo stand out in a crowded inbox.
The deal is also good business for the union. Without it, a studio on a tight budget might cast non-union performers for its pitch and then keep them once the money arrives. Bringing union actors in from day one makes it more likely they stay on the project. SAG-AFTRA already offers a tiered-budget agreement for independent games, and this new deal reaches even further back in a game’s life.
The new deal follows the long dispute between SAG-AFTRA and the games industry. Video game performers went on strike in July 2024, mainly over protections against generative AI, and the action lasted into the summer of 2025. During that time, union members could not work with studios that had not signed an agreement, and actors could not promote games they had worked on before the strike began.
AI has stayed a flashpoint since then. The union raised concerns over Fortnite’s AI-voiced Darth Vader in 2025, and our earlier coverage explains why the video game performers’ strike dragged on. A deal that puts human performers into games earlier fits neatly into that fight.
The agreement is available now, so the first test will be whether studios actually use it. If union actors start appearing in pitch demos at events and publisher meetings over the coming months, it could become a normal part of indie development. Developers interested in the deal can find more on SAG-AFTRA’s official website.
