The Alliance of Canadian Cinema, Television and Radio Artists (ACTRA) is a Canadian
trade union
A trade union (labor union in American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers intent on "maintaining or improving the conditions of their employment", ch. I such as attaining better wages and benefits ( ...
representing performers in English-language media. It has 25,000 members working in
film,
television
Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of television transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertisin ...
,
radio
Radio is the technology of signaling and communicating using radio waves. Radio waves are electromagnetic waves of frequency between 30 hertz (Hz) and 300 gigahertz (GHz). They are generated by an electronic device called a transmit ...
, and all other recorded media. The organization negotiates, safeguards, and promotes the professional rights of its members. It also works to increase work opportunities for its members and
lobbies for policy changes at the municipal, provincial, and federal levels.
ACTRA's regional chapters present
ACTRA Award
The ACTRA Awards were first presented in 1972 to celebrate excellence in Canada's television and radio industries. s to honour the best in Canadian radio and television performances in their local productions.
Affiliations
ACTRA is affiliated with the
Canadian Labour Congress and the
International Federation of Actors
The International Federation of Actors (french: Federation Internationale des Acteurs, FIA) is a global union federation bringing together trade unions representing actors.
History
The federation was established in 1952, on the initiative of Brit ...
.
In July 2005, ACTRA and the
United Steelworkers
The United Steel, Paper and Forestry, Rubber, Manufacturing, Energy, Allied Industrial and Service Workers International Union, commonly known as the United Steelworkers (USW), is a general trade union with members across North America. Headquar ...
announced that the two unions have entered into a strategic alliance to take on the globalization of the culture industry and to address a range of common issues.
Acronym Meaning
The earliest form of the organization represented radio performers in
Toronto
Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...
in the 1940s. This organization was called RATS: the Radio Artists of Toronto Society. In 1943, with the wider involvement of groups from other Canadian cities, the Association of Canadian Radio Artists (ACRA) was formed.
ACRA over time evolved into the Association of Canadian Radio and Television Artists, the Canadian Council of Authors and Artists, the Association of Canadian Television and Radio Artists, and, in 1984, the Alliance of Canadian Cinema, Television and Radio Artists.
Union of British Columbia Performers
Regional issues led to the creation of the Union of British Columbia Performers, a separate subunit of ACTRA for
British Columbia
British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...
only.
ACTRA Awards
Every year, ACTRA branches across the country present the
ACTRA Awards
The ACTRA Awards were first presented in 1972 to celebrate excellence in Canada's television and radio industries. , some of which are handed out for performances, while others are given for union activism and contributions to the industry.
ACTRA Fraternal Benefit Society
The ACTRA Fraternal Benefit Society (AFBS), a member of
American Fraternal Alliance The American Fraternal Alliance (AFA) is an umbrella group of fraternal orders in the United States. It was founded as the National Fraternal Congress of America in 1913, in Chicago and adopted its current name in 2011.
History
The origins of the ...
, is a "not-for-profit, member-owned, federally incorporated insurance company", founded in 1959. In 2010,
Marie Charette-Poulin
Marie-Paule Charette-Poulin (born June 21, 1945) was a Canadian senator until resigning in April 2015 and was the president of the Liberal Party of Canada from 2006 to 2008. She is married to international portrait artist Bernard Poulin.
Educa ...
sat on the board of Governors of the ACTRA Fraternal Benefit Society.
HAVEN Helpline
On 1 June 2019, ACTRA and the
Directors Guild of Canada
The Directors Guild of Canada (DGC) is a Canadian labour union representing more than 5,500 professionals from 48 different occupations in the Canadian film and television industry. Founded in 1962, the DGC represents directors, editors, assist ...
jointly launched HAVEN Helpline for members in Canada, with 24-7 support, out-sourced from
Morneau Shepell
LifeWorks, formerly known as Morneau Shepell, is a human resources services and technology company headquartered in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Established in 1966, Morneau Shepell serves approximately 24,000 clients in North America. Besides Nor ...
, with additional financial support from AFBS and
Telefilm Canada
Telefilm Canada is a Crown corporation reporting to Canada's federal government through the Minister of Canadian Heritage. Headquartered in Montreal, Telefilm provides services to the Canadian audiovisual industry with four regional offices in ...
.
Notable members
ACTRA is composed of professional actors, models (video only), singers, stunt performers, and other television and radio performers. Notable members include:
*
Rachel McAdams
Rachel Anne McAdams (born November 17, 1978) is a Canadian actress. After graduating from a theatre degree program at York University in 2001, she worked in Canadian television and film productions, such as the drama film ''Perfect Pie'' (200 ...
*
Simu Liu
Simu Liu ( ; ; born 19 April 1989) is a Canadian actor. He is known for portraying Shang-Chi in the 2021 Marvel Cinematic Universe film ''Shang-Chi and the Legend of the Ten Rings''. He also played Jung Kim in the CBC Television sitcom '' Kim's ...
*
Paul Sun-Hyung Lee
Paul Sun-Hyung Lee (born August 16, 1972) is a Korean-Canadian actor and television host. He is best known for his roles as Randy Ko in the soap opera ''Train 48'' (2003–2005) and as family patriarch Appa in the play '' Kim's Convenience'' (20 ...
*
Eugene Levy
*
Dan Levy
*
Andrea Bang
Andrea Bang is a Canadian actress and screenwriter from Burnaby, British Columbia. She is best known for playing Janet Kim in the CBC comedy ''Kim's Convenience'', for which she was nominated many times at the Canadian Screen Awards. She has a ...
*
Jean Yoon
Jean Yoon (born May 4, 1962) is an American-born Canadian actress and writer of Korean descent. Yoon is best known for originating the role of family matriarch Umma in the 2011 play ''Kim's Convenience'' and in the award-winning CBC Television ...
