Career profile Director

Table of Contents

• What does a Director do?
• What is a typical salary for a Director?
• What personality traits are common among Directors?
  • Career Interests
  • Values
  • Psychological Demands
• What education and training do Directors need?
  • Typical educational degrees
  • Required knowledge and expertise
  • Important abilities
  • Critical skills

What does a Director do?

Directors produce or direct stage, television, radio, video, or film productions for entertainment, information, or instruction.

In addition, Directors responsible for creative decisions, such as interpretation of script, choice of actors or guests, set design, sound, special effects, and choreography.

What kind of tasks does a Director perform regularly?

Directors are often responsible for overseeing or executing some or all of the following tasks:

• Write and edit news stories from information collected by reporters and other sources.
• Communicate to actors the approach, characterization, and movement needed for each scene in such a way that rehearsals and takes are minimized.
• Plan details such as framing, composition, camera movement, sound, and actor movement for each shot or scene.
• Direct live broadcasts, films and recordings, or non-broadcast programming for public entertainment or education.
• Coordinate the activities of writers, directors, managers, and other personnel throughout the production process.
• Study and research scripts to determine how they should be directed.
• Supervise and coordinate the work of camera, lighting, design, and sound crew members.
• Confer with technical directors, managers, crew members, and writers to discuss details of production, such as photography, script, music, sets, and costumes.
• Research production topics using the internet, video archives, and other informational sources.
• Review film, recordings, or rehearsals to ensure conformance to production and broadcast standards.
• Consult with writers, producers, or actors about script changes or "workshop" scripts, through rehearsal with writers and actors to create final drafts.
• Identify and approve equipment and elements required for productions, such as scenery, lights, props, costumes, choreography, and music.
• Conduct meetings with staff to discuss production progress and to ensure production objectives are attained.
• Establish pace of programs and sequences of scenes according to time requirements and cast and set accessibility.
• Compile scripts, program notes, and other material related to productions.
• Perform administrative duties, such as preparing operational reports, distributing rehearsal call sheets and script copies, and arranging for rehearsal quarters.
• Resolve personnel problems that arise during the production process by acting as liaisons between dissenting parties when necessary.

The above responsibilities are specific to Directors. More generally, Directors are involved in several broader types of activities:

What is a Director salary?

What personality traits are common among Directors?

Interests

Career interests describe a person's preferences for different types of working environments and activities. When a person's interest match the demands of an occupation, people are usually more engaged and satisfied in that role.

Compared to most occupations, those who work as a Director are usually higher in their Enterprising and Artistic interests.

Directors typically have very strong Enterprising interests. Enterprising occupations frequently involve starting up and carrying out projects. These occupations can involve leading people and making many decisions. Sometimes they require risk taking and often deal with business.

Also, Directors typically have very strong Artistic interests. Artistic occupations frequently involve working with forms, designs and patterns. They often require self-expression and the work can be done without following a clear set of rules.

Values

People differ in their values, or what is most important to them for building job satisfaction and fulfillment.

Compared to most people, those working as a Director tend to value Independence, Recognition, and Achievement.

Most importantly, Directors very strongly value Independence. Occupations that satisfy this work value allow employees to work on their own and make decisions.

Second, Directors very strongly value Recognition. Occupations that satisfy this work value offer advancement, potential for leadership, and are often considered prestigious.

Lastly, Directors very strongly value Achievement. Occupations that satisfy this work value are results oriented and allow employees to use their strongest abilities, giving them a feeling of accomplishment.

Psychological Demands

Each occupation brings its own set of psychological demands, which describe the characteristics necessary to perform the job well.

In order to perform their job successfully, people who work as Directors must consistently demonstrate qualities such as stress tolerance, attention to detail, and leadership.

Below, you'll find a list of qualities typically required of Directors, ranked by importance:

What education and training do Directors need?

Many Directors will have a four-year bachelor's degree, but some do not.

Directors usually need several years of work-related experience, on-the-job training, and/or vocational training.

Educational degrees among Directors

• 0.5% did not complete high school or secondary school
• 5.3% completed high school or secondary school
• 13.1% completed some college coursework
• 5.6% earned a Associate's degree
• 58.3% earned a Bachelor's degree
• 15.0% earned a Master's degree
• 2.1% earned a doctorate or professional degree

Knowledge and expertise required by Directors

Important Abilities needed by Directors

Directors must develop a particular set of abilities to perform their job well. Abilities are individual capacities that influence a person's information processing, sensory perception, motor coordination, and physical strength or endurance. Individuals may naturally have certain abilities without explicit training, but most abilities can be sharpened somewhat through practice.

For example, Directors need abilities such as oral comprehension, oral expression, and written comprehension in order to perform their job at a high level. The list below shows several important abilities for Directors, ranked by their relative importance.

Critical Skills needed by Directors

Skills are developed capacities that enable people to function effectively in real-world settings. Unlike abilities, skills are typically easier to build through practice and experience. Skills influence effectiveness in areas such as learning, working with others, design, troubleshooting, and more.

Directors frequently use skills like speaking, active listening, and critical thinking to perform their job effectively. The list below shows several critical skills for Directors, ranked by their relative importance.

What is the source of this information?

The information provided on this page is adapted from data and descriptions published by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration under the CC BY 4.0 license. TraitLab has modified some information for ease of use and reading, and the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment, and Training Administration has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications.

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