Jobs in the Media Industry

There are six main job role sectors in the creative media industry; creative, editorial, technical, managerial, administrative, and financial.

Creative

An example of a creative job in the media industry is a screen writer. Screen writers are responsible for creating the basis for television shows, radio shows, video games, and more, and can write any genre including soap opera, drama, and documentaries. Depending on the popularity and success of the screen writer, the salary can differ greatly. However, the average salary for a screen writer is £34,495.

Editorial

A main editorial job in the media industry is a film editor. Film editors put together the film footage and manipulate it, as well as the sound and score, so that it fits with the script and flows well and creates an enjoyable whole piece of film. Like the screen writers, a film editor's salary can vary depending on their popularity and relationships with directors. An average starting salary for a film editor is between £18,000 and £25,000, which is usually the salary for editors working in television. For film editors with more experience, the salary can be between £20,000 and £35,000. For film editors with great experience, and are working on high profile projects such as Hollywood films, the salary can be up to £70,000, or even more.

Technical

Technical jobs in the media industry can include jobs such as camera operators. Camera operators are in charge of the cameras when filming, and they work with all kinds of cameras and camera set-ups to create a visually attractive. To ensure that they have all the correct shots, the camera operators use a shot script and take direction from either the director or the director of photography. Although they usually follow this script, they often suggest new or different shots to the director. The average salary for a camera operator is between £11,500 and £40,000, and depending on the job, the salary can be even more.

Managerial

An important managerial job in the media industry is a producer. Producers do many things within the production of a television show or film including fundraising, hiring key personnel, arranging distributors, etc. and they generally oversee the whole project from beginning to end. In television, as well as having a producer, there is an executive producer who will act as producer for the whole series rather than just one episode. For producers in both television and film, the salary can start at £18,000 and go up to around £70,000.

Administrative

An example of an administrative job in the media industry is an assistant director, who takes responsiblity for many important aspects of pre-production and production, so that the director is free to do what they need to do. They are essentially the director's "right hand" person, writing up storyboards and shooting schedules, among other things. Assistant directors earn an average salary of £24,000, but they can earn more depending on the project they are working on and the tasks they are doing.

Financial

An example of a financial job in the media industry is a production accountant. Production accountants work closely with the producers to maintain financial records and manage the budget of the production. The average salary of a production accountant is £42,000.