DGA Members Ratify New Contract

The Directors Guild of America (DGA) membership has voted to ratify the new collective bargaining agreements with the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTP).

DGA members approved the new three-year agreement by a vote of 87 percent in favor; 6,728 members voted out of 16,321 eligible voters (41 percent), exceeding the turnout of any prior DGA ratification vote.

The new contract’s three-year term will take effect on July 1, 2023, and will run through June 30, 2026.

Gains include significant improvements for DGA members in all categories, with extensive advances on wages, global streaming residuals, safety, diversity and creative rights. The deal also establishes minimum terms and conditions in two new areas—non-dramatic programs made for SVOD and high-budget dramatic programs made for AVOD—and includes new provisions confirming that generative AI cannot replace the duties performed by members.

“I’m proud to report that DGA members have joined together to ratify a new contract that will allow every director, assistant director, unit production manager, associate director and stage manager to share in the success of what we create,” said DGA president Lesli Linka Glatter. “Our new contract secures gains on wages, global streaming residuals, safety, diversity and creative rights that build for the future and impact every category of member in our Guild. The strength of our new contract is a testament to our negotiations committee chair Jon Avnet, negotiations co-chairs Karen Gaviola and Todd Holland, national executive director Russell Hollander and our outstanding professional staff.”

“I also want to acknowledge that the DGA didn’t bargain in a vacuum,” continued Glatter. “We stand united with writers, actors and all crew members in our shared fight to move our industry forward. We support the actors who are in negotiations and the writers who remain on strike, and we will stand with the IA and Teamsters when they negotiate their agreement next year. We won’t be satisfied until we all have fair contracts that reward us for our creative work—we must create a vibrant, sustainable industry that fairly values us all.”