What Happens As A Producer During A Film Production?

“Being a film producer is a huge responsibility. It’s also a great way to get hands-on experience while watching how other key film roles fulfill their responsibilities”

Calm on the outside, an absolute hot mess on the inside. It’s 10pm, the night before the shoot. I still had props to create, test, and pack before the 5:30am call-time at the first location in Washington, DC. I was going to get less than 3 hours of sleep, so I made sure to set five alarms.

But the act of me trying to get any type of solid sleep just wasn’t working. I was afraid that I’d sleep through all the alarms, so I kept waking up every half hour to make sure I was still on schedule.

 It was at 3:35am, a half hour past my desired wake time when I finally got the full energy to start getting ready for the long day ahead and I still had to pick up the DP before heading to the first location.

It was at 5:35am when I pull into the parking lot of Politics & Prose (P&P) on Connecticut Avenue with the DP. I was happy to see the Production Assistant (PA) (Sage Levy), the director (Kat Vivaldi), and lead sound (Ben Weingartner) already there with a table full of breakfast and refreshments already set up.

I was so hungry that I immediately jumped out of the car, ripped the plastic bag full of bagels and chugged one of them down while shivering like crazy.

My mind began racing again wondering if the P&P manager was going to show up by 6am to let us in. We were on a 3-hour time crunch and two of the actors had other film gigs to go to later on that day.

Luckily, ten minutes later the P&P manager shows up. He lets us in, and it’s GO TIME! I immediately pulled up an SFX makeup Youtube video and began following it on my wrists. At the same time, I got mic’d, ran through lines with my co-stars and answered any extra questions the film crew had. It’s complete chaos.

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Is being a producer a good job?

I would say, it’s a challenging job. Being a producer (in my experience), you have to create the budget, find the locations, hire the film crew, etc. Then, let each person do their job.

As a producer, you’re doing all the heavy lifting mostly in pre and postproduction especially if you don’t have the funds to hire a full production team. The production can’t move forward without the producer. At the same time, as a producer you get to watch how everyone else does their job. And ask questions.

You’re getting your hands all the way dirty as a producer. During production you have to let the director, DP first and/or second assistant director take the reins. But trust me, nothing trumps in-the-field knowledge. If you’re really good at handling pressure, a producer is a really good role to experience.

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Is being a movie producer fun?

It can be. But it depends on who you work with. Remember, the film industry is very tight knit and it’s going to take a while for people to warm up to you. I’m still working on this because I’m a corporate worker Monday-Friday which are the days when most productions are happening.

Also remember, everyone is trying to make it to the big leagues. So, if you’re still kind of new to the industry with very little connections it’s going to be a little bit awkward working with most people because they don’t know your personality, you personally, and if you’re really serious about film.

But with each production you tend to find your select group of people that you eventually build that bond and trust with.

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Finally, camera and lighting are finished setting up. We can now begin the first scene. We’re 45 minutes behind schedule but I’m ready to go on “action”. It’s 12pm when we officially wrap at the first location. But now, we’re 3 hours behind schedule.

Ironically, one of the actors who a second film gig that day finds out his second shoot got postponed. This really helped because we couldn’t get his original scenes at the first location. I felt so sorry for him because he was fighting to stay awake with coffee as he’d finished late on another film set the night before.

But he was a veteran, so he was patient.

Now, we’re off to the second location. The main actor for the second location had to be finished with his scenes by 3pm as his second gig was the Bridgerton Experience in Washington, DC. Suddenly, I get a gut-wrenching phone call from the owner of the second location saying that it wouldn’t be ready until 2pm. (You can’t be serious!). Calmly, I decide to give the PA the go-ahead to order lunch and let everyone know that we’ll be running a little more behind schedule.

Now, it’s 1:45pm. I make it to the second location. The owner gives me a quick tour of the place to ensure that everything is clean. Once the initial tour was complete, I let everyone in, and it’s GO TIME again. I instantly urge the actor who was fighting to keep his eyes open at the first location to go into the bedroom and sleep because he’ll be hanging around for a while.

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Is film production a good career?

Only if you have a passion for great storytelling. Film production is entertainment. Those entertainers that are really reaping the rewards today truly love what they do. It takes time to create a respectable career in film production.

So, constantly be eager to learn the craft of film. Take classes. Attend webinars. Go to networking coffees, film festivals, and conferences. Each chance you get to be on a film set – take it! Do more than the average person. Constantly put yourself out there and never take any opportunity (no matter how little) for granted. You never know where it’ll take you.

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We get through each scene smoothly. 6pm finally rolls around and it’s time to shoot the final scene. We find a street behind the second location and it’s even colder than before. I’m fighting to keep away tears due to both my exhaustion and harsh winds. The actor who was fighting the urge not to sleep is now well-rested. The DP, gaffer, and AD set up the lighting and the final scenes were captured.

It wasn’t until 7:30pm when the director said the all-comforting words, “AND THAT’S A WRAP”! 

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Is being a producer stressful?

Only if you don’t have a trustworthy team behind you. You want to aim to have a team that has experience in film and is very familiar to the pressure it brings. Once you fulfill your core duties in pre and postproduction, being a producer isn’t so bad! 🙂

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Check out a mini BTS video of what it was like on set!

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How do you become a film producer?

You can start by producing your own film. Make sure it’s the best film it can be and put it out into the world. Try submitting it festivals to see if it’ll place. You can join your local film clubs and offer to produce small projects for free to build your reputation and hopefully those projects place in festivals / competitions.

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Other posts you may be interested in:

• How To Begin Raising Money For Your Film?
• How To Find The Right Director?
• What To Do When Your Film Shoot Fails?

Disclaimer: 

The author is not liable for any losses or damages related to actions of failure to act related to the content in this article. If you need specific legal advice, consult with an attorney who specializes in your subject matter and jurisdiction.