The jobs of directing and producing are often combined in actual practice, but this job description will deal with them as separate positions.
The producer is the business head of a production. Anyone with a script and a bankroll can be a producer, it has been said, but the successful ones have much more than that. They have taste and discrimination and the ability to raise money from backers.
A producer must be able to estimate production and operating costs, obtain or provide financing, hire a staff and performers, arrange for rehearsal facilities, and handle all other production details. In the theater and movies, producers take an enormous financial risk; radio and television are more stable fields. On any project, the producer is the boss, since he or she controls the purse strings.
The director is the unifying force that brings together the diverse talents involved in a production. To some, the director is the most important element. A well-known director can attract top stars and backers to a production on the strength of his or her reputation. A good director is said to be part psychologist and part disciplinarian in his or her handling of the creative, temperamental, and strong-willed people who make up a production. He or she must have a working knowledge of costume, lighting, and design as well as acting. Most directors have at least some experience as actors themselves. The director's ability to bring out the best in the performers, plus his or her interpretation of the script as a whole, usually means the difference between success and failure for a production.
In television and radio, the director's duties are a little different. The selection and scheduling of programs are also part of the director's organizational and administrative duties because many programs come prepackaged and ready for airing.
In the theater, touring shows employ an advance director. Because many shows send only the stars and a few other principal players on tour, remaining roles in the cast are filled by local actors. The advance director arrives ahead of time to select and rehearse the local cast and have the production ready when the stars arrive. This is not a very creative type of directing, since all decisions have been made and the director must prepare the cast to duplicate the performances being given in other cities on the tour.
An important position in any production is that of stage manager {floor manager in radio and television), who is, in effect, the "executive in charge of operations." The stage manager sees that everyone gets on stage at the right moment that lighting crews and stagehands operate on cue. The stage manager assigns dressing rooms, handles emergencies of all types, and is sometimes the understudy for one or more roles in a production. Many stage managers start out as actors and, although stage managing is a demanding specialty in its own right, go on to become directors or producers.
Places of Employment and Working Conditions
There are opportunities for producers and directors in large cities throughout the country, but most are concentrated in Boston, Chicago, Houston, Los Angeles, New York City, Philadelphia, and San Francisco—the prime locations of the movie, television, and theater industries.
As with all aspects of the entertainment field, work is not steady. For a producer or a director, the pressures of putting together a new production are enormous. When the production is not a success, the financial and emotional costs can be staggering.
Qualifications, Education, and Training
A producer has to have business and administrative ability as well as a grasp of what the public wants in the way of entertainment. A director must have artistic talent and good judgment, emotional and physical stamina, a thorough knowledge of techniques and devices, patience, and assertiveness.
There are no educational requirements for either of these positions. In the case of the director, talent is the most important factor combined with experience gathered through years of practice. Many of today's directors, however, received their basic training at a top drama school or college. Many colleges offer programs in dramatic arts that include course work in directing, production, costume, and other related fields, as well as radio and television courses. One big advantage of formal training is the opportunity it provides for an aspiring director to work in college productions.
Producers with an educational background that combines the arts and business administration skills have an advantage in the modern entertainment field.
Potential and Advancement
Many opportunities exist in addition to the glamorous jobs at the top of the entertainment field. Community theaters, summer stock, touring shows, industrial shows, and commercial production companies all require producers and directors. Teaching positions are available in colleges, drama schools, and some secondary schools (many require teacher certification). The trend is toward a good solid educational background combined with experience.
All experience is valuable in this field; nothing is irrelevant. Getting a job in almost any capacity of performing or production is important for the beginner. From there, advancement comes through hard work, talent, and being noticed by the right people. A prop manager can work up to stage manager; an experienced actor can branch out into directing. Whatever the job, advancement to better companies, bigger radio or television stations, and working with well-known stars are the marks of progress.
Income
The Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates that the median salary for producers and directors in 2015 was $68,440, though actual figures vary tremendously depending on many different factors.
Producers' earnings vary greatly depending, in movies and the theater, on the success or failure of individual productions. Television and radio are the most stable and dependable fields.
Directors have sporadic earnings. Those working on Broadway earn the most—$20,000 for a five-week rehearsal period. Those in summer stock community theaters and touring shows have a wide range of earnings depending on size and caliber of the productions, on average, $500 to $600 a week.
Radio and television provide full-time salaried positions for directors. Earnings depend on the station's size, with major networks paying the highest salaries.
Producers usually receive a percentage of the show's earnings; some get a set fee.
