Chapter 1: What Does a TV Producer Really Do?

________ better when it comes through hearing the spoken word or audio.

Is the ________ for the financing and /or distribution group.

They can create and manage ________ for the web, gaming, mobile, and newer systems.

A(n) ________ are considered as important as their intellectual abilities.

books and magazines, the industry trade papers, newspapers, the Internet, plays, biographies, art and history, and philosophy

creating a compelling story

friends and family

• Learns best by reading or looking at information

• Creates a mental picture of the data

• Absorbs information better when it comes to hearing the spoken word or audio

• Has strong listening skills and verbal abilities

• Information is best conveyed through ways that are physical

• Understands information best when it’s presented as sequential

• The opposite of the analytical learner

• They see the big picture first

• Tends to stick with a task

• The process and the journey of reaching the goal can be as engaging as the goal itself

• Believe in your project

• Stand firmly behind it

• Don’t let your need to be liked to get in the way of getting things done

• Hire the best people you can find

• Find ways to show your thanks

• Assess your own ethical framework

• Makes it more likely to create a project that’s under control

• You’re accountable to your team

• Keeping up with changes in technology

• Your word is solid enough to build your reputation upon it

• Listen to criticism

• Don’t take it personally

• Hear all sides of an issue

• Respect the fact that people work at different rhythms with varying working styles

• Have a professional and a personal life

• Save your energy

• You can cultivate new friends who share your passion for producing while staying close to your most important supporters: friends and family

• Make the time to take a walk

• Have a mental break and a few deep breaths

• Finding, writing, developing, and pitching an idea

• Budgeting a script

• Negotiating a deal

• Securing financing

• Planning

• Shooting

• Editing

• Creating a team of talented people with great attitudes

• Satisfy both the client and the viewer

• Utilize the talents of the cast and crew

• Produce a program or segment

• Be a multitasker

• Write the script

• Do research

• Shoot and produce a program or segment

• Edit the footage on a desktop system

• Mix the audio

• Design and add graphics

• Write and record narration or voice-over

• Art with craft

• Commerce with technology

• Leadership with collaboration

• Creative

• Technological

• Finances

• Marketing

• The writer

• The director

• A source of the financing

• A part of a producing team

• Governing force

• Often doubles as the director (unless the project is heavily actor-oriented)

• Usually hires and fires the director, writers, key department heads, actors, other talents, and crew

• Makes the final decisions

• Acts as the liaison between the studio and the production

• Provides a support system for the film’s director

• Might shepherd their own scripts or projects, hire the director and cast, and oversee the film’s integrity, production value, and marketing

• Eager to meet challenges

• Can multitask

• Can handle a steady stream of demands and questions

• Creative

• Flexible

• Open to new ideas and information

• Has genuine respect for all kinds of people

• Has an ethical and profitable approach to business

• Knows about the elements of producing

• Might also be talented as a writer, director, or editor

• Is a storyteller or entrepreneur

• Has strong leadership skills and works well with a team

• Understands the larger context of television and its offshoots, including its past history, current status, and future potential

• Producing a specific kind of program or content

• Creative skills

• Financial skills

• Technical skills

• Interpersonal skills

• Anticipates what’s needed

• Solves problems, rather than creates them

• Is smart

• Plays fair

• Is a nurturer

• Is an arbitrator

• Can be both a leader and a team player

• Is a risk taker

• Has a plan for any predictable scenario

• Might be working in several stages of production at once

• Becomes the point person for the director, the Director of Photography, the actors, and the crew members who rely on his leadership

• Balances the needs of the network or client with the needs of the talent and cast

• A good story and useful information are both at the core of their craft

• The producer researches everything at their disposal - books and magazines, the industry trade papers, newspapers, the Internet, plays, biographies, art and history, and philosophy

• They look for ideas that interest them and that might also appeal to a wide audience

• Their goal is to understand where the media industries are going and keep current with what is popular now.

• They watch TV and explore new media

• The producer is comfortable doing business and being creative

• They don’t need to know how to do everything, but they do know how to hire the best people to do certain jobs

• They create a loyal and talented team who can all work toward a common goal - creating a compelling story

• Educate

• Entertain

• Emotionally move an audience

• Are at the core of a project

• Encourage collaboration

• Provide strong and balanced leadership

• Know when to step back and let people do their job

• Model patience, humor, and a clear vision of the project, supplying creative direction while balancing the pressures of the budget

• Are generous with your flexibility and encouragement, while staying connected to the realities of the budget and time constraints

