How Do You Qualify to Join Screen Actors Guild?

Shortly after we arrived in L.A., some parents told me how important it was to join Screen Actors Guild. They used a lot of terms like ‘Taft-Hartley‘ and ‘must-join‘ that made absolutely no sense to me.

We were told that it would be hard for my daughter to get auditions if she did not join Screen Actors Guild (SAG).

We were also told that it was getting harder to get into SAG. Someone even told me that if we were new in Hollywood, we might as well go home because no one new was going to get into SAG. Well, maybe it was not in those exact words, but that was the gist of it.

Well, the fact is, you can’t believe everything you hear “on the street” here in Los Angeles.

There is a little bit of truth in what I heard, but for the most part it was a lot of hogwash. Perhaps it was a lack of understanding or perhaps it was just parents of other young actors wanting some of us newbies to go back home where we belonged. And I ‘get’ it.

There are about 120,000 Screen Actors Guild members worldwide. The competition is pretty fierce for SAG jobs.

I soon learned more about the Screen Actors Guild (SAG) and realized it was not quite as grim as it seemed. So, how do you qualify to join Screen Actors Guild?

You can qualify to join Screen Actors Guild by doing one of the following:

Work as a principal actor or have a speaking role in a SAG project (film, videotape, tv program, or commercial).
Work as a SAG-covered background actor for three or more days on SAG projects and at the full SAG background rate and after March, 1990. (Be sure to verify with the producers that a particular background job will meet the SAG requirements to qualify you and give you what is often referred to as a SAG voucher.)
Work for and be paid at least once as a principal performer on a contract with an affiliated performers’ union (AFTRA, ACTRA AEA, AGMA, or AGVA) and be a paid-up member of that union for one year or more.

For additional recorded information on how to join Screen Actors Guild, you can call (323) 549-6772, or visit the SAG site.

If You Are Not in SAG

If you are not a Screen Actors Guild member, it might be a little harder to get into some auditions for SAG projects, especially as you get older, but you can still get into them.

For some SAG projects, it might be that only SAG actors are called in. Or SAG actors may be called in first, and one of them might book the job before non-SAG actors even get a chance to audition. Or the non-SAG actors might be called in later.

For children, it is even less of a problem if you are not a SAG member — you certainly have to start somewhere.

But if you have a talent agent and/or a talent manager, and you are submitted for a role and have the right look, you can definitely still be called in to audition even without being a SAG member.

If there are two actors who are equally right for the project, and one is in SAG and the other is not, the SAG actor is probably a little more likely to get the part over the non-SAG actor. But you never know for sure.

Taft-Hartley

If you are not in SAG and get into an audition for a SAG project, and the casting director, director, and producers think you are perfect for that project, what happens next?

You have to be ‘Taft-Hartley‘ d by the production company before you can be employed for a SAG project.

This just means that the production company must fill out and file some extra paper work to get you. They must justify that you are uniquely qualified for their project in a way that no current SAG actor is.

If the justification is not approved by SAG, then the production company must pay a small fine.

SAG-Eligible or SAG-E

Once you complete work on your first SAG job (as a principal actor), you qualify to join Screen Actors Guild.

You are now classified with a special status that is actually quite desirable. You are now ‘SAG-Eligible‘ (sometimes written SAG-E).

Being SAG-Eligible means you are qualified to work on SAG jobs, but at the same time you are still able to work on non-union jobs. That is a nice position to be in.

You can’t actually join Screen Actors Guild until the paper work is received from the production company and processed by the Screen Actors Guild. This can take only 10 to 15 days or it can take weeks. You can also take a copy of your pay stub from that SAG job to the SAG office for processing, and after they process the information (in about 10 days), you can join.

Must Join

When you work your second SAG job, you are put into ‘Must-Join‘ status. This means that you have 30 days, during which time you can work on any number of SAG jobs without joining. But after the 30 days are up, you must join Screen Actors Guild before you can work on another SAG job.

Is there any reason to join Screen Actors Guild before you absolutely have to? Most would say, “No!”

But talent agents and talent managers are probably eager for you to join so SAG will appear on your resume. You may be eager to put that on your resume as well.

After you join SAG, you can no longer work on non-union jobs. Take advantage of your current status and continue to build your resume by working on non-union jobs as well as SAG jobs for as long as possible.

