MACON, Ga. — Todd Wilson isn't a Screen Actors Guild (SAG) member, but he supports the strike.
Its members have been striking since July 14 for things like higher pay and to tighten regulations on the use of artificial intelligence.
"You don't think about it affecting you until I guess it actually happens and things begin to shut down," Wilson said.
He's been an actor and voice actor for years, appearing in independent films and major motion pictures like 42, which had scenes shot in Macon.
Georgia has a large actor population because of the state's tax incentives for films.
According to the Georgia Department of Economic Development, the state "hosted 412 productions, represented by 32 feature films, 36 independent films, 269 television and episodic productions, 42 commercials, and 33 music videos between July 1, 2021 and June 30, 2022."
What started as a high school hobby for Wilson turned into a passion that he loves devoting his time to, which is why being out of work has been difficult for him.
Even though he's not a SAG member, production has shut down on many projects that affect everybody, including him.
To make ends meet, he's been donating plasma and delivering for Uber Eats.
"Until something full-time comes up, that's — you gotta pay the bills," Wilson said.
Now, he's worried he'll continue being out of work if the strike doesn't reach an agreement on the use of artificial intelligence, which has already threatened his career.
He said he used to do voiceovers for a series of videos on YouTube, and his job was eliminated and replaced with artificial intelligence.
"Communicating with artificial intelligence could be good I guess in some aspects, but it's bad when it starts replacing people," he said.
David Schweidel, a professor at Goizueta Business School at Emory University, said it's actors like Wilson who are the most affected by the strike.
"We think about kind of the multi-million dollar screen actors. We forget about all the other actors who are going to be affected by this as well, and probably more so," he said.
He also said people overlook many non-acting industries affected by the strike, like caterers, makeup artists and stylists.
It's a tricky time to be striking because the longer the strike goes on, the more the use of artificial intelligence might seem appealing to production companies.
"A.I. doesn't go on strike," Schweidel said.