• Are focused and relaxed

1. Stage One: The idea (project development)

2. Stage Two: The plan (preproduction)

3. Stage Three: The shoot (production)

4. Stage Four: The final product (postproduction)

5. Stage Five: Next steps (wrap up and distribution)

• Festivals

• Organizations

• School clubs

• Openings

• Charity events

• Create an online presence, write a blog

• Follow the trends in television and new media

• Research who’s financing the ideas and in what ways the projects are financially viable

• Keep on top of media industry news

• Follow the smart blogs

• Observe the ebb and flow of current trends

• Research the legal requirements like copyrights, contracts, deal memos, and other forms of negotiation that can protect your idea and the whole project

• Creative skills

• Business skills

• People skills

• Makes the deals

• Finds the finances

• Usually, they set up and control the budget

• May hire various crew and cast

• Can be in charge of other producers for one or more projects

• Responsible for the overall creative direction of a series

• Often he may have the title of executive producer

• Might be the original creator of the show and/or the writer of the show’s storyline overview

• Usually the primary writer

• Sometimes manages and guides other writers in creating the scripts

• Often may rewrite scripts and make sure they’re delivered on schedule

• Might be involved in pitching a new show idea to a network and casting the actors

• Maintains the essential vision of the show

• They can be an entrepreneurial producer or a producer commissioned to come in at any stage to work on the project

• Initiates ideas and hires and coordinates the crew

• Might be the writer and/or the director, or might hire them

• Supervises and controls the budget

• Supervises and controls the technical and administrative aspects throughout the project

• Oversees contracts and negotiations

• May receive a percentage of the final profits, if any, as well as a regular salary

• They can create and manage interactive content for the web, gaming, mobile, and newer systems

• Is equally adept at directing teams of producers and designers

• They are able to draft project goals, schedules, and budgets

• Has mastered most software programs

• Can shoot live action

• Deals easily with both vendors and clients

• Also called the co-producer or assistant producer

• Producer’s right hand

• Does specific jobs that the producer assigns

• Their work can be on the creative side, such as helping to set up interviews on a talk show, and can also lean toward administrative tasks, such as making production schedules, allotting budgets to departments, booking talent and/or crew, research, interviewing talent, finding locations, and more

• Is most involved in the day-to-day operation from the beginning to the end of the project

• Keeps budgets on track and compares estimated costs to actual expenditures

• Represents the administrative side of television

• Turns ideas into reality by figuring out the logistics of a project

• Keeps the production on schedule

• Breaks down the script into a storyboard and its components for production, and decides the sequence of shooting that’s most cost-effective

• They work closely with the producer(s) in various aspects of location scouting, transportation, and lodging

• Generally hired on a permanent or per-project basis

• Works in a network or production company as an employee with benefits.

• The job usually involves producing an ongoing aspect of the show that’s assigned to them

• In magazine format shows, news broadcasts, talk shows, and reality-based programming, they are assigned to one of several stories aired within the program

• May produce their own segment

• Some shows may have several teams comprised of a producer, PAs, a camera operator, and an editor who work together on their segment

• May own their own company with a capable infrastructure, and work on projects for a network, another production company, or a variety of clients

• May have a complete staff, or hire on an as-needed basis

• Usually pays their own insurance, benefits, taxes, and other expenses like overhead and equipment

• A producer who is “in the field” or at a location some distance away from the primary producer.

• They can be on the scene faster and less expensively

• Can work flexibly in a variety of fields like sports, entertainment, and news

• They are familiar with the footage to be edited, and keep logs of where the footage is and on what reel numbers

• May create a paper cut or storyboard of the editing order of the shots, with their time code and reel locations

• Keeps track of the graphic and audio elements

• Supervises all editing, graphic, and audio sessions

• Works closely with the editor and the sound designer throughout the final stages of postproduction

• Embraces collaboration

• Encourages teamwork

• Supports each member of the team

• Encourages an open discussion

• Vital skills for effective relationships

• Most conflicts can be managed effectively if you can grasp the cause of the conflict and deal with it

• The peacemaker

• A person’s emotional strengths are considered as important as their intellectual abilities

• A high EQ is measured by a producer’s ability to show genuine empathy, respect, positive leadership skills, and sincerity for the team

• When you can understand the different ways in which each member of your team learns, you can strengthen the bonds of communication

• Originally researched and revealed by a Harvard professor, Dr. Howard Gardner

• The research reveals at least a dozen distinct predominant intelligence that each of us can claim, such as a strong musical, mathematical, spatial, or athletic intelligence

• Being attentive

• Not interrupting

• Acknowledging that we hear the other person

• The producer recognizes that the team is made of individuals with their own needs

• Leadership comes with the producer’s territory

• Verbal (the choice of words as well as the tone and volume of our voice)

• Nonverbal (facial expressions, body language, gestures)