Acting : SAG-eligible vs Fi-Core by Tammy Hunt

Often the reason an actor may opt to transition to Financial Core is because they are struggling to find work.

The extra flexibility of pursuing nonunion gigs may mean the difference between making rent that month or not.

However, this choice is sometimes forced upon an actor after deciding to join the union at the wrong time.

When a performer becomes SAG-eligible—meaning that they have accumulated the number of roles required to join the union—they do not have to join immediately. Many, in fact, remain in this intermediate position for years.

An actor who is SAG-eligible is not a member of the union yet but can become one with a couple of phone calls and a down payment on the initiation fee. Union projects are more likely to consider them for casting, but nonunion projects can cast them without forcing the actor to choose between SAG-AFTRA and work.

The easiest way to avoid the SAG versus Fi-Core question is by making sure that when you do join the union, you not only qualify but have a large enough professional network (and a solid reel) to get cast.

The option of going Fi-Core and becoming a fee-paying nonmember is enshrined into law—it’s not going anywhere.

But it’s much more than a move to make because of a lull in union work.

To go Fi-Core is to make a major decision in your career, and that choice needs to come with deep consideration.

#actor #sag #sageligible #nonunion