Meet Your Negotiations Committee

EMILY ABELE | LIGHT/COMP ARTIST AND TECHNICAL DIRECTOR

I joined the Negotiations Committee to fight for the CG side of the craft.

ETHAN BANVILLE | WRITER

I joined the Negotiations Committee because after running a show I co-created for a major streamer, I was able to see deeper into the bad faith deals and overreach of buyers. Our shows often get more views than live-action WGA shows. We deserve the same pay and benefits!

MADISON BATEMAN | WRITER

My focus has been on trying to ensure that animation writing is a viable career by stopping the dangerous slide into unsustainable gig work. However, we are "Many Crafts, One Union," and we will stand with our fellow Union kin to get the best deal possible for all animation workers.

CAROLINE CHIOU | DESIGNER

I joined the Committee this year because I wanted to focus on staffing minimums to protect workers against outsourcing and AI!

JOEY CLIFT | WRITER

In 2021, I coined the hashtag #PayAnimationWriters about the pay disparities between TAG and WGA animation writers. It received international press coverage and trended nationwide. I hope to empower Animation Guild members and leadership to fight for a fair deal that benefits all crafts and all members.

LAUREN CLINTON CLARK | PRODUCTION

I joined the Negotiations Committee to represent animation production in its historic first year of bargaining with the AMPTP. I'm excited to work alongside my fellow Union members to secure the best contract for all of us. We are many crafts, but one fight!

RACHAEL COHEN | COLOR DESIGNER

I joined the Negotiations Committee this year to fight for the best deal for our members. Negotiations are a process where if the workforce speaks, the boss must listen. Stand up and be heard!

KELLY LYNNE D'ANGELO | WRITER

With AI, job displacement, and outsourcing on the rise, this year is essential for the survivability and future of our crafts, and I'm committed to making this the best, most comprehensive, and most protective contract yet.

AP "PINKIE" DAVIS | STORY ARTIST

I watched my peers, the most talented, hard-working people in animation, struggle alongside me while studio profits skyrocketed from our labor. I kept asking why? As I asked more people within my community for their answers and personal experiences, the only logical solution was that I wanted to fight for them and fight with them.

DAVID DEPASQUALE | ART DIRECTOR

I joined the Negotiations Committee after seeing countless colleagues lose their livelihoods due to dwindling schedules, skeleton crews, and Gen AI, all in pursuit of a “better” bottom line for shareholders and c-suites. Our work drives culture and brings joy to millions of people. We deserve to make a living wage.

MICHELLE DRENNAN | CHARACTER DESIGNER

I think our power lies in being as strong and engaged of a Union as possible, and I thought there was no better way to get experience rather than to jump right in. I have been learning so much, and it's been really rewarding helping and seeing so many members doing so much to help their fellow Union members.

DANNY DUCKER | STORY ARTIST

Animation workers kept these studios afloat through the early days of the pandemic and were rewarded with mass layoffs and sweeping cancellations. I joined the Negotiations Committee in order to help save our industry from the extremely well-paid executives who seem intent on gutting it for parts.

CAROLINE FOLEY | ANIMATOR / ARTIST / WRITER

I’m tired of corporate greed and ready to fight to save the industry I love!

ANDY GARNER-FLEXNER | ART DIRECTOR / COLOR DESIGNER

I joined the Negotiations Committee for the second time this year to help uplift my community and the members who we fight for. Representing our LGBTQIA+ members who I talk with and witness their struggles, I joined to be their fire and loudspeaker.

JANAE HALL | WRITER

I was fresh out of the Nickelodeon Negotiations Committee when this committee geared up to get to work, and I was eager to fight for the gains we got over there and more to become standard everywhere.

TERI HENDRICH C. | COLOR SUPERVISOR

I joined the Negotiations Committee to advocate for better terms and conditions for our members.

STEVE KAPLAN | TAG BUSINESS REPRESENTATIVE

It’s not just my obligation, but my privilege to be the Chair of the committee and Lead Negotiator.

COURT LA FOREST | BACKGROUND PAINTER / COLOR DESIGNER

I believe wholeheartedly in the abilities of this labor body, and am committed to the lifelong fight for better worker protections, fairer wages, more ethical job expectations, and to build an even stronger Union for myself, my Union kin, and the many generations of animation artists that will come after us. The artists united will never be divided.

TIFFANY LO | WRITER

I joined the Negotiations Committee to fight for fair, living wages and working conditions across all of TAG!

NORA MEEK | WRITER / STORY ARTIST

I was a negotiator and rally organizer when we bargained the 2021 contract, and also most recently at Nickelodeon, where we negotiated a record contract. I'm excited to bring that fire and organizing experience back to the Basic Agreement to fight alongside you for all the gains and protections we deserve.

KARLI MELDER | 2D ANIMATOR

I joined the Negotiations Committee because if we don't get shit done this year, I truly don't believe we'll have an industry to work in anymore. I joined to be as transparent with membership as possible and to show leadership we're serious about doing what needs to be done to ensure the survival of our crafts.

