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Red Sea Global, Warner Bros. Discovery Collaborate on Red Sea Coral Reefs Documentary

The film follows the journey of Saudi Arabian free diver Salma Shaker as she explores the coral research conducted by scientists at Red Sea Global and King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST). (Discovery)
The film follows the journey of Saudi Arabian free diver Salma Shaker as she explores the coral research conducted by scientists at Red Sea Global and King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST). (Discovery)
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Red Sea Global, Warner Bros. Discovery Collaborate on Red Sea Coral Reefs Documentary

The film follows the journey of Saudi Arabian free diver Salma Shaker as she explores the coral research conducted by scientists at Red Sea Global and King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST). (Discovery)
The film follows the journey of Saudi Arabian free diver Salma Shaker as she explores the coral research conducted by scientists at Red Sea Global and King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST). (Discovery)

Red Sea Global (RSG) and global media and entertainment company Warner Bros. Discovery will collaborate to produce a documentary on the impact of climate change on coral reefs, said RSC in a statement on Tuesday.

The documentary, "Beneath the Surface: The Fight for Corals", set to air on Discovery channel on Earth Day on April 22 will show RSG's efforts to protect the environment.

“In ‘Beneath the Surface: The Fight for Corals’, we aim to spotlight the beauty and vulnerability of these underwater wonders and emphasize the importance of global collaboration in preserving our oceans," said John Pagano, Group CEO at Red Sea Global.

The film follows the journey of Saudi Arabian free diver Salma Shaker as she explores the coral research conducted by scientists at Red Sea Global and King Abdullah University of Science and Technology (KAUST).

The film transcends geographical borders, taking viewers as far as to the reefs in Mexico, offering a compelling narrative on the challenges facing coral reefs worldwide.

The film explores undiscovered reefs along Saudi Arabia's Red Sea coastline.

Red Sea Global aims to unravel the mysteries of this unexplored territory, displaying its unique biodiversity and crucial role in supporting the global ecosystem. The documentary also delves into the potential benefits of coral research in the Red Sea for ecosystems globally.

Kerrie McEvoy, head of Factual Channels in Discovery Networks EMEA at Warner Bros Discovery, said: "Warner Bros. Discovery is proud to partner with Red Sea Global on 'Beneath the Surface: The Fight for Corals'. As a company, we believe in the power of storytelling to entertain and inspire change, and this film exemplifies that commitment."

The film features insights from a diverse group of experts to provide a comprehensive view of the current state of reefs globally, their significance in the marine ecosystem, and the ongoing efforts to protect them.

A first exclusive look at the film was shown during a side event at COP28 in Dubai, hosted by Red Sea Global, where a trailer was played for the guests.

The documentary will air on Discovery Channel across the US, Europe, Türkiye, the Middle East, Africa, and Asia.

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Video Game Performers Will Go on Strike Over Artificial Intelligence Concerns 

SAG-AFTRA signage is seen on the side of the headquarters in Los Angeles on Friday, Nov. 10, 2023. (AP)
SAG-AFTRA signage is seen on the side of the headquarters in Los Angeles on Friday, Nov. 10, 2023. (AP)
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Video Game Performers Will Go on Strike Over Artificial Intelligence Concerns 

SAG-AFTRA signage is seen on the side of the headquarters in Los Angeles on Friday, Nov. 10, 2023. (AP)
SAG-AFTRA signage is seen on the side of the headquarters in Los Angeles on Friday, Nov. 10, 2023. (AP)

Hollywood's video game performers announced they would go on strike Thursday, throwing part of the entertainment industry into another work stoppage after talks for a new contract with major game studios broke down over artificial intelligence protections.

The strike — the second for video game voice actors and motion capture performers under the Screen Actors Guild-American Federation of Television and Radio Artists — will begin at 12:01 a.m. Friday. The move comes after nearly two years of negotiations with gaming giants, including divisions of Activision, Warner Bros. and Walt Disney Co., over a new interactive media agreement.

SAG-AFTRA negotiators say gains have been made over wages and job safety in the video game contract, but that the two sides remained split over the regulation of generative AI. A spokesperson for the video game producers, Audrey Cooling, said the studios offered AI protections, but SAG-AFTRA’s negotiating committee said that the studios’ definition of who constitutes a "performer" is key to understanding the issue of who would be protected.

"The industry has told us point blank that they do not necessarily consider everyone who is rendering movement performance to be a performer that is covered by the collective bargaining agreement," SAG-AFTRA Chief Contracts Officer Ray Rodriguez said at a news conference Thursday afternoon. He said some physical performances are being treated as "data."

Without guardrails, game companies could train AI to replicate an actor’s voice, or create a digital replica of their likeness without consent or fair compensation, the union said.

"We strike as a matter of last resort. We have given this process absolutely as much time as we responsibly can," Rodriguez told reporters. "We have exhausted the other possibilities, and that is why we’re doing it now."

Cooling said the companies' offer "extends meaningful AI protections."

"We are disappointed the union has chosen to walk away when we are so close to a deal, and we remain prepared to resume negotiations," she said.

Andi Norris, an actor and member of the union's negotiating committee, said that those who do stunt work or creature performances would still be at risk under the game companies' offer.

"The performers who bring their body of work to these games create a whole variety of characters, and all of that work must be covered. Their proposal would carve out anything that doesn’t look and sound identical to me as I sit here, when, in truth, on any given week I am a zombie, I am a soldier, I am a zombie soldier," Norris said. "We cannot and will not accept that a stunt or movement performer giving a full performance on stage next to a voice actor isn’t a performer."

The global video game industry generates well over $100 billion dollars in profit annually, according to game market forecaster Newzoo. The people who design and bring those games to life are the driving force behind that success, SAG-AFTRA said.

Members voted overwhelmingly last year to give leadership the authority to strike. Concerns about how movie studios will use AI helped fuel last year’s film and television strikes by the union, which lasted four months.

The last interactive contract, which expired in November 2022, did not provide protections around AI but secured a bonus compensation structure for voice actors and performance capture artists after an 11-month strike that began in October 2016. That work stoppage marked the first major labor action from SAG-AFTRA following the merger of Hollywood’s two largest actors unions in 2012.

The video game agreement covers more than 2,500 "off-camera (voiceover) performers, on-camera (motion capture, stunt) performers, stunt coordinators, singers, dancers, puppeteers, and background performers," according to the union.

Amid the tense interactive negotiations, SAG-AFTRA created a separate contract in February that covered independent and lower-budget video game projects. The tiered-budget independent interactive media agreement contains some of the protections on AI that video game industry titans have rejected. Games signed to an interim interactive media agreement, tiered-budget independent interactive agreement or interim interactive localization agreement are not part of the strike, the union said.