Producers and Directors

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Summary

Producers and directors
Producers and directors work from behind the camera in motion pictures and television.
Quick Facts: Producers and Directors
2010 Median Pay $68,440 per year
$32.90 per hour
Entry-Level Education Bachelor’s degree
Work Experience in a Related Occupation 1 to 5 years
On-the-job Training None
Number of Jobs, 2010 122,500
Job Outlook, 2010-20 11% (About as fast as average)
Employment Change, 2010-20 13,500

What Producers and Directors Do

Producers and directors are in charge of creating motion pictures, television shows, live theater, and other performing arts productions. They interpret a writer’s script to entertain or inform an audience.

Work Environment

Producers and directors work under a lot of pressure, and most are under constant stress to find their next job. Work assignments are usually short, ranging from 1 day to a few months. Therefore, they also often hold another job to make a living.

How to Become a Producer or Director

Most producers and directors have a bachelor’s degree and several years of work experience in a related occupation, such as an actor or writer.

Pay

The median annual wage of producers and directors was $68,440 in May 2010.

Job Outlook

Employment of producers and directors is projected to grow 11 percent from 2010 to 2020, about as fast as the average for all occupations. Job growth in the motion picture and video industry will stem from strong demand from the public for more movies and television shows.

Similar Occupations

Compare the job duties, education, job growth, and pay of producers and directors with similar occupations.

O*NET

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Contacts for More Information

Learn more about producers and directors by contacting these additional resources.

What Producers and Directors Do About this section

Producers and directors
Theater directors give instructions to actors and dancers.

Producers and directors are in charge of creating motion pictures, television shows, live theater, and other performing arts productions. They interpret a writer’s script to entertain or inform an audience.

Duties

Producers and directors typically do the following:

  • Select scripts
  • Audition and select cast members and the film or stage crew
  • Approve the design and financial aspects of a production
  • Ensure that a project stays on schedule and within budget
  • Approve new developments in the production

Large productions often have associate, assistant, and line producers who share responsibilities. For example, on a large movie set an executive producer is in charge of the entire production, and a line producer runs the day-to-day operations. A TV show may employ several assistant producers, whom the head or executive producer gives certain duties, such as supervising the costume and makeup team.

Similarly, large productions usually employ several assistant directors, who help the director with tasks such as making set changes or notifying the performers when it is their time to go onstage. The specific responsibilities of assistant producers or directors vary with the size and type of production they work on.

Producers make the business and financial decisions for a motion picture, TV show, or stage production. They raise money for the project and hire the director and crew. The crew may include set and costume designers, a musical director, a choreographer, and other workers. Some producers may assist in the selection of cast members. Producers set the budget and approve any major changes to the project. They make sure that the film or show is completed on time, and they are responsible for the way the finished project turns out.

Directors are responsible for the creative decisions of a production. They select cast members, conduct rehearsals, and direct the work of the cast and crew. During rehearsal, they work with the actors to help them portray their characters better.

Directors work with designers to build a project’s set. During a film’s postproduction phase, they work closely with film editors to make sure that the final product comes out the way the producer and director want.

Although directors are in charge of the creative aspects of a show, they ultimately answer to the executive producer.

Work Environment About this section

Producers and directors
Producers and directors audition and select cast members.

Producers and directors work under a lot of pressure, and most are under constant stress to find their next job. Work assignments are usually short, ranging from 1 day to a few months. Producers and directors may have long periods of unemployment. They often hold another job to make a living. They sometimes must work in unpleasant conditions, such as bad weather.

Producers and directors held about 122,500 jobs in 2010.

About 29 percent of producers and directors were self-employed in 2010; the remainder most commonly worked in the following industries:

Motion picture and video industries23%
Radio and television broadcasting16
Performing arts, spectator sports, and related industries7
Cable and other subscription programming4

Work Schedules

Work hours for producers and directors are long and irregular. Evening, weekend, and holiday work is common. Very few producers and directors work a standard 40-hour workweek, and many have variable schedules. Those who work in theater may travel with a touring show across the country, while those in film may work on location (a site away from the studio where all or part of the filming occurs).

How to Become a Producer or Director About this section

Producers and directors
Producers and directors ensure that a project stays on schedule and within budget.

Most producers and directors have a bachelor’s degree and several years of work experience in a related occupation, such as an actor or writer.

Education

Producers and directors usually earn a bachelor’s degree. There are no formal training programs for producers or film directors, but some major in writing, acting, journalism, or communication while in college. Some producers earn a degree in business, arts management, or nonprofit management.

Many stage directors complete a degree in theater, and some go on to receive a Master of Fine Arts (MFA) degree. Classes may include directing, playwriting, and set design, as well as some acting classes. The National Association of Schools of Theater accredits more than 150 programs in theater arts.

Work Experience

Producers and directors usually have several years of work experience in a related occupation. Many directors begin as actors, writers, film editors, or choreographers, and over the years they learn about directing. Many begin as assistants to successful directors on a film set. For more information, see the profiles on actors, writers and authors, film and video editors and camera operators, or dancers and choreographers.

In nonprofit theaters, most aspiring directors begin as assistant directors, a position that is usually treated as an unpaid internship.

Producers might start out working in a theatrical management office, as a business manager, or as an assistant or another low-profile job in a TV or movie studio. Some were directors or worked in another role behind the scenes of a show or movie.

Advancement

As a producer’s or director’s reputation grows, he or she may work on bigger and more expensive projects.

Important Qualities

Communication skills. Producers and directors must coordinate the work of many different people to finish a production on time and within budget.

Creativity. Because a script can be interpreted in different ways, directors must decide how they want to interpret it and then how to physically represent the script’s ideas.

Leadership skills. A director instructs actors and helps them portray their characters in a believable manner.

