It could be a holiday movie with a Hallmark cheery ending: Discovery of an injustice ... a struggle to right a wrong ... a community rallies with support and money ... then resolution, lessons learned, and a pay-it-forward gift.

Except, it's the scenario for what actually did happen this year. And you already know much of the story - but not all.

Earlier this year, voice actor Bev Standing (pictured) discovered that her voice was being used without her prior knowledge or permission by social media giant TikTok's text-to-speech feature. Then:

A cheery holiday ending, yes. But there's more.

Standing is donating all money received in the GoFundMe campaign to the Brad Venable Grant (www.bebrad.com), which was initially created in January 2021 as the Brad Venable Coaching Scholarship in memory of popular voice actor Brad Venable to benefit Brad's widow. Now, fund organizer/voice actor Tim Friedlander and Standing have collaborated to expand the fund's purpose to also help voice actors.

"We are setting up a 501(3)c to handle the fund going forward, and once that is finalized we will have more info on where the grants will be offered," Friedlander explains. (See more on the plan below).

Sciglimpaglia is donating to the Brad Venable Grant, too.

VoiceOverXtra asked Standing and Sciglimpaglia to fill us in ...

I have donated the entire amount of the GoFundMe account, which was $7,289.56 USD, to the Brad Venable Grant, and I can't thank enough, all those who donated. It was encouraging to know I had that support.

I would like to thank Maria Pendolino for creating the GoFundMe. I didn't want to do it at first, as I felt it was my battle and my battle alone. 

But I was told "people just want to help" so I agreed, with the intention of donating if it was not needed.

I had planned to use this money if I had out-of-pocket expenses for travel, hotel and court/legal expenses, but we were able to come to an agreement without that being necessary. The only thing it cost me was time - lots and lots of time. 

Brad was one of the kindest VO people I knew. He stood up for what was right, and that's what I was doing. When Brad passed last year from COVID 19 I wanted to continue with that same thought in mind, "to help."

The folks who contributed to my GoFundMe account did so to help. So it just made sense.

Tim Friedlander (who created the scholarship fund) and I had a long conversation about the fund's future. We talked about it being allocated in smaller amounts, i.e. $500, to voice over conference organizers to issue to individuals in attendance who need help in some way. That way, the money would reach more people in the industry. The conference organizers can decide the parameters of the giveaway, which gives more people a voice in how and who to help.

Nope! Other than to say that we came to an amicable agreement. I had thoughts of long drawn-out battles, but it wasn't like that at all. It was a conversation and an agreeable solution.

I'm exhausted!

It didn't take the wind out of my sail, but it did wear me down a bit. 

I had a few meltdowns. But I just kept picturing the voice over community, on both sides of the glass - talent, casting, directors, engineers, agents - supporting me, having my back, and that kept me going.  

A lot of people reached out with very kind comments.

And what did I learn? 

Contracts are important - which I knew, but times are changing. So it's even more important now to protect the licensing of your voice and to understand what you are signing. Especially if you are non-union and don't have a union backing you.

AI is here to stay, like it or not, so it's vital to understand where the industry is going.

It was for me, business as usual, except the case was brought in Federal Court and I usually start my cases in State Court. 

I was not surprised, but more relieved, by how nice the attorney was for TikTok. It can go either way sometimes, where you might get someone who is just acting like a jerk, to put it lightly. 

I am not really surprised the case settled quickly because Bev had a strong case under copyright infringement, in my opinion.

I can tell you that TikTok admitted that Bev's voice was indeed the voice of their text-to-speech feature, and that the parties amicably resolved the matter. I can also say that my investigation showed TikTok didn't do anything intentional in using Bev's voice files.

I understand that you are also donating to the Brad Venable Grant. Why? Can you tell us how much?

That is correct. I don't know anyone who knew Brad who did not love Brad. I was so pleased when Bev told me that if we did not use the GoFundMe funds raised for this case that she wanted them donated to this grant. 

I had incurred $1,300 or so in costs in Bev's case, but rather than collecting them I am donating them to the fund.  

The gigantic lessons to be learned are to always know a project's intended usage and to PUT THE USAGE IN WRITING! 

And whenever possible, keep OWNERSHIP of the sound recordings that you produce in your studio so they can be copyrighted - and then license the use of those files back to the client. 

If you see contract terms like "in perpetuity" or "use in all media" - or if the contract says the "files can be sold or transferred to third parties" - it should raise a huge red flag.

Remember that these items are for non-union projects. 

For union projects, a voice artist has their union to protect them, which is one of the advantages of being a part of the union. 

Also, for non-union projects, don't automatically assume that your agent will protect you from these things. Knowledgeable agents who have been in the business a while will protect you, but I have seen examples of inexperienced agents giving away these rights. 

With new agencies popping up as quickly as new talent, this needs to be kept in mind. 

The only one who can protect you is you, so be sure to stay on top of the business and legal issues that continuously arise as the industry quickly evolves.