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The differences between design and production assistants and assistant directors can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. While it typically takes 1-2 years to become a design and production assistant, becoming an assistant director takes usually requires 4-6 years. Additionally, an assistant director has an average salary of $63,063, which is higher than the $41,685 average annual salary of a design and production assistant.
The top three skills for a design and production assistant include auto cad, design library and adobe illustrator. The most important skills for an assistant director are customer service, CPR, and child care.
| Design And Production Assistant | Assistant Director | |
| Yearly salary | $41,685 | $63,063 |
| Hourly rate | $20.04 | $30.32 |
| Growth rate | -8% | 8% |
| Number of jobs | 109,616 | 25,087 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 67% | Bachelor's Degree, 63% |
| Average age | 50 | 40 |
| Years of experience | 2 | 6 |
A design and production assistant is an individual who is responsible for refining, managing, and executing simultaneous design and production projects to provide deliverables on time. Design and production assistants create PowerPoint presentations to promote their merchandise as well as create site banners. They should acquire experience in business administration and manufacturing products that includes managing staff members. Design and production assistants must also collaborate with graphic designers and photographers to elucidate brand standards.
Assistant directors are employees in show business who directly support directors. They may be working on a film, television show, or theatre production. Assistant directors are the second-in-command on the set. They take over for the director when he/she or she is unable to work. Assistant directors should be familiar with the script and the scenes. They are usually heavily involved in the conception of the production. They ensure that the plans are executed well by assisting in the selection of the cast and crew, production sets, and other set providers. They also make sure that shoot days or performance days go without a hitch by ironing out all the details in advance and preparing alternatives.
Design and production assistants and assistant directors have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Design And Production Assistant | Assistant Director | |
| Average salary | $41,685 | $63,063 |
| Salary range | Between $29,000 And $58,000 | Between $37,000 And $105,000 |
| Highest paying City | Washington, DC | San Francisco, CA |
| Highest paying state | Hawaii | California |
| Best paying company | Meta | Mayer Brown |
| Best paying industry | Media | - |
There are a few differences between a design and production assistant and an assistant director in terms of educational background:
| Design And Production Assistant | Assistant Director | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 67% | Bachelor's Degree, 63% |
| Most common major | Graphic Design | Business |
| Most common college | Western Carolina University | Stanford University |
Here are the differences between design and production assistants' and assistant directors' demographics:
| Design And Production Assistant | Assistant Director | |
| Average age | 50 | 40 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 36.6% Female, 63.4% | Male, 38.3% Female, 61.7% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 9.2% Unknown, 3.9% Hispanic or Latino, 16.2% Asian, 3.8% White, 66.2% 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 | 6% | 14% |