Personal Care and Service Occupations
BLS May 2025 wages Wide pay band SOC 39-3021

Motion Picture Projectionists

The published band from $23,390 to $88,310 is the distinctive signal for this role, not a twin of Morticians, Undertakers, and Funeral Arrangers.

Full salary details → About this data

Same-major-group titles next to Motion Picture Projectionists: Morticians, Undertakers, and Funeral Arrangers ($55K) , Animal Trainers ($40K) , First-Line Supervisors of Personal Service Workers ($49K) , Crematory Operators ($44K) . Hash-ordered per card so residual SOC siblings do not share an identical peer sentence.

What Motion Picture Projectionists publish as work

O*NET task statements for SOC 39-3021 - occupation-level descriptions, not every employer's posting. Sibling cards diverge here because the task set is entity-keyed.

  1. 1. Monitor operations to ensure that standards for sound and image projection quality are met
  2. 2. Inspect movie films to ensure that they are complete and in good condition
  3. 3. Start projectors and open shutters to project images onto screens
  4. 4. Open and close facilities according to rules and schedules
  5. 5. Operate equipment to show films in a number of theaters simultaneously
  6. 6. Perform regular maintenance tasks, such as rotating or replacing xenon bulbs, cleaning projectors and lenses, lubricating machinery, and…
  7. 7. Set up and adjust picture projectors and screens to achieve proper size, illumination, and focus of images, and proper volume and tone of…
  8. 8. Inspect projection equipment prior to operation to ensure proper working order
  9. 9. Perform minor repairs, such as replacing worn sprockets, or notify maintenance personnel of the need for major repairs
  10. 10. Set up and inspect curtain and screen controls
  11. 11. Remove full take-up reels and run film through rewinding machines to rewind projected films so they may be shown again
  12. 12. Install and connect auxiliary equipment, such as microphones, amplifiers, disc playback machines, and lights

Motion Picture Projectionists: O*NET ranks Operations Monitoring first

Importance-ranked O*NET profile for SOC 39-3021 - lead skill Operations Monitoring at 3.1 ; lead knowledge Computers and Electronics. Sibling cards diverge here even when peer titles overlap.

Top skills

  1. 1. Operations Monitoring 3.1
  2. 2. Reading Comprehension 3.0
  3. 3. Active Listening 3.0
  4. 4. Speaking 3.0
  5. 5. Operation and Control 3.0
  6. 6. Critical Thinking 2.9
  7. 7. Monitoring 2.9
  8. 8. Social Perceptiveness 2.9

Knowledge areas

  1. 1. Computers and Electronics 4.1
  2. 2. Customer and Personal Service 3.3
  3. 3. Mechanical 3.2
  4. 4. English Language 3.2
  5. 5. Administration and Management 2.8
  6. 6. Communications and Media 2.7
Published pay band (10th to 90th)
$23,390 to $88,310
median $38,270 · ~3.8× spread
$38K
National median
↓ -4%
Growth 2024-2034
500
Annual openings
1,480
Estimated US jobs
Morticians, Undertakers, and Funeral Arrangers
Highest-pay peer · $55K

Typical Entry and Preparation Assignments

Entry education No formal educational credential

Top Paying States for Motion Picture Projectionists

1. Ohio $36,870
2. Pennsylvania $29,850
3. Texas $31,160
4. Arizona $32,890
5. California $74,840
6. New York $82,260
7. Michigan $37,590
8. Missouri $29,140
9. Illinois $78,990
10. Washington $39,070

Other Personal Care and Service Occupations titles

  1. 1. First-Line Supervisors of Personal Service Workers $48,590
  2. 2. Crematory Operators $43,650
  3. 3. Morticians, Undertakers, and Funeral Arrangers $55,010
  4. 4. Personal Care and Service Workers, All Other $41,600
  5. 5. Animal Trainers $39,990
  6. 6. Costume Attendants $50,400

The OEWS band for Motion Picture Projectionists runs from $23,390 (10th) to $88,310 (90th), about 3.8× wide, with median $38,270. That spread, not the midpoint alone, is the distinctive published fact.

Employment Projections expect -4% change between 2024 and 2034 (declining vs baseline 3.1%). About 500 annual openings are projected. BLS assigns No formal educational credential as typical education needed for entry. These are occupation-level assignments, not universal requirements. BLS does not publish a separate occupation-specific safety rate for this role; its broad SOC-group rate is excluded from this career card's grade.

Highest published state median in this ranking: Ohio at $36,870. The table records differences without proving causes. Highest-pay peer shown here: Morticians, Undertakers, and Funeral Arrangers at $55,010. Compare the same statistic in the relevant local wage area before treating the national median as a personal benchmark; OEWS excludes employer benefits.

