FAQs

Q: Heather! What the heck does a producer do?

A: This is probably the most ambiguous role in the entertainment industry (but of course, the most important!). Let me try to make it real simple for you.

A Film Producer (what I’ll be some day) generally acquires a screenplay/novel/idea from it’s original owner. There are costs, legal stuff, and even sometimes a bidding war involved. Once the screenplay/novel/idea has been ‘optioned’  it is then the producer’s job to shop it around to studios. Sometimes an idea will be hot and find a home straight away, sometimes it just won’t be placed – this is the biggest gamble. But once the idea’s been bought by the studio, if they decided to make it a movie, the producer gets to see it right through to the end. It’s the producer’s job to keep the integrity of the original idea alive.

An Executive Producer is the fancy title given to someone involved in making a movie who was part of the original idea. This could be the author of an adapted book or an actor involved in the creation process. It could even be someone appointed by the movie studio.

An Assistant Producer could be part of the Film Producer’s team, or someone who deals with the day-to-day finances.

Each of these roles is extremely important in film production but is not to be confused with a director. They have a whole set of tasks and duties all their own that are completely separate from that of a producer.

Q: But I want to be in one of your films! Can’t you make me famous?

A: Umm… short answer: No. If you work out how to make someone famous overnight – don’t forget to look me up!

Long Answer: If you want to be an actor you need to start from the bottom. Start taking classes, build a portfolio and be prepared to work your heart out. You may even have to break a leg. It’s not an easy business to get into so start NOW and grow a thick, heavily-made-up-for-the-cameras, skin. Trust me, you’re going to need it.

Q: How does one become a Film Producer, exactly?

A: There’s no perfect way. The journey is different for everyone but you generally have to start with a Communication Degree. Work experience usually follows and this could take anywhere from a couple of weeks to years. You need vision, insight, and the ability to work really long and strange hours. You have to have passion for each and every project you take on, and you need to be able to push past all the ‘nay-say-ers’ out there and keep on track.

But mostly, you need to be able to have fun. Lots of it.