From the Picket Lines to the United Nations - Actor, SAG-AFTRA LA Board Member Heather Ashley Boyer

Actor, producer, and  SAG-AFTRA LA Local Board Member and AI regulations and Technology guru Heather Ashley Boyer joins E-Kan and Rían this week on the show. Heather shares the pivotal moment during the Actor strike in 2023 and how that had led her to run for the Local Board of SAG-AFTRA and fight for AI Safety on the state and federal level in Sacramento and Washington DC at the United Nations. They also dig into the fine print of the current SAG-AFTRA AI regulations in the new deal, including a loophole He ather caught that union leadership couldn't dismiss. Actors - the SAG-AFTRA deal is up for vote- you’re going to want to listen to this.  We talk about what no one’s saying about AI right now, honest take on celebrities speaking out like Sandra Bullock, Reese Witherspoon and Matthew McConaughey, and the time that Heather was Deepfaked by Will Smith without her consent... Seriously. Also, why Claude might be the safest AI model - or is it? This is an inspiring and eye opening conversation for any actor or anyone that wants to make a difference. Support the Podcast: https://www.patreon.com/cw/ActorsGuidePod New episodes every week! Follow @actorsguidepodcast wherever you find your podcasts. Please like, follow, review, and rate if you can. @heatherashleyboyer @ekansoong @ríansheehykelly Hidden Gems:  The AI Doc: How I Became an Apocaloptomist - https://www.imdb.com/title/tt39150120/ Distress Signals Project @distresssignalsproject  Theater raising funds for distressed communities - June 12-14, 19-21 LA County Fair Crazy Foods - https://youtube.com/shorts/K6WWs2qft9M?si=6wNT9mbPGvu2ijxm   LINKS: Heather at the United Nations! - https://www.instagram.com/p/DYs4-msjtMI/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=MzRlODBiNWFlZA== Bette Midler- https://www.facebook.com/DivineBette1945/posts/in-1989-bette-midler-made-legal-history-when-she-won-a-400000-lawsuit-against-th/1259951306175934/ Scarlett Johansson voice stolen - https://www.npr.org/2024/05/20/1252495087/openai-pulls-ai-voice-that-was-compared-to-scarlett-johansson-in-the-movie-her Reese Witherspoon AI video -  https://www.instagram.com/reel/DXKphAtkbgW/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link&igsh=NTc4MTIwNjQ2YQ== AI Simulation models - https://fortune.com/2026/05/28/ai-model-simulation-claude-chatgpt-grok-gemini/   Time Stamps: (00:00) Intro (01:10) What drove Heather-Ashley from the beginning (03:40) E-Kan doesn’t know what United Nations is (06:16) E-Kan and Rían start to feel bad for themselves (09:40) We were all looking for something worthy to fight for (12:05) Heather saw the power of AI early on (17:28) How did you feel about AI in Hollywood during the strike (20:00) She used her frustration to run for SAG-AFTRA Board (22:50) Where do you start with State and Federal legislation (27:45) Heather went to the United Nations (36:00) Heather finds a loophole in current SAG-AFTRA deal (44:20) Reese Witherspoon and others speaking out on AI in Hollywood (48:20) How can we trust AI? (50:15) The AI models are scheming (53:15) How does acting fuel your political aspirations? (54:25) Getting deepfaked by Will Smith (1:02:10) Hidden Gems