LISTEN: Local Atlanta Screen Actors Guild and American Federation of Television and Radio Artists members held a rally Monday night in support of the national strike. GPB's Amanda Andrews reports.

Atlanta SAG-AFTRA members and supporters fill the main room of the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees Local 479 union headquarters during a rally July 17, 2023. All seats are filled, with people standing against the wall. A SAG-AFTRA banner hangs on the far wall.

Atlanta SAG-AFTRA members and supporters fill the main room of the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees Local 479 union headquarters during a rally July 17, 2023. All seats are filled, with people standing against the wall. A SAG-AFTRA banner hangs on the far wall.

Credit: Amanda Andrews / GPB News

Atlanta actress Diany Rodriguez helps non-SAG-AFTRA members sign in as they arrive to the rally.

Atlanta actress Diany Rodriguez helps non-SAG-AFTRA members sign in as they arrive to the rally.

Credit: Amanda Andrews / GPB News

SAG-AFTRA rally attendees gather in one of four overflow areas to listen to local and national leaders speak about the strike.

SAG-AFTRA rally attendees gather in one of four overflow areas to listen to local and national leaders speak about the strike.

Credit: Amanda Andrews / GPB News

Supporters stand in the lobby by a sign-in table to hear remarks from SAG-AFTRA President Fran Drescher, who joined the Atlanta rally via Zoom.

Supporters stand in the lobby by a sign-in table to hear remarks from SAG-AFTRA President Fran Drescher, who joined the Atlanta rally via Zoom.

Credit: Amanda Andrews / GPB News

Thirty minutes after doors open for the rally the main room is filled to capacity and the line of supporters stretches outside the building.

Thirty minutes after doors open for the rally, the main room is filled to capacity and the line of supporters stretches outside the IATSE Local 479 building.

Credit: Amanda Andrews / GPB News

Members of the Atlanta Screen Actors Guild and American Federation of Television and Radio Artists chapter held a rally Monday night in support of the national strike. Local organizers emphasized they are focused on showing solidarity.

Turnout for the rally filled four rooms at the International Alliance of Theatrical Stage Employees Local 479 in Clayton County, not far from Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport. Attendees included SAG-AFTRA members, other workers in the Georgia entertainment industry and supporters. 

Doors opened at 6:30 p.m. and the main hall was full by 7 p.m.

During the event, local SAG-AFTRA leaders spoke about supporting national union leaders. SAG-AFTRA president Fran Drescher joined via Zoom to discuss the state of negotiations.

The rally lasted about two hours.

Diany Rodriguez is an actress and SAG-AFTRA member in Atlanta. She said even without a studio headquarters to picket, the rally showed how important this strike is locally.

“Here in Georgia, specifically, where it's a right-to-work state, so they don't think we're very pro-union,” she said. “They don't think that we have a vested interest. I think we've shown tonight we have more than a vested interest.”

Jessica Sanchez has been working in stage craft for 20 years. She said technological changes in the industry through artificial intelligence are causing a lot of tension.

“I think that is why there is such a huge push to figure it out now,” Sanchez said. “Four years from now it will be out of everybody's hands, and we won't be able to control it. We have to put rules on it now. Regulate it.”

Local organizers in various unions are working to organize future rallies and fundraising events for out-of-work entertainment industry employees.

Tags: Atlanta  Georgia  Film Industry  Strike  Actors  writers  entertainment