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The differences between production designers and assistant designers can be seen in a few details. Each job has different responsibilities and duties. It typically takes 6-12 months to become both a production designer and an assistant designer. Additionally, a production designer has an average salary of $54,760, which is higher than the $52,475 average annual salary of an assistant designer.
The top three skills for a production designer include sketch, graphic design and adobe creative suite. The most important skills for an assistant designer are sketch, tech packs, and adobe illustrator.
| Production Designer | Assistant Designer | |
| Yearly salary | $54,760 | $52,475 |
| Hourly rate | $26.33 | $25.23 |
| Growth rate | 3% | 3% |
| Number of jobs | 96,682 | 47,598 |
| Job satisfaction | - | - |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 72% | Bachelor's Degree, 67% |
| Average age | 38 | 38 |
| Years of experience | 12 | 12 |
A production designer is responsible for monitoring the visual presentation of a media or theatre production, ensuring the set's adherence to the theme, and presenting visual elements according to the production requirements. Production designers research the current industry trends for creative ideas that would attract the audience, creating outstanding visual pictures throughout the production. In most cases, production designers also operate software systems and tools to suggest graphic effects and support the artistic team for deliverables. A production designer develops all visual plans within the budget goals and discusses adjustments to the production management team as needed.
Assistant designers act as administrative support to senior designers in creating innovative designs by negotiating with the vendors about the prices of decoration materials. They are keen and up-to-date to the latest fashion and trends by conducting surveys and research. They are exceptionally creative and innovative and have excellent IT skills as they use illustration, typography, and photography layouts in the design process. However, being an assistant designer, career development relies on his/her /her specialism, reputation, and experience depending on how its opportunities are influenced by the company he/she works for.
Production designers and assistant designers have different pay scales, as shown below.
| Production Designer | Assistant Designer | |
| Average salary | $54,760 | $52,475 |
| Salary range | Between $36,000 And $82,000 | Between $37,000 And $73,000 |
| Highest paying City | San Francisco, CA | Seattle, WA |
| Highest paying state | California | Washington |
| Best paying company | Meta | PVH |
| Best paying industry | Internet | Construction |
There are a few differences between a production designer and an assistant designer in terms of educational background:
| Production Designer | Assistant Designer | |
| Most common degree | Bachelor's Degree, 72% | Bachelor's Degree, 67% |
| Most common major | Graphic Design | Graphic Design |
| Most common college | University of Pennsylvania | University of Pennsylvania |
Here are the differences between production designers' and assistant designers' demographics:
| Production Designer | Assistant Designer | |
| Average age | 38 | 38 |
| Gender ratio | Male, 55.4% Female, 44.6% | Male, 28.3% Female, 71.7% |
| Race ratio | Black or African American, 3.4% Unknown, 5.0% Hispanic or Latino, 10.6% Asian, 10.4% White, 70.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% | Black or African American, 3.4% Unknown, 5.0% Hispanic or Latino, 10.6% Asian, 10.4% White, 70.2% American Indian and Alaska Native, 0.4% |
| LGBT Percentage | 13% | 13% |