Job roles with the TV & Film industry

Creative Roles Costume Designer  A costume designer is responsible for creating the overall looks for television, film and theatre productions.  Work hours could be long and involve evenings and weekends.  Contracts are temporary so you would work freelance. Starting salaries for a trainee costumer designer is about £13,000 a year, £18,000 for a qualified costume designer and for a senior designer on high profile production £35,000.  Getting into this area may require a HND, degree or postgrad qualifications, experience in the industry is also a requirement. You could get relevant experience through: working as a wardrobe assistant, student theatre and film productions, amateur theatre, working as a costume ‘daily’ or temporary helper on TV or film sets, casual wardrobe work in theatres, working for a theatrical costume hire company.  You may find the following useful for contacts and vacancies: Broadcastnow.co.uk, The Stage, Mandy.com, Stage Jobs Pro, The Knowledge (TV/film contacts directory), Kays Production Guide

Management Roles  Floor Managers are in charge of making sure that everything is ready for filming such as; sets, props and equipment. They act as a link between the director and the staff on the production.  Producers oversee a production from start to finish. They work closely with the directors and other production staff during a shoot, they also arrange the funding for the projects, while also keeping them on budget.

Editorial Roles  Editors are responsible for assembling the raw footage into a finished product. The materials include footage, dialogue, graphics, S/FX and sound effects, they work in the post production stage and are mostly work freelance.

Technical Roles  Camera Operators work with the film cameras to create a recorded image for the directors.  Sound Technicians are responsible for capturing sound for the production. Also for mixing, editing, balancing and enhancing prerecorded audio.

Research Roles  Researchers plan, organize and co-ordinate productions and undertake background research. The role is vital not just for researching topics but to contributing original ideas.  Production Accountant work closely with the business mangers, finance and editorial staff to provide guidance and cost management Financial Roles

Organisational Roles  Production Assistant would support the producer and be responsible for the administration and organisation involved in producing a film or TV programme. You could get into this job with a degree. Alternatively, experience is highly valued by employers, and you could move into this career without a degree if you have a background in jobs like advertising, TV or office management.

Administrative Roles  Production coordinator typically do not work on film locations and instead perform the majority of their duties from offices. They are employees who carry out a variety of clerical functions. They correspond directly with producers, directors and production managers to fulfill practical, everyday production needs while maintaining budgets and schedules. They're often employed by media firms or production companies and may be hired for short-term projects or as full-time, permanent employees.