At a recent BAFTA event, producer Danielle Goff jokingly described producing as “like running into a fire and just being able to run out of the other side unharmed.” But while producing isn’t for the faint-hearted, it can be extremely rewarding. You get to choose your own projects and who you work with, and you have a hand in shaping both the creative and strategic aspects of a film’s production. If you strike lucky, you might even create a classic that will be watched and rewatched for generations. Think you have what it takes? Here is everything you need to know about becoming a film producer.
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A producer is the top dog on any film production. They are ultimately responsible for the development and distribution of a film. That might include optioning the original story or script, bringing other key creative players on board (like the director or writer) securing funding, working out the budget and schedule (often with the aid of a line producer), negotiating contracts, resolving conflicts during production, and then, when the film is completed, ensuring that it reaches an audience. Or, as producer, script editor, and writer Margaret Glover describes it, the role is “to look after the assets.” In other words, the “story, people, kit, money, time, and space.”
No two producers work the same way. There are some who take a more active role in shaping the overall story and script. There are others who are, as independent producer Hank Starrs put it, “really good at finding bits of private equity, and the sort of whole diplomacy and sales part of raising finance. And some are really good at being super hard-nosed and closing deals.”
Though a producer has ultimate control over a project, their role isn’t to be a dictatorial boss. Instead, a good producer knows how to foster collaborative and creative relationships with other members of the team – especially the writer and director. There may also be more than one producer on a film. Sometimes producers choose to work in partnership with someone else. Or an independent producer might join forces with a larger production company in order to get their project financed.
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As Alison Owen (producer of the Amy Winehouse biographical drama Back to Black and Mary Poppins development story Saving Mr Banks explained, the role requires being “a jack of all trades — you need to be able to understand the creative, business, practical, and legal complexities involved in making a film. Producing suits people like me who weren't necessarily born with one outstanding skill, but are quite good at lots of things.”
A producer also needs to have “backbone, resilience, and vision”, according to Glover, but most importantly be a storyteller. And, of course, it helps to have nerves of steel. “It's a very up and down job,” says Starrs, so you need to be “fairly emotionally stable”.
As is the case with any film career, there is no one path to the top. But here are some suggestions for getting started.
1. Get some training
You don’t need to go to film school to become a producer, but it can help you develop vital skills and contacts, plus gain hands-on experience making films. Leading courses include the National Film and Television School’s MA in Producing or the London Film School’s MA in International Film Business.
2. Cultivate your taste
If you want to be a producer, you have to love film. Watch as much and as widely as you can – from low-budget foreign films to Hollywood blockbusters – to work out what you like and get a better understanding of the market. It’s also a good idea to immerse yourself in wider culture – in particular, literature. Eventually, you might want to option books in order to turn them into films, so keep track of any up-and-coming authors whose work you find interesting.
3. Take a job with a production company
Becoming a film producer doesn’t happen overnight. Most will have worked their way up to the role, taking more junior jobs in the production team first (e.g., a general assistant or an associate producer). Approach companies you’re interested in working for to try and secure a work placement or a junior role.
4. Become a film freelancer
People also move into producing from other roles within development or production. Glover suggests pursuing roles that help you “understand the big picture.” For example, through working as a script editor and helping a writer shape their story, you’ll come up against some of the practical challenges involved in making a film. “You’re having to deal with somebody who comes along and says, ‘We've lost that location,’ or ‘Our budget has been cut’,” explains Glover. Working as a first AD will give you “oversight on the ground”. Being a post-production supervisor, “you really understand the workflow”, and as a line producer, “you’re seeing the top-level economics of it.” The crucial thing is that, through all these routes, “you can earn while you learn,” says Glover.
5. Make a sideways move
Sometimes producers come to the role from related industries – for example, they previously worked as a lawyer and therefore have the advantage of being both knowledgeable about intellectual property rights and highly skilled in negotiating deals. Or a producer might make the sideways move from distribution and sales, where they will have developed a deep understanding of how to market a film. Of course, if transferring from another industry, having a passion for, and knowledge of, the film industry is a must.
6. Start making films
Eventually, whichever route you choose, at some point you need to start developing and producing on your own. Some people jump the experience step altogether, as Starrs did. Having previously worked for two decades as a musician, he decided to turn his hand to producing and just “learn by doing it”. He first made a series of short films, then eventually moved on to bigger projects, plugging any skills gaps by doing short courses that taught him the fundamentals. The downside of this is that you’re unlikely to make any money from your film work until you’ve established a name for yourself.
7. Network
Film is all about collaboration, so cultivate connections with others starting out in the industry. A writer you meet at a party could be the person who, in a few years’ time, writes you an award-winning script. And linking up with a director with a bit of a buzz about them could help you secure vital funding for your project.
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There are certainly some big-name British movie producers who have a net worth in the millions, but they’re the exception rather than the rule. According to research carried out in 2019, the average salary of a UK film and TV producer is £44,857.
Also, producers will normally take a fee and a percentage of the net profit from their film. But sometimes producers choose to waive their fee (especially when starting out) to ensure their project gets made – meaning they might not receive any income from it for a couple of years.
On the plus side, it’s arguably easier to break into the film industry as a newbie producer than for other film roles by virtue of their being less competition. “If you go to a networking night,” says Starrs, “there’ll be a million writer-directors and four producers.” So, if you’ve got the drive and skills to get a film made, it’s likely that at least some of those writer-directors will be very pleased to get to know you.