The industry is shifting under our feet. AI is already here, reshaping contracts, likeness rights, and the very idea of what a performance is.
As performers, we’re exposed. And right now, we don’t have the protections, partnerships, or policy leverage to keep up.
I’m running for Performers Peer Group Governor to help fix that. To ensure that the people behind the mic, in front of the camera, and in the edit room don’t get left behind or erased.
I’ve spent over a decade at the intersection of tech, access, and craft, in rooms most performers aren’t invited into. With the CTA Foundation. At CES. With studio execs and accessibility advocates. I’ve changed how audio description is seen and respected in this industry. Now I want to bring that momentum to all performers.
If elected, here’s what I’ll do in the first 30 days:
1.
Launch the Performer AI Action Sub-Committee as a part of the Performers Peer Group Executive Committee.
To work with and advise The Innovative Advisory Committee (formerly The AI Committee) at The Television Academy on AI protections and profit sharing as they pertain to all television performers.
See this link for more on the AI Toolkit at the Television Academy‘s website.
2. Build formal coalitions with SAG-AFTRA, NAVA, and WGA
To unify advocacy efforts around AI policy, education, and rights enforcement. NAVA is for on camera too! More here.
3. Publish a public-facing campaign: “Your Voice, Your Rights”
With downloadable tools and video resources for every performer – union and non – to know how to protect their voice, likeness, and career from AI misuse.
•Decades of performance experience across voice, on-camera, and accessibility
•Deep knowledge of AI, inclusive media, and tech collaboration
•Proven record of cross-industry negotiation and coalition building
•Strategic consultation with studios, orgs, and platforms on inclusion, ethics, and tech shifts
•Hosting and producing 200+ episodes spotlighting underrecognized creatives
•12 years at the Television Academy, including serving on the Performers Peer Group Executive Committee.
AI Accountability Performers must help shape policy, not just react to it
Cross-Peer Collaboration
Create real partnerships across writer, director, and casting peer groups
Equity Without Optics
Champion performers doing essential work both with and without name recognition.
Accessible Advocacy
Translate complexity into clarity for performers at every career stage
Presence That Delivers
I don’t show up to be seen. I show up to get things done
Last year I was in the rooms where the work happens: consulting on AI strategy, advising on accessible production pipelines, and showing up for performers who needed support, not spotlights.
I understand what it means to feel unseen, because that’s been true for most of my career. But I also know what it means to be effective: because that’s what I’ve spent my life doing.
🔎 Read the One-Sheet: “Your Voice, Your Rights”
NAVA AI Rider (this works for On Camera work as well)
📣 [Endorse Roy: Share This Page]
📩 email roy@roysamuelson.com to sign up for campaign updates
If you’re ready to make your vote, here’s a quick link to the Television Academy’s Election webpage:
This campaign isn’t about polishing the system, it’s about building the next version of it: one that sees working performers, protects us from the coming wave of tech disruption, and unlocks our full value across disciplines.
This is our moment to lead: with clarity, community, equity, and momentum.
A video message from Bob Bergen
A brief article about Bob’s Endorsement and what it means
Our peer group runs on relationships. Those relationships open doors, nurture careers, and create real momentum. That’s what I’ve always focused on, whether behind a mic, on stage, in development rooms, or serving on the Performers Peer Group Executive Committee.
Across my performances, producing, and coaching, deep listening has been my throughline. It’s how I connect, collaborate, and move things forward. I’ve heard thousands of performers share what they need, what they’re navigating, and what’s missing. I want to keep turning that into action.
On the PGEC, I led efforts to expand membership by bringing in performers from commercials, stand-up, and unaired pilots, advocating for performers who don’t always fit the traditional mold but absolutely belong. I believe by connecting peer groups to create shared opportunities, the rising tide lifts all ships. It’s a mindset: build connection to build value.
As your governor I will prioritize how we performers can and must navigate AI within our industry, and how our relationships with other professions in the industry evolve with AI’s inherent threats and opportunities.
Acting coaches grow your craft. As your governor, I want to help grow your career through relationships, which are built through shared insight, and trust. Your work may show up on screen, in sound, or in rooms that never make it to air; wherever that is for you, you shape this industry. My job is to connect lanes, so we all move forward.
Let’s keep building those relationships together.
With hundreds of credits on projects like House of the Dragon, The Bear, and The Last of Us, I’ve spent decades working at the intersection of performance and production, often in places where the spotlight doesn’t naturally fall. That taught me early on that great work doesn’t always come with recognition, but it always comes from collaboration, preparation, and trust.
When I applied to join the Television Academy in 2013, I wasn’t sure if my work would qualify, but with encouragement from Lily Tomlin and Bob Bergen, to join, I took the leap. That experience grounded my understanding of what it feels like to stand at the threshold of an institution and hope you’re seen. It’s informed everything since.
Over the years, I’ve worked as a performer, producer, and coach. I listen to thousands of performers navigate the business side of their craft. That listening turned into advocacy: helping others find access, clarity, and strategy not just for their art, but for their careers.
I’ve hosted The ADNA Presents, a 200+ episode series amplifying unsung contributors to entertainment. I’ve also helped shape conversations around inclusion, particularly for performers accessibility spaces, because representation means more when it comes with infrastructure.
That’s the lens I bring: not just celebrating excellence, but building the conditions that allow it to be seen.
Champion for Inclusive Storytelling
Roy Samuelson is a leading voice in Audio Description (AD), known for bringing thousands of hours of film and television to life for blind and low-vision audiences. With credits across major platforms like Netflix, Universal, and MAX, Roy combines performance expertise with advocacy and industry insight.
Roy is a coach, consultant, producer, and author of A Voice Actor’s Guide to Audio Description Performance. He is reshaping how the industry approaches accessibility, helping professionals and productions create AD that’s not just compliant, but compelling.
Want to learn more about Roy’s story and work?