{"id":13685,"date":"2015-05-15T15:51:35","date_gmt":"2015-05-15T19:51:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.wework.com\/creator\/?p=13685"},"modified":"2020-03-30T18:39:03","modified_gmt":"2020-03-30T22:39:03","slug":"get-that-cool-job-video-producer","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.wework.com\/ideas\/professional-development\/get-that-cool-job-video-producer","title":{"rendered":"Get That Cool Job: video producer"},"content":{"rendered":"

Video producers are like the glitter glue you find in arts-and-crafts supply stores, appearing to radiate glitz and glamour. But glitter glue is still glue. And a producer\u2019s high-pressure job can be utterly exhausting, with locations, equipment, and crew to lock down.<\/p>\n

But holding a project together is one of the strengths of the best video producers. They have top-notch organizational skills to keep their staff on track and their budget under control, as well as a composed demeanor for lifting and maintaining their team\u2019s collective morale.<\/p>\n

It\u2019s one thing to execute a vision all by yourself, successfully creating a powerful visual story. But the video producers we talked with say it\u2019s more satisfying to be part of (and lead) a team with this same mission.<\/p>\n

So, how do you break into video producing? Do you have to own your own equipment? Do you need to go to film school, or can you learn on the job?<\/p>\n

\u201cNo job is too small, especially when you\u2019re starting out,\u201d says Jason Sanchez, executive producer of video for Maxim<\/em><\/a>. \u201cIt\u2019s important to remember that as you keep going. You\u2019re not above any job, and you shouldn\u2019t be. It seems like it\u2019s stupid work or whatever, it\u2019s menial labor, but it\u2019s there for a reason. It\u2019s a little piece, but it helps the bigger part of everything.\u201d<\/p>\n

Sanchez, who formerly worked for CNN, said some colleagues who were curious about video producing ended up in the business by making themselves available whenever they were needed.<\/p>\n

\u201cThey\u2019re called \u2018swings\u2019 on a production set,\u201d he says. \u201cThey were basically just people who did anything. They started out doing whatever the director wanted.\u201d
\n<\/strong>
\nThe work could be something as simple as locating odd items needed for a shoot, Sanchez explains. While they\u2019re on the set, they start asking questions. Soon they\u2019re familiar with the duties of everyone involved in a production.<\/p>\n

\u201cEventually they stopped getting the hot sauce and started doing the lighting, or the sound, or operating the camera,\u201d says Sanchez.<\/p>\n

Sanchez stresses the importance of investing in, or even borrowing, a camera that shoots video so that you\u2019re comfortable behind the lens. He also suggests buying Final Cut\u00a0Pro\u00a0X<\/a>, an inexpensive editing software for putting together high-quality videos.<\/p>\n

\u201cShoot anything,\u201d Sanchez says. \u201cWho cares what it is? Just practice, and then try to build up a reel.\u201d<\/p>\n

Video producer Eric Leven, working on an upcoming reality show for the National Geographic Channel<\/a>, explains that the film school route isn\u2019t an essential start to a career in the industry.<\/p>\n

\u201cFilm school is only going to help you facilitate a passion, but it is not going to help you become the producer and director that you want to be,\u201d says Leven, who has worked on popular shows like\u00a0BBQ Pitmasters<\/em><\/a>, My Super Sweet 16<\/em><\/a>, and Mob Wives<\/em><\/a>. \u201cThe only thing that\u2019s going to help you get there is paying your dues and by shadowing other professionals.”<\/p>\n

Leven says video producing isn’t\u00a0a career where you can skip levels.<\/p>\n

\u201cYou have to start at the bottom and learn from people who know what they\u2019re doing,\u201d he says. \u201cOtherwise, you\u2019ll never really know what it is to make a show or how to effectively direct.\u201d<\/p>\n

Leven\u2019s favorite aspect of being a video producer is all of the people he gets to connect with along the way.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s given me an opportunity to work and meet with people that I would have no other opportunity to do so in any other realm,\u201d Leven says. \u201cI\u2019m an out of the closet, liberal, New York Jew, and now some of my best friends are Southern conservative barbecuers.\u201d<\/p>\n

Jason Baum, an award-winning producer known for his work on Arcade Fire\u2019s unforgettable \u201cWe Exist<\/a>\u201d video, says he started out \u201cworking odd jobs as a production assistant.\u201d He says his \u201corganizational and planning-type personality\u201d and \u201ceven-tempered mindset\u201d led him to being a producer.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think why I enjoy [producing], and the reason why I\u2019ve kept at it, is the satisfaction of seeing a good project come out,\u201d says Baum. \u201cThere\u2019s some duds along the way, but to know that you\u2019re really excited about it because it\u2019s creatively relevant, or different, or cool, trumps all of the stress involved in making something.\u201d<\/p>\n

Baum\u2019s best advice for anyone who wants to be a video producer?<\/p>\n

\u201cFind a group of people you truly like and are also talented,\u201d he says. \u201cDo projects together and really build a strong team of people that you can rely on, because I think a lot of my best videos are successful because I was able to work with people that I have developed the strong, creative, working-friendship with. You really need to find a group of people to grow and learn with.\u201d<\/p>\n

Photo credit: Steven Seller\/Flickr<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Video producers are like the glitter glue you find in arts-and-crafts supply stores, appearing to radiate glitz and glamour. But glitter glue is still glue. And a producer\u2019s high-pressure job can be utterly exhausting, with locations, equipment, and crew to lock down. But holding a project together is one of the strengths of the best […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":893,"featured_media":13690,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[43902],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-13685","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-professional-development"],"acf":[],"yoast_head":"\nGet That Cool Job: video producer<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The best video producers have top-notch organizational skills to keep their staff on track and their budget under control.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.wework.com\/ideas\/professional-development\/get-that-cool-job-video-producer\" \/>\n<meta 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