Producing Confusion

How Many Producers Does it Take to Make this Crap?

by Warren Bell

Few things are more consistently baffling to entertainment industry outsiders than the bizarre proliferation of producer titles on the average television show.  My last show ("According to Jim") had nine executive producers in its eighth and final season, as well as a small battalion of other lower-level producers.  Here, then, is a quick tour of all the titles.

Term writer:  Also known as staff writer.  The lowest-level writer on any show, this is the entry level position in television writing.  The pay is according to a WGA scale and is weekly (as opposed to per episode).  Term writers receive no regular onscreen credit.  They do get credit, of course, if they write an episode, but (perhaps a bit unfairly) they frequently don't actually get paid for the script.  The idea is that the term writer is paid X number of dollars for a certain number of weeks (the "term"), and the script fee is "charged off" against that amount.  The term writer does get residuals for reruns of the episode, which can be one of the happier moments in a young writer's life.  ("It's a check for ten thousand dollars for something I wrote six months ago!")

Story editor:  The next level up from term writer.  The pay is a little higher, but still weekly, not per episode.  To the great confusion of everyone's grandparents, there is no editing involved.  And there's no more story than for every other writer on staff.  You get credit on screen at the end of the show, and in today's world that means you need a DVR and a magnifying glass to see it whiz by.

Executive story editor:  A story editor who got asked back to the show for a second year.  More than likely making 5% more than a story editor.  Studios these days like to offer title bumps in lieu of significant salary increases.

Co-Producer:  The next level up on the writer food chain.  Usually co-producers are paid by the episode, not by the week, and that will hold true for all titles above co-producer.  (The difference has always been a bit gray to me, but your agent will insist that being paid per episode is better.)  In rare instances, the title co-producer might be given to a non-writer.  For instance, a star's longtime assistant might be given the title as a perk, which is a nicer way to say "meaningless vanity credit."

Producer:  A mid-level writing position.  Significant confusion enters here, as most producers are writers, but every show has at least one producer who does not write and is commonly called the line producer.  The difference is the line producer actually works for a living.  He or she is responsible for budgets, schedules, and all of the very difficult and technical aspects of getting a show made.  The line producer's credit on the show is usually "Produced by" as opposed to "Producer."  There are also some producers with vanity credits, who can be stars of the show or other people in the star's orbit, such as managers.

Associate Producer:  Typically second in command to the line producer on the physical production side of things.  Never a writer's position.

Supervising Producer:  On the fringe of upper-level writing positions.  Usually someone with at least five or six years of writing experience.  In rare cases, a line producer or post-production supervisor may get this title as a reward for staying with a show for many years.

Consulting Producer: One of the trickier titles.  Consulting Producer almost always means "high-priced and experienced writer taking a cut in pay to stay employed."  A former showrunner, for instance, who needs a job and can't get one at the usual level and rate may go on a show at 50 percent of their quote, taking the title of Consulting Producer to "protect" the higher quote as an Executive Producer.  Sometimes "Consulting" can also mean "Part-time."  I was a Consulting Producer for the first half of my first season on "According to Jim" because I only worked four days a week.

Co-Executive Producer: My friend Bob Nickman once said that in TV credits, "Co" means "Not."  So the Co-Executive Producer is Not Executive Producer.  But he's usually a "strong second," a highly experienced writer who can also help with casting and editing.  Co-EP credit can also be given to a very valued long-term line producer, especially one who has significant "star wrangling" duties.

Executive Producer:  The highest of all the titles, and bizarrely enough, frequently the most meaningless.  One and only one Executive Producer is also the Showrunner (unless the show is run by a writing team).  The Showrunner is the boss of everything (unless the Star is the boss, but that's a different subject entirely) from writing to casting to editing to staffing.  Other EPs may be highly valued writer/producers who have worked their way up to the EP title, but who are not the Showrunner.  Then there are stars who command the EP title, and may actually even serve some function in editing episodes or shaping the storylines.  (Or in the case of, for example, Jerry Seinfeld, who are fully-fledged writer/producers themselves.)  Many shows have a "non-writing Executive Producer" who deals with network and studio issues, may participate in story discussions and attend rehearsals and shoots, but isn't technically a writer.  Then there are EPs who are the star's managers, who can function as non-writing EPs as described above, or who can have literally nothing to do with a show once it's been sold to the network.