Sunday, October 14, 2012

TV/Film Industry Career Profile: Production Designer

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Image by 7_70 on Flickr (Creative Commons License)
A Production Designer job is a major part of the movie making process, being head of the entire Art Department. The main aim of a Production Designer?s role is to help realize the visual aspects and ideas that the Director envisions by creating the correct look in a set or location. Beginning in the very early stages of Pre-Production, the Production Designer will often prepare detailed drawings and diagrams to showcase their ideas and talents, and if it aligns with what the Director wants, the job to create sets for the entire film project is theirs.

Production Designer Job Description

Production Designers will begin by looking at scripts and meeting with the Director to assess the costs involved for creating the sets and locations necessary, in order to estimate a budget for the Art Department. After researching and deciding what should be built for the sets, they will produce design sketches for the Art Director to produce their technical drawings from, and those in turn are then used to create models and the sets. The Production Designers will also manage Prop Buyers and Set Decorators among many other film production professionals, as they prepare the set for the start of shooting. During Shooting, they will meet with the Director and Director of Photography to respond to any issues, and then deal with the construction and dressing of other sets for following shoots. Production Designers will usually finish work on the last day of principal photography.

What Skills are Required for a Production Designer Job?

Obviously, in order to produce drawings and sketches, you should have good design skills, ranging from freehand drawing to computer graphics. Production Designers will have to be good with figures, handling the budget for the set design and production, whilst also being a good communicator and team leader, dealing with a wide variety of other film production professionals.

What Work Experience or Qualifications are Required for a Production Designer Job?

The job of a Production Designer is often worked up to from several other positions withing the film industry, such as a Runner, then Design Assistant, then Production Assistant. You may spend ten years progressing through the ranks in order to have the experience and skills to apply to a Production Designer job. Many successful applicants may come from a background in architecture, or have a degree in graphic design, although these are not necessarily requirements for all Production Designer positions. Obviously, a qualification in film production, theater design, or media production will also give you a head start, and then gaining experience on the job whilst developing contacts and building your portfolio is an ideal situation to aim for.

Other Considerations for a Production Designer Job Applicant

-Rates of Pay: Contract rates for designers vary wildly depending on the project, the production budget, and the Production Designer?s personal relationship with the Director, but a rough estimate could be a salary of between $50,000 and $80,000 a year.
-Working Conditions and Benefits: As the role of a Production Designer is of extreme importance during pre-production and shooting, the hours can be long, and workdays can be demanding. Delays and overrunning budgets are common, requiring late nights and weekends to fix things and get back on track.
-Career Development Possibilities: After gaining a good amount of general experience, Production Designers may choose to specialize in one certain type of production, and then aim to work on bigger projects in that field.

Current Production Designer Jobs

Production Designer Jobs
Production Assistant Jobs
Production Coordinator Jobs
Production Manager Jobs
Art Director Jobs

Search all TV/Film Production Jobs on Media Match

Current Production Designer Professionals

Production Designer Professionals
Production Assistant Professionals
Production Coordinator Professionals
Production Manager Professionals
Art Director Professionals

Search all TV/Film Production Professionals on Media Match

by Lee Jarvis.


Tags: Art Department, career, designer, Job, job description, jobs, production assistant, Production Designer, profile, Set Design

Source: http://www.media-match.com/usa/blog/index.php/advice/production-designer/

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