Information Provided by the Bureau of Labor Statistics Occupational Outlook Handbook
Actors endure long periods of unemployment, intense competition for roles, and frequent rejections in auditions. Formal training through a university or acting conservatory is typical; however, many actors, producers, and directors find work on the basis of their experience and talent alone. Because earnings for actors are erratic, many supplement their incomes by holding jobs in other fields.
On average, Producers and Directors earn $ 56,310 per year.
Job Opportunities for Producers and Directors are expected to:
Increase as fast as the average.
Actors, producers, and directors express ideas and create images in theater, film, radio, television, and other performing arts media. They interpret a writers script to entertain, inform, or instruct an audience. Although many actors, producers, and directors work in New York or Los Angeles, far more work in other places. They perform, direct, and produce in local or regional television studios, theaters, or film production companies, often creating advertising or training films or small-scale independent movies.
People who become actors, producers, and directors follow many paths to employment. The most important qualities employers look for are creative instincts, innate talent, and the intellectual capacity to perform. The best way to prepare for a career as an actor, especially in the theater, is through formal dramatic training, preferably obtained as part of a bachelors degree program. Producers and especially directors need experience in the field, either as actors or in other related jobs.
In May 2006, actors, producers, and directors held about 163,000 jobs, primarily in motion picture and video, performing arts, and broadcast industries. Because many others were between jobs, the total number of actors, producers, and directors available for work was higher. Employment in the theater, and other performing arts companies, is cyclicalhigher in the fall and spring seasonsand concentrated in New York and other major cities with large commercial houses for musicals and touring productions. Also, many cities support established professional regional theaters that operate on a seasonal or year-round basis. About 28 percent of actors, producers, and directors were self-employed.
