On Wednesday December 4th, hundreds of guests gathered at the Skirball Center to celebrate and support a worthy cause: The National Association of Voice Artists (NAVA) Foundation. The nascent organization, founded in 2022, has already established itself as a powerful force for its members, addressing the wide array of issues that voice artists face in the 21st century.

NAVA Member Organization & Non-Profit Foundation Gives Comprehensive Support to Voice Artists

NAVA consists of two arms, its member organization that allows its board and representatives to lobby and advocate on its members behalf, as well as the nonprofit NAVA Foundation. This multifaceted nature of the NAVA has allowed the organization to sponsor 18 scholarships to industry events, host 45 classes and events. It also provided legal aid to over 150 voice actors and gave over $10,000 in emergency funds to voice actors in needs, all just in the past year. Furthermore, NAVA has provided free guidance for producers, developers, and talent to sign interim agreements with SAG-AFTRA during the interactive media strike which is still currently underway. At the gala, Zeke Alton, a member of both NAVA’s advisory board and the SAG-AFTRA Negotiating Committee, provided a union update on progress made during the strike for attendees.

NAVA is also one of the leading advocacy groups for voice artists and AI. Not only has their AI/Synthetic voice contract rider been used on hundreds of jobs, NAVA’s member organization also made five trips to Washington DC this year to discuss legislation and protection for voice artists. They participated in 60 meetings with over 45 different offices of congressmen and senators, both in person and virtually. NAVA president Tim Friedlander spoke at the FTC this year about the importance of AI protection, and the organization also partook in a National Security Advisor for Emerging Technology roundtable at the White House.

NAVA Foundation Gala Delights and Galvanizes Attendees

Given the breadth of the aid NAVA provides, it’s no wonder they require support in realizing the organization’s mission. Fortunately, after the success of last year’s inaugural gala, the voiceover and greater entertainment community eagerly responded. The public tickets for this year’s NAVA Foundation Gala sold out in twelve hours and the event was attended by over 400 guests.

“I love the NAVA Gala,” gushed the organization’s Vice President Carin Gilfry. “It is my favorite event now of the year, and this is only our second one, but I feel like we took it to another level this year. I feel like the event did exactly what we wanted it to do, which was celebrate the voiceover industry, celebrate the leaders in our industry, and raise money to help advance our industry.”

The gala struck a successful, albeit delicate, balance between advocacy and celebration. In addition to Alton’s update regarding the SAG-AFTRA strike, NAVA Advisory Board Member Cissy Jones spoke succinctly and poignantly on the state of AI in the voiceover industry. “There’s a lot of good forward momentum, a lot. As this technology improves, we must also demand solid guard rails. We cannot allow this to become a freight train out of control.”

He cited harrowing statistics that only approximately 13% of the voiceover industry are people of color, and percentages of African Americans are less than 10%. Now with artificial intelligence, 80% of voice actors who lose their job to AI are people of color, not to mention only approximately 10% of those actors are allowed access to ethical AI systems and allowed to build passive income.

Parham eloquently urged:

NAVA Awards Legends & Change-Makers at Gala

NAVA countered the solemnity with a lively auction, raffle, and the three awards it presented to pillars of the voiceover community. SkillsHub, an education platform for voiceover artists, founded by Jennifer Hale, Carren Dujela, and Bill Reid received NAVA’s VO Service Provider Award. Samantha Peller and Isabella Flores received the Be Brad Voiceover Community Award for their whistleblowing on a predator in the industry and for their formation of the Vocal Victims Advocacy Group.

Finally, NAVA honored the legendary voice actor Keith David with their Icon Award. David, who’s voiced everything from Disney animated villains to hit video game characters to Emmy-winning historical documentaries, was the epitome of a gracious and inspiring recipient. “Tonight, I find myself in the presence of something beautiful. I love this community,” David, known also “Silver Throat” among his peers, said. “And it doesn’t matter where on the spectrum you happen to be…just never let anyone discourage you. Never accept ‘no’.”

In its second year, the NAVA Foundation Gala raised a total of $70,500 to support its nonprofit arm. An impressive number in its own right, it’s also over ten grand more than last year’s gala tally. For the second year in a row, the event was a smashing success, one where supporters could leave feeling confident that their contributions will support the meaningful and tireless work NAVA does.