When you get offered that next SAG job after the 30 days are up, if what you’ll earn won’t cover your SAG initiation fees, you’ll have to decide whether to take the job and pay the large initiation fees or not.

In future posts, you can read additional information related to the Screen Actors Guild.

For more information on SAG and many other topics related to your children and showbiz, please sign up for Your Young Actor’s Newsletter.

Sincerely,

Debbie Sikkema

Share and Enjoy:

Tags: Debbie Sikkema, join SAG, Join Screen Actors Guild, SAG, SAG Eligible, Taft Hartley, technorati

SAG | Debbie Sikkema | May 15, 2009 11:06 am

18 Comments

By Cameron from Lake Norfork AR Resorts, May 19, 2009 @ 10:52 am

120K screen actors guild members?? thats insane.. thats like 4 times the size of the town i grew up in.
By Debbie Sikkema, May 19, 2009 @ 11:26 am

Yes, it is pretty amazing, isn’t it? And that does not count all the actors who are in the other unions and not in SAG nor all the actors who are not yet in one of the unions.
By Daniel from Bad Credit Loans, May 25, 2009 @ 6:02 pm

My brother lives in HB, CA. He has a daughter that is a member of the Screen Actors Guild. From what I understand it wasn’t easy to get into.

Daniel’s last blog post..Transferring Balances in Credit Cards
By Jada, May 28, 2009 @ 7:29 pm

If I’ve joined SAG and my dues are lapsed to the point of having to re-join, am I still considered a SAG member, or may I now do non-union work?
By Debbie Sikkema, May 29, 2009 @ 9:47 am

How long has it been since you paid dues? Did they tell you in the SAG office that you would have to rejoin? I’d have to understand more about exactly what your situation is before I could give a definite answer. But if you were told by SAG that you’d have to pay an initiation fee to rejoin, then that would mean that you are no longer a SAG member and therefore could work non-union jobs.
By Ashton mercadel, June 1, 2009 @ 2:31 pm

Can i call you for more information
By Ashton mercadel, June 1, 2009 @ 2:35 pm

Ashton might need a talent agent
By Debbie Sikkema, June 1, 2009 @ 4:52 pm

I’ll be glad to help you out. Would you like me to send you an email? If you did not yet do so, be sure to sign up for Your Young Actor’s Newsletter. When you sign up for the newsletter that will come out monthly, I also send you a free mini-course on getting started in acting, and I’ll have additional information as well after that. Are you in the LA Area? If not, what part of the country are you in?
By Ella, June 18, 2009 @ 11:36 am

Superbo Manifesto mate! Superb Article Keep it up
By Corrinne from Googler, July 10, 2009 @ 1:13 pm

Great post!
I’ve seen a issued post before.
http://pie-ing.blogspot.com/
By Karen Forman, July 21, 2009 @ 8:36 pm

Being part of the screen actors guild is really import. It’s amazing how large it is. I think it’s also important for anyone who is into acting at all should have a Youtube account. Feel free to checkout my new youtube channel
By Fernando, July 22, 2009 @ 4:21 pm

Really usefull, anyway this is a very competitive niche.
By loans, October 26, 2009 @ 5:51 am

Very informational post. It feels good to see that people share theyr know-how ! If you are interested into link exchange you can contact me a.t my mail so we can talk about it
By loans, November 4, 2009 @ 1:37 pm

Very helpful post. Very clear commentary and suggested phrasing are most impressive, as are his and your generosity in sharing this explanation and example.If interested in link exchange please contact me.
By Claudia, May 9, 2010 @ 7:13 am

Thank you for the info! Have you ever heard about background actors being “Taft-Hartley” d and would one HAVE to join after that or is the 3 voucher rule still in effect for that background… or was that a mistake by the production company?
By Debbie Sikkema, May 11, 2010 @ 11:21 am

Hi Claudia,
The three voucher rule does still apply, but it is not advisable to go that route. It is sometimes a little harder to get the SAG vouchers/SAG waivers (or so I have heard). But be sure to read my posts here about joining SAG. Don’t rush joining since being non-union gives you many more options until you start getting principal SAG roles. As I understand it, you don’t have to join when you get three SAG vouchers, but you can join in that case. If anyone knows more about this, please post additional information! In the meantime, I’ll research this a little more. Thanks. –Debbie