Lightspeed LA and artists union SAG-AFTRA have just announced that the studio will produce the upcoming open-world adventure Last Sentinel using union talent under the organization's Interim Interactive Media Agreement. The agreement allows members to work at Lightspeed LA despite the current strikeas the studio agreed to all of the settlement's provisions, including protections against potentially exploitative AI practices.
Actors have been wary of the unethical use of genAI for performance capture, which was a major reason for the strike in the first place. In practice, an unscrupulous developer could hire an artist once and then use the resources to generate content without the actor's consent or compensation for their performance. The interim agreement has rules in place that protect artists from such harm.
In a statementInteractive Media Agreement Negotiating Committee Chair Sarah Elmaleh said, “This strike has always been as much about starting work with the right AI protections as it is about stopping work without them. Lightspeed LA understands how crucial these protections are for actors and has made an exceptional commitment not only to this cast, but to their future casts as well.”
“They have made their genuine appreciation for artists as collaborators tangible and impactful. I am thrilled with this partnership and can't wait to see what this talented team of developers and artists will accomplish together.”
Steve Martin, General Manager of Lightspeed LA, said: “Lightspeed LA has always recognized and valued the irreplaceable role of talent, which injects creativity, innovation and the human touch into games. Supporting our cast is the right thing to do and there has never been any hesitation in considering the artist protections that anchor this agreement.”
Last Sentinel on the horizon
Lightspeed LA was opened by Tencent in 2019 with the specific goal of producing open-world games. Last Sentinel—the studio's first game—is billed as a narrative-driven, open-world action game set in a futuristic Tokyo. Some of the recent social media revolves around Lightspeed LA’s new motion capture and art direction phase, so securing the ability to work with unionized talent makes a lot of sense for the project (and for any studio looking to partner with SAG-AFTRA long-term).
Other studios looking to work with unionized talent should consult the Interim Interactive Media Agreement for guidance.