DGA Monthly

8 I D G A M O N T H L Y DGA Committee Updates Reinforcing its commitment to diversity and inclusion, the DGA National Board has approved the creation of two new provisional committees during its April 20th meeting — an Indigenous Committee and a Middle Eastern/North African (MENA) Committee. The provisional Indigenous Committee will coordinate activities, networking, and educational events for DGA members who self-identify as either Native American/Alaska Native, or Indigenous and the Committee's goal is to support professional development opportunities for these members. The provisional Middle Eastern/North African (MENA) Committee will also coordinate activities, networking, and educational events and networking for the Guild's MENA membership. DGA members who self-identify as Native American/Alaska Native, Indigenous, or Middle Eastern/North African will receive information about relevant seminars, meetings, and events organized by their respective committees. To self-identify as Native American/Alaska Native or Middle Eastern/North African, please log in to the DGA website, navigate to the Account Settings page, and click "Edit" under Personal Attributes. For members who wish to identify as Indigenous, click "Other" and type "Indigenous" into the text box. Diversity Committee meetings and events are listed for all members in the weekly Slate and the DGA Monthly. Disability Committee Adds New Co-Chairs: Director David Nutter has stepped down as a Co-Chair of the Disability Committee. Director Rachel Raimist will continue as a Co-Chair alongside new Co-Chairs, Directors Nandi Bowe and Nick Copus. Director Ashley Eakin will serve as an alternate Co-Chair. On May 7, DGA National Vice President Laura Belsey represented the Guild at a press conference in Albany, NY to show strong support for Senator Lea Webb and Assemblymember Demond Meek's tax law amendment to prevent productions receiving the Empire State Film Production Credit from using generative AI to displace qualified workers. "The DGA is proud to stand here in coalition with our fellow film and television industry unions in strong support of legislation which will help ensure that artificial intelligence develops in ways that puts people first," said Belsey. "The Guild secured landmark protections in its negotiations with the Studios last year establishing that Artificial Intelligence isn't a human being and the work of Directors and their teams must continue to be done by a person. The guiding principle that people must come first should be a universal theme for our society's collective approach to dealing with the promise — and peril — that Artificial Intelligence poses. And that is why we are here today — the bottom line is that it should augment, not displace the jobs of human beings – and certainly in productions supported by the Empire State tax incentive program. We urge New York legislators to support this bill and protect our State's creative workers." The event was attended by a coalition of entertainment unions that included the DGA, IATSE, SAG-AFTRA, Theatrical Teamsters Local 817 and WGA East. DGA Supports New York State Legislation on Generative AI National VP Laura Belsey addresses the press conference in Albany, NY. 2024 Diversity Committee Elections Nominations for elected offices for three DGA diversity committees — African American Steering Committee (AASC), Asian American Committee (AAC) and Focus on Women Committee (FOWC) — open in June. These committees will elect Co- Chairs and Category Representatives to serve for the 2024 – 2026 term of office. Committee Elections Timeline 2024 • Nominations Process Opens Online: Tuesday, June 11 • Deadline for Nominations: Tuesday, July 2, 5:00 pm PT • Committee Elections Open Online: Thursday, July 18 • Deadline for Final Elections: Thursday, August 8, 5:00 pm PT All members eligible to vote will be sent an email or letter with more information and specific instructions regarding eligibility requirements, online nominations and voting. The elections for the Eastern Diversity Steering Committee (EDSC), Latino Committee (LC), LGBTQ+ Committee (LGBTQ+) and the Women's Steering Committee (WSC) will take place in 2025 once their current terms have expired. If you have any questions regarding the DGA Committee Elections, please contact the DGA National Office at (310) 289-5382 or email elections@dga.org.

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