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Member Tags (auditioning, producer, exec producer) (1 Viewer)

Tino

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Just wondering what the ranking threshold is for these tags. Obviously they are “number of posts” related.

For instance I would think Producer is higher than Executive Producer (which in the film business has very little weight).

They are reversed I believe.
 

DaveF

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I thought Executive Producer was higher prestige than Producer, denoting a more highly regarded or influential "producer" who was instrumental in bringing the project to the screen. Also, the person by dint of their name can make money simply by being associated with a project.

Well, not quite. But the EP is more higher up the cinematic food chain than the Producer.

Wikipedia says:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Film_producer

Executive producer
They oversee all of the other producers working on the same project. They make sure that the producers are fulfilling their roles on the given production. They can also be in charge of managing the film's finances and the handling of all other business aspects of the film.[1][7]

...

Producer
Within the production process they can oversee, arrange, manage and begin every single aspect. They are involved in every single stage of the overall production process.[1][7]
 

Tino

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I thought Executive Producer was higher prestige than Producer, denoting a more highly regarded or influential "producer" who was instrumental in bringing the project to the screen. Also, the person by dint of their name can make money simply by being associated with a project.

Well, not quite. But the EP is more higher up the cinematic food chain than the Producer.

Wikipedia says:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Film_producer
I don’t agree with that at all. Most of the time an Exec Producer credit is definitely viewed with lesser prestige than Producer in Hollywood.

Here is I believe a better explanation right from the source.

The Producers Guild of America defines an Executive Producer as follows:

  1. The credit of Executive Producer shall only apply to an individual who has made a significant contribution to the motion picture and who additionally qualifies under one of two categories:
  • Having secured an essential and proportionally significant part (no less than 25%) of the financing for the motion picture; and/or
  • Having made a significant contribution to the development of the literary property, typically including the securement of the underlying rights to the material on which the motion picture is based.
The short definition that they give for a Producer (“Produced by”) credit is:

  1. The Produced By credit shall be in the primary credit position among all PGA-sanctioned credits for theatrical motion pictures.
  2. Subject to the control of the Owner, The individual receiving Produced By credit shall have final responsibility for all business and creative aspects of the production of the motion picture, with direct participation in making decisions concerning a major portion of the producing functions (see PCOC Section 1 for comprehensive list).
The above can be found at: Producers Guild of America.
 

Malcolm R

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So without the EP to secure the funding and/or obtain the rights, there's very little for the Producer to do since the film won't be made.

EP sounds pretty important to me.
 

Tino

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So without the EP to secure the funding and/or obtain the rights, there's very little for the Producer to do since the film won't be made.

EP sounds pretty important to me.
I agree. But the Producer is more important. And stayed as such above.


  1. The Produced By credit shall be in the primary credit position among all PGA-sanctioned credits for theatrical motion pictures.
 

Tino

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Also when a film wins the BP Oscar the Producer(s) win the award.
 

Tino

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And to be honest I believe I initially confused the Executive Producer credit with the Co-Producer credit which is the one that is pretty meaningless.

But I stand by Producer being the most important.
 

Josh Steinberg

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I always thought it was a matter of, if it's a big studio motion picture, the Producer will be the most important person on the actual film. But the Executive Producer is more important to the studio overall. The individual Producer may have more say over that specific motion picture, but the Executive Producer is the one overseeing the production for the studio.
 

Tino

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I always thought it was a matter of, if it's a big studio motion picture, the Producer will be the most important person on the actual film. But the Executive Producer is more important to the studio overall. The individual Producer may have more say over that specific motion picture, but the Executive Producer is the one overseeing the production for the studio.
I don’t think that’s true Josh. Again I refer to the quote from the PGA above which I believe is pretty definitive.

And the EP’s duties vary greatly from film to film but never supersede the Producer.
 

Josh Steinberg

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I think perhaps I'm not expressing myself clearly. I don't think anything I said contradicted your PGA quote. For a major studio, the main Executive Producer is usually someone who works for the studio, and oversees a variety of films. He's higher up on the studio's internal organization chart than an individual producer, but has less say over an individual production. The film's Producer is the single most important person working on the film and generally has final say over everything that happens in the film.

Times have changed somewhat so maybe that's no longer the only role for an executive producer, but at least back in the day, the executive producer might be the one greenlighting a film and overseeing the film's budget and where the film fits into the studio's lineup. The EP wouldn't be making decisions on casting or content, but would be the one saying, "This is how much money you have to make this film, and this is the date your film is being released."
 

Tino

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I get what you’re saying Josh and it makes sense.

And I just spoke to my friend who is a major screenwriter and he says that it all depends on the film. Sometimes the Producer is more important and sometimes the EP is...Spielberg for example.

So I guess I’m kinda right and kinda wrong. :D
 

DaveF

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Tino’s description is pretty much the same thing as what the Wikipedia article said: EP is a big boss at the studio, bringing in the money and overseeing all the Producers. The Producer has more creative control to influence a movie.

This question is more starkly put as: Who’s more important, the president of the studio or a film’s director?

Depends on what you value. But in terms of conventional power and corporate prestige “Studio Mogul” outranks “Director”. As then does “Executive Producer” outrank “Producer”.

But if you want to express it solely in terms of artistic merit, then I think we’ve got to rework the forums glory titles and do something with that in mind. :)
 

TonyD

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The new MST3K fundraiser has a higher price tag to become executive producer then just a simple producer so there’s that.
 

TonyD

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Also I made my own credit so I guess you can or could do that at some point.
 

John Dirk

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Thanks and Understood.

My point in Producer should be a higher rank than Executive producer.

Respectfully, I think you're confusing overall "importance" with overall contribution. In pretty much any universe, "Executive" means the same thing. They oversee and approve [sometimes to disastrous effect] but they don't usually implement.
 

Richard V

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You like potato, I like potahto
You like tomato, I like tomahto
Potato, Potahto
Tomato, Tomahto
Let's call the whole thing off.
 

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