How To Become A Producer Director: What It Is and Career Path

What is a producer director and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

3 min read

Quoted Expert

Johnathan Paul

If you grow impressed by the whole concept, nature, and content of a video on YouTube, it means the producer-director has done one hell of a job. Then they have been victorious in creating the best experience that their viewers can enjoy. Without a top-quality producer-director, no film can get the attention and appreciation of the audience.

Thanks to them, production operations are carried out successfully, both in the creative and business aspects. As the time and budget are limited, the innovative team works together to create project deliverables and meet the specific deadlines. Directing the project is a crucial part of their job. They also supervise the YouTube functions of the project, like ensuring target views are achieved on a video. They also manage marketing and promotional events, along with monitoring the performance of the production department.

A successful producer-director can make almost $43.58 per hour, on average. This high paid job is a field of attraction for individuals who have video production and feature film production skills. From an educational point of view, you require a bachelor's degree in photography or communication.

What general advice would you give to a Producer Director?

Johnathan Paul

Adjunct Professor, University of North Texas

My number one piece of advice for soon-to-be or recent graduates is never to stop learning. I always strive to tell my students to be as diverse as possible. Don't just know one thing; in today's market, you need to know how to do several things. Diversify your tool palette. This will help you in the long run and may lead you to a career path you didn't realize existed.

ScoreProducer DirectorUS Average

Salary

4.3

Avg. Salary $54,924

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability Level

9.2

Growth Rate 8%

Growth Rate 0.3%

Diversity

5.0

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.17%

Asian 6.43%

Black or African American 8.02%

Hispanic or Latino 14.73%

Unknown 5.60%

White 65.06%

Gender

female 26.52%

male 73.48%

Age - 39

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 39

Stress Level

9.2

Stress level is very high

7.1 - high

Complexity Level

9.6

Complexity Level is advanced

7 - challenging

Work Life Balance

2.8

Work Life balance is poor

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a producer director

Explore producer director education requirements

Most common producer director degrees

Bachelor's

77.5 %

Associate

9.4 %

Master's

8.6 %

Start to develop specific producer director skills

Skills	Percentages
Video Production	9.86%
Photography	7.64%
Music Videos	5.12%
Instagram	5.09%
Promotional Videos	4.93%

Complete relevant producer director training and internships

Accountants spend an average of Less than 1 month on post-employment, on-the-job training. New producer directors learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a producer director based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real producer director resumes.

Research producer director duties and responsibilities

Manage day-to-day completion activities including project planning and QA testing.
Implement social media campaign on Facebook and Instagram.
Design a DVD layout for the video and also edit a trailer of the video for YouTube.
Team with top female comedy stars to create and deliver popular original live shows, later release for DVD distribution.

Get producer director experience

Generally, it takes 6-12 months to become a producer director. The most common roles before becoming a producer director include production assistant, producer team lead and director.

Prepare your producer director resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your producer director resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a producer director resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose From 10+ Customizable Producer Director Resume templates

Build a professional Producer Director resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your Producer Director resume.

Apply for producer director jobs

Now it's time to start searching for a producer director job. Consider the tips below for a successful job search:

Browse job boards for relevant postings
Consult your professional network
Reach out to companies you're interested in working for directly
Watch out for job scams

How do producer directors rate their job?