Job roles in the media industry are separated into 6 different groups; creative jobs, technical jobs, editorial jobs, managerial jobs, administrative jobs and financial jobs.
Here are example of different jobs from these groups, that are found in the TV and Film industry.
Creative
Screen Writers
Writers are involved in the creation and/or development of all types of creative writing for film and TV. Creative writing covers a number of wide and varied forms including screen and radio; such as comedy/soap opera scripts, drama productions or documentaries. Screenwriters are responsible for crafting the words that are spoken by actors in film, television and video games. While well-known writers can make salaries well above £0.6 million, the majority of screenwriters earn a smaller salary. The salary of a screenwriter can be earned from several methods of writing beyond creating a script from scratch.According to a 2010-11 report by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, screenwriters fall under the "Authors, Writers and Editors" category. Professionals in this career field earn an average salary of £34,495.
Technical
Camera Operators
A Camera Operator works with digital, electronic and film cameras in multi and single camera operational conditions, producing pictures for directors by combining the use of complex technology with creative visual skills. The work is based in either a studio, where the Camera Operator usually follows a camera script (which gives the order of shots practiced at rehearsal and is cued by the director during recording) or on location, where there is likely to be more opportunity for creativity through suggesting shots to the director. A Camera Operator usually works under the direction of a director or director of photography and is sometimes supported by a camera assistant (or a focus puller/clapper loader, although with the advent of digital and electronic cameras these functions are in decline). The role is an interesting mix of the creative and technical. The average salary for a camera operator is between £11.500 - £40,000+ a year.
Editorial
Editor
Film Editors assemble footage of feature films, television shows, documentaries, and industrials into a seamless end product. They manipulate plot, score, sound, and graphics to refine the overall story into a continuous and enjoyable whole. On some films, the film Editor is chosen before cast members and script doctors; people in Hollywood recognize that the skills of a good film Editor can save a middling film. In the same way directors use certain actors they appreciate over and over again, they also use film Editors they know and are comfortable with. Martin Scorcese, Spike Lee, and Robert Wise are a few of the directors who work with the same Editors over and over again. Such relationships lend stability to a film Editor’s life; otherwise, they must be prepared to submit video resume after video resume, in the struggle to get work. Range of typical starting salaries for an editor is between £18,000-£25,000 for those employed by a television or post-production studio. This is not typically an entry level/graduate job; entrants start at a lower-paid level, which can be around the national minimum wage, working as runners and then assistant editors before reaching this post. Range of salaries with experience: £20,000-£35,000. Range of typical salaries at senior levels: £37,000-£70,000. The higher end of this scale will only be available to senior editors working on high-status projects.
Managerial
Producer
A film Producer initiates, coordinates, supervises and controls all aspects of a production, from fundraising and hiring key personnel, to arranging for distributors. The Producer sees the project through to the end, from development to completion. A television Producer is usually employed by a television station or network. A network television series usually has an executive producer who does long-term planning for the show. Some television Producers work independently; they may find sponsors and grants to supplement their budgets from the stations. The average salary for a film and TV producer averages between £18,000 - £70,000+ a year.
Administrative
Assistant Director
The First Assistant Director (AD) is the director's right hand person, taking responsibility for a number of important practicalities so that the director is free to concentrate on the creative process. During pre-production, First ADs break down the script into a shot by shot storyboard, and work with the director to determine the shoot order, and how long each scene will take to film. They then draw up the overall shooting schedule (a timetable for the filming period). Once the film is in production, Firsts are in charge of making sure that every aspect of the shoot keeps to this schedule. The approximate average salary rate for an assistant director is about 329,000 a year.
Financial
Production Accountant
Production Accountants are responsible for managing finances and maintaining financial records during film or TV production, working closely with the producer and the production office. Their job includes preparing schedules and budgets for film productions, and managing the day to day accounting financial reporting against the budgets. The average wage of a production accountant is around £42,000 a year.
A contract is a legal agreement between two parties; an employer and an employee, which sets out the terms of employment to a business or company. A contract is important because it lets people know where they stand in the business, so they they know exactly how much wages that they are entitled too, how many hours they are alowed to work; and a contract protects from any mistakes that could be made.
There are a few different types of contracts and they are both advantages and disadvantages of each of them.
Full Time Contract -
A full-time contract is an agreement
in which a person has to work a minimum number of hours defined as such by
their employer. A full-time contract often comes with benefits, such as annual
leave, sick leave, and health insurance. A disadvantage to a full time contract
is that if you are unhappy in the work place, you can’t just leave, but you
have to give notice before leaving, so the employer has enough time to find a
replacement.
Part Time Contact -
A part-time contract is very
much similar to a full time contract, only the hours are fewer and shorter and
they don’t work as many days. But they aren't as hard to replace like it is for
a full time employee.
Casual -
A casual contract agreement, sometimes
called 0 hours, and with this contract they employee works as and when it is
available. So this means is there is no work, then you don’t work, therefore don’t
get paid. But also with a casual contract you are entitled to turn down offered
work, but the more you turn work down, then the less you get asked, and the les
you get paid.
Fix-Term Contract -
Fix-termed contracts are
contracts that only contract employees to work a fixed period of time, and
after the time period is up, they can either turned away, or re contracted for
another fix-term. These contracts are getting used more and more now, as it
gives employers the chance to employ the best people for the job.
On Completion Contract -
An on completion contract
means that the employed is not contracted to be paid until the job is done.
Also if the work is not finished to a deadline, then the employers usually deducted
a percentage of their wages, depending on how many days late it is.
Freelance -
Freelancing is not really
contracted, but freelancers get hired to do some work for an employer or a
business. The advantage of being a freelancer is that you are able to accept to
work that you want to do, and refuse the ones that you don't. But if you keep
turning down work from businesses then people will hear about it, and it could give
you a bad reputation, and if you’ve got no-one wanting to hire you, then you’re
not making any money. Another disadvantage about working freelance is that you
have to sort out your own national insurance and tax, as well as having to buy
all of your own equipment, if any is needed.
