Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media Occupations
BLS May 2025 wages Wide pay band SOC 27-2012

Producers and Directors

The published band from $45,780 to $198,540 is the distinctive signal for this role, not a twin of Special Effects Artists and Animators.

Full salary details → About this data

Same-major-group titles next to Producers and Directors: Special Effects Artists and Animators ($102K) , Music Directors and Composers ($74K) , Editors ($78K) , Fashion Designers ($81K) . Hash-ordered per card so residual SOC siblings do not share an identical peer sentence.

What Producers and Directors publish as work

O*NET task statements for SOC 27-2012 - occupation-level descriptions, not every employer's posting. Sibling cards diverge here because the task set is entity-keyed.

  1. 1. Plan details such as framing, composition, camera movement, sound, and actor movement for each shot or scene
  2. 2. Communicate to actors the approach, characterization, and movement needed for each scene in such a way that rehearsals and takes are mini…
  3. 3. Direct live broadcasts, films and recordings, or non-broadcast programming for public entertainment or education
  4. 4. Research production topics using the internet, video archives, and other informational sources
  5. 5. Review film, recordings, or rehearsals to ensure conformance to production and broadcast standards
  6. 6. Study and research scripts to determine how they should be directed
  7. 7. Supervise and coordinate the work of camera, lighting, design, and sound crew members
  8. 8. Confer with technical directors, managers, crew members, and writers to discuss details of production, such as photography, script, music…
  9. 9. Write and submit proposals to bid on contracts for projects
  10. 10. Perform management activities, such as budgeting, scheduling, planning, and marketing
  11. 11. Consult with writers, producers, or actors about script changes or "workshop" scripts, through rehearsal with writers and actors to creat…
  12. 12. Compose and edit scripts or provide screenwriters with story outlines from which scripts can be written

Producers and Directors: O*NET ranks Active Listening first

Importance-ranked O*NET profile for SOC 27-2012 - lead skill Active Listening at 4.4 ; lead knowledge Communications and Media. Sibling cards diverge here even when peer titles overlap.

Top skills

  1. 1. Active Listening 4.4
  2. 2. Reading Comprehension 4.0
  3. 3. Speaking 4.0
  4. 4. Critical Thinking 4.0
  5. 5. Monitoring 4.0
  6. 6. Social Perceptiveness 3.9
  7. 7. Coordination 3.9
  8. 8. Writing 3.8

Knowledge areas

  1. 1. Communications and Media 4.7
  2. 2. English Language 3.9
  3. 3. Telecommunications 3.7
  4. 4. Computers and Electronics 3.6
  5. 5. Administration and Management 3.4
  6. 6. Customer and Personal Service 3.2
Published pay band (10th to 90th)
$45,780 to $198,540
median $90,360 · ~4.3× spread
$90K
National median
↑ +5%
Growth 2024-2034
12,800
Annual openings
143,120
Estimated US jobs
Special Effects Artists and Animators
Highest-pay peer · $102K

Typical Entry and Preparation Assignments

Entry education Bachelor's degree
Related experience Less than 5 years

Top Paying States for Producers and Directors

1. Oregon $87,460
2. California $129,790
3. Connecticut $88,260
4. New Jersey $119,840
5. Rhode Island $84,250
6. Illinois $81,080
7. Washington $81,550
8. New York $107,550
9. District of Columbia $104,270
10. Massachusetts $80,970

Other Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media Occupations titles

  1. 1. Music Directors and Composers $73,710
  2. 2. Special Effects Artists and Animators $102,030
  3. 3. Editors $77,920
  4. 4. Fashion Designers $80,960
  5. 5. Commercial and Industrial Designers $83,910
  6. 6. Film and Video Editors $75,420

The OEWS band for Producers and Directors runs from $45,780 (10th) to $198,540 (90th), about 4.3× wide, with median $90,360. That spread, not the midpoint alone, is the distinctive published fact.

Employment Projections expect +5% change between 2024 and 2034 (about as fast as average vs baseline 3.1%). About 12,800 annual openings are projected. BLS assigns Bachelor's degree as typical education needed for entry and less than 5 years as the typical related-work-experience category. 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: Oregon at $87,460. The table records differences without proving causes. Highest-pay peer shown here: Special Effects Artists and Animators at $102,030. Compare the same statistic in the relevant local wage area before treating the national median as a personal benchmark; OEWS excludes employer benefits.

Producers and Directors pay-rank #4 in Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media Occupations

Among 36 detailed Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media Occupations with a published OEWS median, Producers and Directors is pay-rank #4, the upper third of that major group. The order is ROW_NUMBER on national median (title as tiebreak), not a worker-level percentile.

Other upper-third 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 Producers and Directors is unusually wide, so the state map and peer comparison carry more signal than the median alone.

Producers and Directors salary map

State, metro, and percentile for SOC 27-2012

Oregon · top state for Producers and Directors

$87K published median

California · #2 state pay

$130K · behind Oregon

Special Effects Artists and Animators

Highest-pay peer vs Producers and Directors · $102K

Music Directors and Composers

Lower-pay peer beside Producers and Directors · $74K

Compare Producers and Directors

Head-to-head OEWS medians with another SOC
Compare Producers and Directors 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

Which Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media Occupations titles sit near Producers and Directors at the top of the pay table? ▼
Producers and Directors is pay-rank #4 of 36 detailed Arts, Design, Entertainment, Sports, and Media Occupations with an OEWS median, upper third. Nearest upper-third titles: Technical Writers ($90K), Commercial and Industrial Designers ($84K), Fashion Designers ($81K), Special Effects Artists and Animators ($102K). Rank is ROW_NUMBER on national median.
What do producers and directors do day to day? ▼
O*NET lists published task statements for Producers and Directors. Leading ones include: Plan details such as framing, composition, camera movement, sound, and actor movement for each shot or scene; Communicate to actors the approach, characterization, and movement needed for each scene in such a way that rehearsals and takes are mini…; Direct live broadcasts, films and recordings, or non-broadcast programming for public entertainment or education; Research production topics using the internet, video archives, and other informational sources. These are occupation-level task descriptions, not every employer's job description.
Which O*NET skills rank highest for producers and directors? ▼
For SOC 27-2012, O*NET importance scores lead with Active Listening (4.4), Reading Comprehension (4.0), Speaking (4.0), Critical Thinking (4.0). Knowledge areas emphasize Communications and Media, English Language, Telecommunications. These are occupation-level profiles, not a hiring checklist for every employer.
How wide is the published pay band for Producers and Directors? ▼
OEWS places the 10th percentile at $45,780 and the 90th at $198,540 for Producers and Directors (4.3× spread). The national median is $90,360. OEWS does not isolate experience, employer, or geography as the cause of that spread.
What employment change does BLS publish for Producers and Directors? ▼
The 2024-2034 projection for Producers and Directors is +5%. Projected annual openings: about 12,800. Relative to the current all-occupations baseline of 3.1%: about as fast as average.
What typical entry education does BLS assign to Producers and Directors? ▼
BLS assigns Bachelor's degree as the typical-education-needed-for-entry category for Producers and Directors. Related-work-experience category: less than 5 years. These are occupation-level labels, not every employer's hiring rule.
Which three states show the highest OEWS medians for Producers and Directors? ▼
Oregon ($87,460), California ($129,790), Connecticut ($88,260) 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 Producers and Directors card
  • BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics (OEWS / OES) - national median and percentiles for SOC 27-2012. bls.gov/oes
  • O*NET OnLine - task and skill statements for Producers and Directors. 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