SAG Member or SAG Eligible - What does your resume say?

Apr 28, 2008 - 23:59 PM PST


From my blog: still ACTING after all these years:


Recently, I wrote a piece in this blog asking for input from actors about the issues of being a SAG member vs being 'SAG Eligible'.

So far I haven't heard from any actors who want to offer their input. To be fair, many actors who might reply probably have no idea this web site exists. But, since I first posted my 'call for opinions', the site has been viewed several thousand times and maybe some actors will chime in eventually.

I first got interested in this issue because I kept seeing 'SAG Eligible' on actor's resumes when at auditions. I remember being a little annoyed when I first saw this label at the top of a resume. It struck me as saying 'I want the credit...I just don't want to pay the price'. Maybe that's too harsh.

But, either you're in SAG or you're not. In or out doesn't necessarily mean squat about an actor's talent and in our market it means almost nothing about an actor's professional experience. But membership does come at a price. Pretend membership does not.

Let me say upfront that I have good friends who are SAG eligible and have chosen not to join SAG...yet. I have no animosity toward those friends or any other actors in that situation. However, I make no apology for being adamantly in favor of SAG membership. I've been a SAG member for many years and that, no doubt, colors my thinking on the matter.

I thought it would help to have some way to relate the number of SAG member actors in Central Texas to the number of represented actors who advertise themselves as 'SAG Eligible'. That has proven a little more difficult than I had hoped.

According to an official at SAG, there are approximately 450 SAG members residing in Austin and San Antonio. Frankly that number seems a bit high to me, but that's the number I've been given so I'll use it. I tried to poll area agents to get an idea of how many SAG and SAG eligible actors they represent. That effort wasn't very successful, I'm afraid.

Therefore, I'm not sure how many 'SAG Eligible' actors reside in the Austin/San Antonio area. I do know that a quick survey of just one Austin agent's web site shows that particular agent represents almost 150 actors who identify themselves as being 'SAG Eligible'. That's one third of the reported Central Texas SAG membership and that's only one agent's talent roster.

The decision to join SAG in a right-to-work state, particularly a state where one is never forced to join the guild regardless of the amount of work performed, is certainly not an easy one. So I guess it's not surprising to see actors who ostensibly qualify for SAG membership tout themselves as being 'SAG Eligible'.

It's a way to 'rub up against' SAG membership without making the commitment...financial or otherwise.

It's not that difficult to understand the mindset of actors who can legally work both union and non-union productions. Some of the rationale often heard include:

There isn't enough SAG and AFTRA work in this market to make a decent living.

For most regional actors this is unfortunately true. For most actors in any market, making a middle class income is very difficult. But, I suspect there will always be a lack of SAG and AFTRA work in our market as long as there is a ready supply of talented, experienced, SAG eligible actors who remain non-union so they won't lose out on any possible work. Which comes first, more SAG actors or more SAG work?

Why cut out a significant portion of the possible work, even low paying work, by joining SAG and taking myself out of the non-union work pool?

This line of thought makes sense for the beginning actor who wants a professional career or for a hobbyist who has no professional aspirations.

It takes time to develop into a professional caliber actor. It takes experience and practice.

Joining SAG too soon can be a mistake for the young or new actor of any age. That's a great benefit to working in a right-to-work state. The actor is not forced to join the guild before they are really ready to compete as a professional actor.

That said, declining to join when your resume is replete with professional credits is another matter.

I live in a right-to-work state. The law allows me to work on SAG productions and get SAG wages and working conditions without joining SAG. I can get SAG pension and health benefits without joining SAG, too. If it's legal to do that, why would I pay money for initiation fees and dues to a union? That sounds dumb to me.

Personal and professional ethics do exist...even in the movie biz. Sometimes doing the 'right thing' means taking action that some people will say is 'dumb'. Is it right to take benefits secured by SAG actors' collective bargaining agreements, fueled by their initiation fees and dues payments and never give anything back to the organization of fellow actors that secured those benefits for you?

Even if I join SAG I can still work non-union because of right-to-work laws..

That's not correct. If you join SAG, you are agreeing to adhere to Rule 1 which states that SAG members will not work for non-signatory producers.

I want to join SAG some day. But right now it's too expensive. I'll join before I go to L.A.

Wow. Thanks for your support for the local acting community. Particularly the SAG actors who live and work here. I've heard this line a hundred times. I guess it's okay to take all you can get while you're here, but when it comes time to move to 'the big time' then you'll suck it up and pay the freight.

How do you decide when you are a professional or when you're professional enough to take the SAG plunge:

Here are some questions to ponder:

Do you spend a significant amount of your time working to become a better actor?

You're on the right track.

Does your agent regularly call you for auditions or is an audition a 'once in a great long while', out of the blue, SURPRISE!!! kind of thing?

If your agent hasn't called you in weeks or months, and you haven't called the agent either...you're probably not too serious about an acting career. You probably don't belong in SAG.

Have you canceled travel plans, celebrations or surgery rather than miss an audition?

Okay. You are serious about this acting thing. SAG should be in your future.

Have you ever answered "NEW HEADSHOTS" when asked what you want for your birthday?

If you haven't, please take the words 'SAG Eligible' off your resume.

Do you consider 'a video copy of the final project' to be adequate payment for your contribution to a film or video project?

Nothing wrong with this. Especially if you're trying to gain experience and looking for tape or film for a demo reel. Just understand that most projects that advertise this as your payment never get finished and you never get the promised footage. If these are the type projects you're pursuing, you're probably not ready for SAG membership.

Are all or most of your credits in amateur productions, university or commercial film school productions where no one is paid?

You're doing what you should be doing to gain experience. Keep working and look forward to the day you become a professional, SAG actor.

How many credits for paid work does it take before an actor should consider him/herself a professional?

I don't know the answer.

How many credits go on the resume before the term 'SAG Eligible' appears under the actor's name?

I suspect that happens after the very first job in a SAG signatory production.

Whatever the number of credits, mindsets or other criteria an actor employs, there comes a time when an actor who is regularly competing for paying jobs will surely identify him/herself as a professional. And when casting directors, agents and other industry professionals will do likewise. Maybe that's the time to consider changing that label at the top of the resume from SAG eligible to SAG member.