ELIANNE MELENDEZ | PRODUCTION

I wanted to make sure production members, as the newest craft to enter TAG in a long time, were represented in this pivotal negotiation cycle.

ROMA MURPHY | WRITER

I've only been in TAG for a little over a year, but I've hit the ground running! Between that and the conversations I've had with other TAG members over the past year or so, I've become determined to do everything I can to help us secure a good contract and build a better future.

DREW NEWMAN | 2D ANIMATOR

This is my second run at negotiating with our benevolent overlords. I’m here to rep the unicorns that are 2D Animators and see what we can all gain this cycle for a Union that has steadily become more engaged over the years thanks in large part to the tireless efforts of a strong and durable core of volunteers.

HANNAH NANCE PARTLOW | BACKGROUND PAINTER / COLOR DESIGNER

I joined the Negotiations Committee in 2021 to fight for a contract that equitably pays workers in female-dominated crafts (such as Color Designers, Storyboard Revisionists, and Checkers). I look forward to fighting for the best deal possible for our members in this round of negotiations.

JULIA PRESCOTT | WRITER

I'm proud to say I have multiple family members working in animation, from Background Artists to Supervising Directors. I joined the Negotiations Committee to not only fight for my livelihood, but for my family's, and for the continuation of animation as a viable industry as a whole.

MIKE RIANDA | DIRECTOR

I want to get the best deal possible for my friends and co-workers! I particularly am passionate about protecting the industry from the threat of AI! I'm gonna fight like hell! LET'S GET SOME WINS THIS YEAR BABYYY!!!! LET'S GOOOO!!!

JANIS ROBERTSON | WRITER

I signed up to be part of the committee to learn how it works from the inside. I also came with the goal of finding better ways to communicate with members and advocating for those of us on Honorable Withdrawal.

SPENCER ROTHBELL | WRITER

With the advent of AI and other looming issues impacting us, I want to help fight for a future—not only for myself but everyone else in this industry. I truly believe this contract may be one of the most important "make or break" ones, so I want to put everything I can into it.

MAIRGHREAD SCOTT | WRITER

This is my third cycle of negotiations with the AMPTP. I've seen first-hand the power of an organized and energetic Union. I'm proud to do my part to help other writers (and artists) in this Union achieve their dreams, and I'm excited to work with other crafts to tackle the issues that make this career unsustainable for too many.

DAVID SHAIR | STORY ARTIST

I’m part of the committee to change the story for Storyboard Artists, achieving a tangible win for the craft, as well as making sure we all maintain our minimums (and hopefully raise them!)

ERICA SMITH | DESIGNER

I joined the committee to lend my hand to the fight! Negotiations are a lot of work, and many hands make light work, but also many hands lend to a better representation and voice of the Guild as a whole.

CHRISTINE SMITH ISHIMINE | ANIMATION TIMER

Animation Timers are often paid by unit rates instead of daily or weekly rates like in the wage scales in the CBA. We need to fix that problem. Another reason I joined the Negotiations Committee is I want to know what other issues need to be addressed within our Union and how I can help.

KAITRIN SNODGRASS | STORY ARTIST

With the looming threat of things like AI and outsourcing, I am truly worried for the future of our industry. I couldn’t sit by this year and not get involved in some way. This is my first year on the committee and I’m trying to learn as much as I can and motivate our fellow members to get involved and pay attention.

PAULA SPENCE | ART DIRECTOR AND DESIGNER

I joined the TAG Negotiations Committee in 2012. That's when I discovered that we can all make a difference in the way our Union makes progress. Since then, I've been advocating for more member participation and training for Collective Bargaining. It's thrilling and gratifying to see and help this Local transform!

CANDICE STEPHENSON | CG ARTIST

I always want to help workers, and being on the Negotiations Committee is one of the ways I could turn my frustrations with the industry into action. I was also happy to be a representative of my craft (CG) and my studio (Nickelodeon) since having a wide range of experiences is so important in the room when discussing contract changes and the studios' responses.

SAM TUNG | STORYBOARD ARTIST

I work as a storyboard artist in live action, film, and video games and for the past year and a half have been heavily involved in both ADG and TAG's AI Task Force. I joined the negotiations committee to fight for protections for workers in the face of generative AI.

BRIDGET UNDERWOOD | STORY ARTIST

This is my first year on the Negotiations Committee—I joined because we're in a make-or-break moment for animation and I want to do what I can to give us all a shot at a future.

BECKY WANGBERG | WRITER

I joined the Negotiations Committee this year to be a voice for writing teams who are often overlooked for full-time staffing positions. On top of singing the praises of my fellow teams, I’m here to support all writers and to champion our amazing Guild as a whole!

GEORGE YANG | WRITER

I joined the Negotiations Committee because I have a lot of complaints about our contract, especially in regard to streaming media.