Management skills. Producers must find and hire the best director and crew for the production and make sure that all involved do their jobs effectively and efficiently.

Pay About this section

Producers and Directors

Median annual wages, May 2010

Producers and Directors

$68,440

Entertainers and Performers, Sports and Related Workers

$37,290

Total, All Occupations

$33,840

 

The median annual wage of producers and directors was $68,440 in May 2010. The median wage is the wage at which half the workers in an occupation earned more than that amount and half earned less. The lowest 10 percent earned less than $32,140, and the top 10 percent earned more than $166,400 in May 2010.

Some producer’s and director’s income is earned as a percentage of ticket sales. A few of the most successful producers and directors have extraordinarily high earnings, but most do not.

Median annual wages in the industries employing the largest numbers of producers and directors in May 2010 were as follows:

Motion picture and video industries $  92,820
Cable and other subscription programming81,290
Radio and television broadcasting54,120
Performing arts, spectator sports, and related industries51,960

Work hours for producers and directors are long and irregular. Evening, weekend, and holiday work is common. Very few producers and directors work a standard 40-hour workweek, and many have variable schedules. Those who work in theater may travel with a touring show across the country, while those in film may work on location (a site away from the studio where all or part of the filming occurs).

Job Outlook About this section

Producers and Directors

Percent change in employment, projected 2010-20

Entertainers and Performers, Sports and Related Workers

16%

Total, All Occupations

14%

Producers and Directors

11%

 

Employment of producers and directors is projected to grow 11 percent from 2010 to 2020, about as fast as the average for all occupations.

Job growth in the motion picture and video industry is expected to stem from strong demand from the public for more movies and television shows, as well as an increased demand from foreign audiences for U.S.-produced films. In addition, production companies are experimenting with new content delivery methods, such as mobile and online TV, which may lead to more work for producers and directors in the future. However, these delivery methods are still in their early stages, and their potential for success is not yet known.

Employment of self-employed producers and directors is expected to grow 16 percent, faster than that of those in the motion picture industry, as the number of independent films grow.

In broadcasting, some producer and director jobs may be lost as radio stations continue to consolidate; however, this loss will be slowed by the public’s increased desire for local programming in both TV and radio.

Producers and directors who work in small and medium-sized theaters may see slower job growth because many of those theaters have difficulty finding funding as the number of performances decline. Large theaters, which usually have more stable sources of funding, should provide more opportunities.

Job Prospects

Producers and directors face intense competition for jobs because there are many more people who want to work in this field than there are jobs available. In film, directors who have experience on movies sets should have the best job prospects. Producers who have good business skills will likely have the best prospects.

Employment projections data for producers and directors, 2010-20
Occupational Title SOC Code Employment, 2010 Projected Employment, 2020 Change, 2010-20 Employment by Industry
Percent Numeric

SOURCE: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment Projections program

Producers and Directors

27-2012 122,500 136,000 11 13,500 [XLS]

Similar Occupations About this section

This table shows a list of occupations with job duties that are similar to those of producers and directors.

Occupation Job Duties ENTRY-LEVEL EDUCATION Help 2010 MEDIAN PAY Help
Actors

Actors

Actors express ideas and portray characters in theater, film, television, and other performing arts media. They also work at theme parks or for other live events. They interpret a writer’s script to entertain or inform an audience.

Some college, no degree The annual wage is not available.
Dancers and choreographers

Dancers and Choreographers

Dancers and choreographers use movements to express ideas and stories in performances. There are many types of dance, such as ballet, modern dance, tap, and jazz.

High school diploma or equivalent The annual wage is not available.
Musicians and singers

Musicians and Singers

Musicians and singers play instruments or sing for live audiences and in recording studios. They perform in a variety of styles, such as classical, jazz, opera, rap, or rock.

High school diploma or equivalent The annual wage is not available.
Film and video editors and camera operators

Film and Video Editors and Camera Operators

Film and video editors and camera operators record images that entertain or inform an audience. Camera operators capture a wide range of material for TV shows, motion pictures, music videos, documentaries, or news and sporting events. Editors construct the final productions from the many different images camera operators capture. They collaborate with producers and directors to create the final production.

Bachelor’s degree $45,490
Radio and television announcers

Announcers

Announcers present music, news, and sports and may provide commentary or interview guests about these topics or other important events. Some act as a master of ceremonies (emcee) or disc jockey (DJ) at weddings, parties, or clubs.

See How to Become One $27,010
Writers and authors

Writers and Authors

Writers and authors develop original written content for advertisements, books, magazines, movie and television scripts, songs, and online publications.

Bachelor’s degree $55,420
Art directors

Art Directors

Art directors are responsible for the visual style and images in magazines, newspapers, product packaging, and movie and television productions. They create the overall design and direct others who develop artwork or layouts.

Bachelor’s degree $80,630
Multimedia artists and animators

Multimedia Artists and Animators

Multimedia artists and animators create animation and visual effects for television, movies, video games, and other media. They create two- and three-dimensional models and animation.

Bachelor’s degree $58,510
Set and exhibit designers

Set and Exhibit Designers

Set designers create sets for movie, television, theater, and other productions. They analyze scripts or other research documents to determine how many sets will be needed and how each set can best support the story. Exhibit designers create spaces to display products, art, or artifacts.

Bachelor’s degree $46,680
Top executives

Top Executives

Top executives devise strategies and policies to ensure that an organization meets its goals. They plan, direct, and coordinate operational activities of companies and public or private-sector organizations.

See How to Become One $101,250
Suggested citation:

Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor, Occupational Outlook Handbook, 2012-13 Edition, Producers and Directors,
on the Internet at http://www.bls.gov/ooh/entertainment-and-sports/producers-and-directors.htm (visited October 02, 2012).

Publish Date: Thursday, April 26, 2012