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The differences between creative directors and directors can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 4-6 years to become both a creative director and a director. Additionally, a creative director has an average salary of $137,779, which is higher than the $113,489 average annual salary of a director.
The top three skills for a creative director include graphic design, creative concepts and creative direction. The most important skills for a director are healthcare, customer service, and oversight.
| Creative Director | Director | |
| Yearly salary | $137,779 | $113,489 |
| Hourly rate | $66.24 | $54.56 |
| Growth rate | 4% | 8% |
| Number of jobs | 11,610 | 230,711 |
| Job satisfaction | - | 5 |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 77% | Bachelor's Degree, 64% |
| Average age | 40 | 40 |
| Years of experience | 6 | 6 |
A creative director is an individual who creates and maintains a vision for a company's products and branding through digital, print, and film installations. Creative directors supervise and innovative staff team such as graphic designers and artists to discuss and plan the vision's layout and visuals. They also meet with clients or marketing and advertising departments to create designs and make the necessary changes to the systems. Most creative directors must have a bachelor's degree in fine arts and should build work portfolios while starting their careers as graphic designers or photographers.
Directors work in show business, whether in a film, a television show, or a theatre production. They are responsible for bringing the material to life. They work with the writers to get a clear vision of how the production should look. They lead the production team in planning for the production, identifying filming or rehearsing schedules, casting for roles, and other aspects that need to be decided upon. Directors provide direction to the actors to ensure that the actors understand their role and will be able to effectively convey emotions to the audience. They also manage all other crew members and communicate their expectations clearly so that everyone on the set is working towards one vision.
Creative directors and directors have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Creative Director | Director | |
| Average salary | $137,779 | $113,489 |
| Salary range | Between $82,000 And $228,000 | Between $66,000 And $192,000 |
| Highest paying City | Menlo Park, CA | New York, NY |
| Highest paying state | California | New York |
| Best paying company | Apple | Mayo Clinic |
| Best paying industry | Technology | Finance |
There are a few differences between a creative director and a director in terms of educational background:
| Creative Director | Director | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 77% | Bachelor's Degree, 64% |
| Most common major | Graphic Design | Business |
| Most common college | Harvard University | Stanford University |
Here are the differences between creative directors' and directors' demographics:
| Creative Director | Director | |
| Average age | 40 | 40 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 64.7% Female, 35.3% | Male, 53.2% Female, 46.8% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 4.4% Unknown, 5.7% Hispanic or Latino, 14.5% Asian, 7.8% White, 66.9% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.7% | Black or African American, 7.9% Unknown, 5.6% Hispanic or Latino, 14.5% Asian, 6.4% White, 65.5% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.2% |
| LGBT Percentage | 11% | 14% |