DreamWorks Animation Production Workers Vote to Join the Animation and Editors Guilds

Katie Kilkenny
·2 min read

DreamWorks Animation production workers are joining their artist and technician colleagues in being represented by the Animation Guild and their editor colleagues in being represented by the Motion Picture Editors Guild.

In an election with the National Labor Relations Board, 94 production workers who work on television and feature films at the brand voted to join the two IATSE Locals, while 41 voted against unionization. Of the 160 workers who are now unionized with IATSE as a result of the vote, about a dozen will join the Motion Picture Editors Guild (Local 700) because they work in postproduction, while other production staffers whose roles align more with artists, technical directors and writers will join the Animation Guild (Local 839). The tally of ballots took place on March 26.

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“DreamWorks and The Animation Guild have had a relationship since the studio started. In those first days, DreamWorks was interested in offering the same working conditions as the other studios in order to attract the best talent possible,” Animation Guild business representative Steve Kaplan said in a statement. “Today, we extend that coverage to ensure the production staff can enjoy the best working conditions we can negotiate with the company.”

The Hollywood Reporter has reached out to DreamWorks Animation for comment.

The newly unionized group — whose members include production assistants, production coordinators, post production supervisors and post production assistants — has worked on the recent release Kung Fu Panda 4, as well as features Ruby Gillman, Teenage Kraken and Trolls Band Together and series Gabby’s Dollhouse and Fright Krewe.

Organizers were motivated to unionize by their interest in preserving the workplace culture at DreamWorks Animation, according to Animation Guild organizer Allison Smartt. “Production workers know what’s best for their roles and lives and with the recent announcements of significant company policy changes like increased outsourcing and a disallowal of most remote work for production staff, they felt a sense of urgency,” Smartt wrote in an email.

DreamWorks staffers also took note of recent organizing momentum in animation. The Animation Guild has been aggressively unionizing production workers since its victory in gaining voluntary recognition for the group at Titmouse New York (Harriet the Spy) in 2022. Nickelodeon, WB Animation and Cartoon Network and ShadowMachine have all been targets of this organizing push in recent years. The Motion Picture Editors Guild has also been active in the animation space, bringing workers at ShadowMachine and Bento Box aboard since 2022.

According to the Animation Guild, the addition of new DreamWorks staffers to its union means that the guild now bargains on behalf of more than 70 percent of production workers across major Hollywood studios. And it won’t be backing down any time soon: “We won’t stop organizing animation production until all work is covered,” Smartt said in a statement.

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