*
Nicole Power
Nicole Penney Power (born ) is a Canadian actress, best known for her role as Shannon Ross in ''Kim's Convenience'' and its Spin-off (media), spin-off series ''Strays (TV series), Strays''.
Early life and education
Power was born in St. John's, ...
*
Andrew Phung
*
Meredith MacNeill
Meredith MacNeill (born 1975) is a Canadian actress and comedian.[Aurora Browne
Aurora Browne is a Canadian actress and comedian, best known as one of the creators and stars of the sketch comedy series ''Baroness von Sketch Show''.
Early life
She is originally from Thunder Bay, Ontario, and currently based in Toronto.
Car ...]
*
Carolyn Taylor
*
Jennifer Whalen
*
Catherine Reitman
Catherine Marcelle Reitman (; born April 28, 1981) is a Canadian-American actress, producer, and writer. She is the creator, executive producer, writer, and star of the CBC comedy series ''Workin' Moms''.
Early life
Reitman was born in Los An ...
*
Dani Kind
Dani Kind is a Canadian actress.
Early life
Danielle Kind was born on 10 January 1980. Raised in Toronto, Ontario, Kind chose her career in grade nine after seeing an actress perform a monologue during her high school studies. Kind then joined a ...
*
Olunike Adeliyi
*
William Shatner
William Shatner (born March 22, 1931) is a Canadian actor. In a career spanning seven decades, he is best known for his portrayal of James T. Kirk in the ''Star Trek'' franchise, from his 1965 debut as the captain of the starship USS Enterpri ...
*
Ryan Belleville
Ryan Belleville (born May 8, 1979) is a Canadian stand-up comedian and actor.
Career
Belleville became the youngest person to tape his own ''Comedy Now!'' special for CTV. He also appeared in CBC's ''The Sean Cullen Show'' and the film '' Goin ...
*
Amybeth McNulty
Amybeth McNulty (born 7 November 2001) is an Irish actress. She is known for her starring role as Anne Shirley in the CBC/Netflix drama series ''Anne with an E'' (2017–2019), based on the 1908 novel ''Anne of Green Gables'' by Lucy Maud Mont ...
*
R. H. Thomson
*
Ryan Gosling
*
Ryan Reynolds
Ryan Rodney Reynolds (born October 23, 1976) is a Canadian-American actor. He is one of the highest-grossing film actors of all time, with a worldwide box-office gross of over billion.
He began his career starring in the Canadian teen ...
*
Jim Carrey
*
Michael J. Fox
Michael Andrew Fox (born June 9, 1961), known professionally as Michael J. Fox, is a Canadian-American retired actor. Beginning his career in the 1970s, he rose to prominence portraying Alex P. Keaton on the NBC sitcom ''Family Ties'' (1 ...
*
Chase Tang
Chia-Hao Tang (; born August 24, 1988), professionally known as Chase Tang, is a Taiwanese-Canadian actor. After completing a degree in commerce from the University of Guelph, Tang gave up a corporate career and instead sought out training as an a ...
*
Seth Rogen
Seth Aaron Rogen (; born April 15, 1982) is a Canadian-American actor, comedian and filmmaker. Originally a stand-up comedian in Vancouver, he moved to Los Angeles for a part in Judd Apatow's series '' Freaks and Geeks'', and then got a part o ...
*
Colin Mochrie
*
Ryan Stiles
Ryan Lee Stiles (born April 22, 1959) is an American-Canadian actor, comedian, and producer whose work is often associated with improvisational comedy. He is best known for his work on the original British series and American version of '' Wh ...
*
Drew Carey
Drew Allison Carey (born May 23, 1958) is an American comedian, actor and game show host. After serving in the U.S. Marine Corps and making a name for himself in stand-up comedy, he gained stardom in his own sitcom, '' The Drew Carey Show'', an ...
*
Wayne Brady
Wayne Alphonso Brady (born June 2, 1972) is an American television personality, comedian, actor, and singer. He is a regular on the American version of the improvisational comedy television series ''Whose Line Is It Anyway?'' He was the host of ...
*
Dale Goldhawk
Dale Goldhawk (born ) is a Canadians, Canadian broadcaster, journalist, and investigative reporter.
Goldhawk graduated from the journalism program at Ryerson Polytechnical Institute in 1967 and began his career as a reporter for the ''Toronto Te ...
See also
*
SAG-AFTRA
The Screen Actors Guild - American Federation of Television and Radio Artists (SAG-AFTRA, stylized as SAG·AFTRA ) is an American labor union representing approximately 160,000 film and television actors, journalists, radio personalities, recordi ...
– similar US organization for motion picture, television and radio actors
*
Union des artistes
The Union des artistes (UDA; literally "Union of Artists") is a Quebec-based labour organization representing stage, television, radio, and film performers in French-language media in Canada. (The English-language labour organization is the Allian ...
– ACTRA's francophone equivalent
*
ANDA
Anda or ANDA may refer to:
Places China
*Anda, Heilongjiang, a city in Heilongjiang, China
*Anda railway station, a railway station in Anda, China
Iran
*Anda, Iran, a village in Fars Province, Iran
Norway
*Anda, Norway, an island in Øksnes mun ...
- similar Mexican organization
References
Further reading
*
External links
*
Alliance of Canadian Cinema, Television and Radio Artists fonds (R3600)at
Library and Archives Canada
{{Authority control
1943 establishments in Ontario
Actors' trade unions
Canadian Labour Congress
Entertainment industry unions
Organizations based in Toronto
Trade unions established in 1943
Trade unions in Canada