How To Become A Line Producer: What It Is and Career Path

What is a line producer and how to become one

Updated January 8, 2025

3 min read

Quoted expert

Johnathan Paul

Have you ever wondered how much effort a production takes just to deliver a finished movie or show? We all celebrate actors and actresses since they are essentially the face of the whole production. Have you ever wondered about the unseen members of the production, the ones who manage everything that goes on behind the scenes? It is probably a chaotic environment, making sure that everything goes according to plan.

One of the most crucial roles in filming is the line producer. Line producers basically manage the entire production run. They hire the production crew, check out filming locations, manage the schedule, and ensure that all safety measures are in place. It sounds like a very challenging role - and it is. It is a very crucial role in production, and not a lot of people have both the skills and the passion for making it through.

If you feel that you have the organizational and negotiation skills needed to make a career in this, you better start pursuing it! Remember, you also need to have the passion and the grit to power through challenges along the way. It gets stressful at times, but seeing the polished finished product makes everything worth it.

What general advice would you give to a line producer?

Johnathan Paul

Adjunct Professor, University of North Texas

My number one piece of advice for soon-to-be or recent graduates is never to stop learning. I always strive to tell my students to be as diverse as possible. Don't just know one thing; in today's market, you need to know how to do several things. Diversify your tool palette. This will help you in the long run and may lead you to a career path you didn't realize existed.

ScoreLine ProducerUS Average

Salary

3.6

Avg. Salary $46,223

Avg. Salary $59,228

Stability level

9.2

Growth rate 8%

Growth rate 0.3%

Diversity

5.0

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 0.17%

Asian 6.43%

Black or African American 8.02%

Hispanic or Latino 14.72%

Unknown 5.60%

White 65.06%

Gender

female 49.75%

male 50.25%

Age - 39

Race

American Indian and Alaska Native 3.00%

Asian 7.00%

Black or African American 14.00%

Hispanic or Latino 19.00%

White 57.00%

Gender

female 47.00%

male 53.00%

Age - 39

Stress level

9.2

Stress level is very high

7.1 - high

Complexity level

9.6

Complexity level is advanced

7 - challenging

Work life balance

2.8

Work life balance is poor

6.4 - fair

Key steps to become a line producer

Explore line producer education requirements

Most common line producer degrees

Bachelor's

79.7 %

Master's

8.8 %

Associate

6.7 %

Start to develop specific line producer skills

Skills	Percentages
Line-Producer	21.21%
Control Room	17.66%
Cross-Selling	16.51%
Develop Story Ideas	4.54%
News Stories	3.50%

Complete relevant line producer training and internships

Accountants spend an average of Less than 1 month on post-employment, on-the-job training. New line producers learn the skills and techniques required for their job and employer during this time. The chart below shows how long it takes to gain competency as a line producer based on U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics data and data from real line producer resumes.

Research line producer duties and responsibilities

Manage most aspects of post-production, work with editors, and follow projects through QC to final delivery.
Manage brand YouTube strategy and programming efforts for on-air series, digital initiatives, marketing campaigns and sponsor commitments.
Facilitate and manage CNN weekend editorial team of freelance editorial producers.
Supervise crew before, during, and after principal photography.

Prepare your line producer resume

When your background is strong enough, you can start writing your line producer resume.

You can use Zippia's AI resume builder to make the resume writing process easier while also making sure that you include key information that hiring managers expect to see on a line producer resume. You'll find resume tips and examples of skills, responsibilities, and summaries, all provided by Zippi, your career sidekick.

Choose from 10+ customizable line producer resume templates

Build a professional line producer resume in minutes. Browse through our resume examples to identify the best way to word your resume. Then choose from 10+ resume templates to create your line producer resume.