Producers and Directors
Produce or direct stage, television, radio, video, or film productions for entertainment, information, or instruction. Responsible for creative decisions, such as interpretation of script, choice of actors or guests, set design, sound, special effects, and choreography.
143,120 people do this job in the US. $90,360 a year.
of the working time. Estimate.
- 74%
- 13%
- 13%
Measured, from Anthropic's usage data (2025). Counts help on part of a task.
On the chosen pace and reliability. Estimate.
Share of the working time within reach, now to 2030
What each choice means: , , , , . Every pace starts from .
At this date and pace, models finish tasks up to 4.4 h long four times in five.
How far this has come
With GPT-4, measured in March 2023, 0% of this job's working time was within reach at . With Claude 3.7 Sonnet, measured in February 2025, 0%. With Claude Mythos Preview (early), measured in April 2026, 16%. Today's estimate: 23%.
A backcast: today's task data with the best model METR had measured by each date. It shows how fast the models have moved, not what anyone forecast at the time.
The tasks
Sorted by . 30 tasks from .
| Task | Kind | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Compose and edit scripts or provide screenwriters with story outlines from which scripts can be written.Done hourly or more by most who do it. AI observed on this task. | 9% | 6.7 h1.7 h to 4.2 work days | 6%Half by Jan 2028 | |
| Hire principal cast members and crew members, such as art directors, cinematographers, and costume designers. | 9% | 2.1 work days6.7 h to 1.3 work weeks | Stays with people | |
| Cut and edit film or tape to integrate component parts into desired sequences.Done more than weekly by most who do it. | 9% | 6.7 h1.7 h to 2.5 work days | 8%Half by Sep 2027 | |
| Arrange financing for productions.Done more than yearly by most who do it. | 7% | 2.5 work days6.7 h to 1.7 work weeks | 0%Half by Jun 2028 | |
| Direct live broadcasts, films and recordings, or non-broadcast programming for public entertainment or education.Done more than yearly by most who do it. | 6% | 3.3 h1.7 h to 1.3 work days | Stays with people | |
| Research production topics using the internet, video archives, and other informational sources.Done daily by most who do it. AI observed on this task. | 5% | 1.7 h50 min to 5 h | 76%Half by now | |
| Perform management activities, such as budgeting, scheduling, planning, and marketing.Done daily by most who do it. | 5% | 3.3 h1.7 h to 1.7 work days | 32%Half by Jan 2027 | |
| Hold auditions for parts or negotiate contracts with actors determined suitable for specific roles. | 4% | 6.7 h3.3 h to 1.7 work days | 10%Half by Apr 2027 | |
| Write and edit news stories from information collected by reporters and other sources.Done hourly or more by most who do it. AI observed on this task. | 4% | 1.7 h25 min to 3.3 h | 65%Half by now | |
| Plan details such as framing, composition, camera movement, sound, and actor movement for each shot or scene.Done daily by most who do it. | 4% | 1.3 h25 min to 4.2 h | 69%Half by now | |
| Select plays, scripts, books, news content, or ideas to be produced. | 3% | 5 h1.7 h to 2.1 work days | 15%Half by Jun 2027 | |
| Obtain rights to scripts or to such items as existing video footage.Done yearly or less by most who do it. | 3% | 3.3 h50 min to 2.1 work days | 18%Half by Jul 2027 |
Within reach, per task: the share of the task's time whose instances are short enough for a model to finish at the chosen date, pace and reliability. Half by: the date half of that time comes within reach.
Jobs that share skills with this one
From O*NET's related occupations. Within reach now and by the end of 2028, long-run pace, four in five.
Where this job works
The industry groups that employ the most of it (BLS, May 2025).
- Motion Picture and Video Industries37,700 people
- Media Streaming Distribution Services, Social Networks, and Other Media Networks and Content Providers23,000 people
- Radio and Television Broadcasting Stations18,570 people
- Performing Arts Companies8,270 people
- Advertising, Public Relations, and Related Services8,240 people
Where the most of these jobs are
The metro areas with the most people in it (BLS, May 2025).