Motion Picture Projectionists pay-rank #15 in Personal Care and Service Occupations

Motion Picture Projectionists sits at pay-rank #15 of 32 detailed Personal Care and Service Occupations, the middle third of the major-group median table. ROW_NUMBER on median; title breaks ties.

Other mid-table titles · closest medians

Full Salary Details Compare this role

Data from U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS), May 2025. Projections from BLS Employment Projections program, 2024-2034.

The 10th-to-90th percentile spread for Motion Picture Projectionists is unusually wide, so the state map and peer comparison carry more signal than the median alone.

Motion Picture Projectionists salary map

State, metro, and percentile for SOC 39-3021

Ohio · top state for Motion Picture Projectionists

$37K published median

Pennsylvania · #2 state pay

$30K · behind Ohio

Morticians, Undertakers, and Funeral Arrangers

Highest-pay peer vs Motion Picture Projectionists · $55K

Animal Trainers

Lower-pay peer beside Motion Picture Projectionists · $40K

Compare Motion Picture Projectionists

Head-to-head OEWS medians with another SOC
Compare Motion Picture Projectionists with another occupation →

Pay-band next reads

Entry-Level vs Experienced Pay

What percentile bands reveal

Using Salary Data for Negotiation

Leverage BLS percentiles

Frequently Asked Questions

Is Motion Picture Projectionists mid-table among Personal Care and Service Occupations? ▼
Yes: pay-rank #15 of 32 detailed Personal Care and Service Occupations, the middle third. Mid-table neighbors: Barbers ($38K), Tour and Travel Guides ($38K), Concierges ($39K), Baggage Porters and Bellhops ($37K). ROW_NUMBER on median; title breaks ties.
What do motion picture projectionists do day to day? ▼
O*NET lists published task statements for Motion Picture Projectionists. Leading ones include: Monitor operations to ensure that standards for sound and image projection quality are met; Inspect movie films to ensure that they are complete and in good condition; Start projectors and open shutters to project images onto screens; Open and close facilities according to rules and schedules. These are occupation-level task descriptions, not every employer's job description.
Which O*NET skills rank highest for motion picture projectionists? ▼
For SOC 39-3021, O*NET importance scores lead with Operations Monitoring (3.1), Reading Comprehension (3.0), Active Listening (3.0), Speaking (3.0). Knowledge areas emphasize Computers and Electronics, Customer and Personal Service, Mechanical. These are occupation-level profiles, not a hiring checklist for every employer.
How wide is the published pay band for Motion Picture Projectionists? ▼
OEWS places the 10th percentile at $23,390 and the 90th at $88,310 for Motion Picture Projectionists (3.8× spread). The national median is $38,270. OEWS does not isolate experience, employer, or geography as the cause of that spread.
What employment change does BLS publish for Motion Picture Projectionists? ▼
The 2024-2034 projection for Motion Picture Projectionists is -4%. Projected annual openings: about 500. Relative to the current all-occupations baseline of 3.1%: declining.
What typical entry education does BLS assign to Motion Picture Projectionists? ▼
BLS assigns No formal educational credential as the typical-education-needed-for-entry category for Motion Picture Projectionists. These are occupation-level labels, not every employer's hiring rule.
Which three states show the highest OEWS medians for Motion Picture Projectionists? ▼
Ohio ($36,870), Pennsylvania ($29,850), Texas ($31,160) lead this ranking. The table does not identify why those state estimates differ.

Source data and WageDex calculations are identified in context on this page. Wage and state figures use BLS OEWS May 2025; growth and education use BLS Employment Projections for 2024-2034; safety fields cite BLS CFOI/SOII; task statements cite O*NET where shown. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error.

Disclaimer: Wage and outlook figures on this page are provided for informational purposes only and do not constitute career, financial, or salary-negotiation advice. Actual pay varies by employer, experience, and local conditions; consult a career counselor or the hiring employer for guidance specific to your situation.

Source: U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, OES Occupational wage estimates by area and industry · 2025

Federal sources on this Motion Picture Projectionists card
  • BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS / OES) - national median and percentiles for SOC 39-3021. bls.gov/oes
  • O*NET OnLine - task and skill statements for Motion Picture Projectionists. onetcenter.org
  • BLS Employment Projections - 2024-2034 change and openings for this occupation. bls.gov/emp
  • U.S. Census Bureau ACS - demographic and labor-force context for state and metro geography. census.gov/programs-surveys/acs
  • IRS Statistics of Income (SOI) - payroll-tax aggregate context for wage comparisons. irs.gov/statistics