How Do I Get My SAG Card?
Guild membership can be one of the most important and pertinent steps an actor will take on the road to becoming a professional performer. But at the beginning of a career, getting into SAG can seem impossible. So how do you go about getting that coveted card?
There are three ways to join SAG. The most direct path is to land a SAG job. The 1947 Taft-Hartley Act prohibits "closed shops," or agreements that require employers to hire only union members. A union, such as the Screen Actors Guild, may require workers in its jurisdiction to join up, after a 30-day grace period, but it cannot demand that all applicants come from within its ranks. This means a nonunion actor can book a job as a SAG principal performer, which makes the actor eligible to join the union.
The second route is through membership in an affiliated union. These include the American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (AFTRA), Actors' Equity Association (AEA), the American Guild of Musical Artists (AGMA), the Alliance of Canadian Cinema, Television and Radio Artists (ACTRA), and the American Guild of Variety Artists (AGVA). An actor must demonstrate not only that he or she has held membership for one full year and is currently in good standing, but also that he or she has worked as a principal performer within that union's jurisdiction.
The third way to join SAG is through background work. (Note: In New Mexico Screen Actors Guild only covers background performers in the areas of commercials and Industrial/Non-broadcast. You would not be eligible in these areas by working background on a film or television program.) Actors must acquire three vouchers for work on signatory projects at full SAG rates and conditions.
Be aware that this 3rd method is being reviewed and could be changed in the near future |
