Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics
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Occupational Employment and Wages, May 2021
27-2012 Producers and Directors
Produce or direct stage, television, radio, video, or film productions for entertainment, information, or instruction. Responsible for creative decisions, such as interpretation of script, choice of actors or guests, set design, sound, special effects, and choreography.
National estimates for Producers and Directors
Industry profile for Producers and Directors
Geographic profile for Producers and Directors
National estimates for Producers and Directors:
Employment estimate and mean wage estimates for Producers and Directors:
| Employment (1) |
Employment
RSE (3) |
Mean hourly
wage |
Mean annual
wage (2) |
Wage RSE (3) |
| 138,250 |
5.2 % |
$ 49.01 |
$ 101,950 |
4.5 % |
Percentile wage estimates for Producers and Directors:
| Percentile |
10% |
25% |
50%
(Median) |
75% |
90% |
| Hourly Wage |
$ 18.37 |
$ 24.45 |
$ 37.98 |
$ 62.23 |
$ 99.45 |
| Annual Wage (2) |
$ 38,210 |
$ 50,860 |
$ 79,000 |
$ 129,440 |
$ 206,860 |
Industry profile for Producers and Directors:
Industries with the highest published employment and wages for Producers and Directors are provided.
For a list of all industries with employment in Producers and Directors, see the Create Customized Tables function.
Industries with the highest levels of employment in Producers and Directors:
| Industry |
Employment (1) |
Percent of industry employment |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Motion Picture and Video Industries |
50,360 |
15.97 |
$ 56.97 |
$ 118,490 |
| Radio and Television Broadcasting |
30,770 |
16.15 |
$ 35.22 |
$ 73,250 |
| Advertising, Public Relations, and Related Services |
8,470 |
1.95 |
$ 55.98 |
$ 116,430 |
| Cable and Other Subscription Programming |
4,510 |
9.48 |
$ 45.33 |
$ 94,290 |
| Performing Arts Companies |
4,400 |
6.35 |
$ 32.74 |
$ 68,090 |
Industries with the highest concentration of employment in Producers and Directors:
| Industry |
Employment (1) |
Percent of industry employment |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Radio and Television Broadcasting |
30,770 |
16.15 |
$ 35.22 |
$ 73,250 |
| Motion Picture and Video Industries |
50,360 |
15.97 |
$ 56.97 |
$ 118,490 |
| Cable and Other Subscription Programming |
4,510 |
9.48 |
$ 45.33 |
$ 94,290 |
| Sound Recording Industries |
1,580 |
9.01 |
$ 35.05 |
$ 72,900 |
| Performing Arts Companies |
4,400 |
6.35 |
$ 32.74 |
$ 68,090 |
Top paying industries for Producers and Directors:
| Industry |
Employment (1) |
Percent of industry employment |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Agents and Managers for Artists, Athletes, Entertainers, and Other Public Figures |
260 |
1.09 |
$ 92.84 |
$ 193,100 |
| Independent Artists, Writers, and Performers |
(8) |
(8) |
$ 78.53 |
$ 163,340 |
| Computer Systems Design and Related Services |
1,230 |
0.05 |
$ 59.00 |
$ 122,730 |
| Accounting, Tax Preparation, Bookkeeping, and Payroll Services |
930 |
0.09 |
$ 58.14 |
$ 120,930 |
| Employment Services |
1,190 |
0.03 |
$ 57.48 |
$ 119,550 |
Geographic profile for Producers and Directors:
States and areas with the highest published employment, location quotients, and wages for Producers and Directors are provided.
For a list of all areas with employment in Producers and Directors, see the Create Customized Tables function.
States with the highest employment level in Producers and Directors:
| State |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| California |
45,630 |
2.76 |
2.81 |
$ 65.75 |
$ 136,770 |
| New York |
27,140 |
3.13 |
3.19 |
$ 54.27 |
$ 112,870 |
| Texas |
6,440 |
0.53 |
0.54 |
$ 33.43 |
$ 69,540 |
| Florida |
5,970 |
0.69 |
0.71 |
$ 34.98 |
$ 72,760 |
| Georgia |
4,340 |
0.99 |
1.01 |
$ 33.93 |
$ 70,580 |
States with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Producers and Directors:
| State |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| District of Columbia |
2,240 |
3.38 |
3.44 |
$ 45.23 |
$ 94,080 |
| New York |
27,140 |
3.13 |
3.19 |
$ 54.27 |
$ 112,870 |
| California |
45,630 |
2.76 |
2.81 |
$ 65.75 |
$ 136,770 |
| Connecticut |
2,140 |
1.36 |
1.39 |
$ 52.34 |
$ 108,860 |
| New Mexico |
990 |
1.27 |
1.30 |
$ 50.53 |
$ 105,100 |
Top paying states for Producers and Directors:
| State |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| California |
45,630 |
2.76 |
2.81 |
$ 65.75 |
$ 136,770 |
| New York |
27,140 |
3.13 |
3.19 |
$ 54.27 |
$ 112,870 |
| Connecticut |
2,140 |
1.36 |
1.39 |
$ 52.34 |
$ 108,860 |
| New Mexico |
990 |
1.27 |
1.30 |
$ 50.53 |
$ 105,100 |
| New Jersey |
1,440 |
0.37 |
0.38 |
$ 48.52 |
$ 100,920 |
Metropolitan areas with the highest employment level in Producers and Directors:
| Metropolitan area |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA |
36,850 |
6.44 |
6.57 |
$ 69.04 |
$ 143,610 |
| New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA |
25,960 |
2.99 |
3.05 |
$ 55.31 |
$ 115,050 |
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV |
3,650 |
1.24 |
1.27 |
$ 44.70 |
$ 92,970 |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA |
3,650 |
1.63 |
1.66 |
$ 59.93 |
$ 124,650 |
| Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA |
3,490 |
1.35 |
1.37 |
$ 35.12 |
$ 73,060 |
| Miami-Fort Lauderdale-West Palm Beach, FL |
2,580 |
1.05 |
1.07 |
$ 38.41 |
$ 79,900 |
| Chicago-Naperville-Elgin, IL-IN-WI |
2,460 |
0.58 |
0.59 |
$ 36.10 |
$ 75,090 |
| Dallas-Fort Worth-Arlington, TX |
1,810 |
0.50 |
0.51 |
$ 36.30 |
$ 75,510 |
| Boston-Cambridge-Nashua, MA-NH |
1,720 |
0.66 |
0.68 |
$ 45.17 |
$ 93,950 |
| Philadelphia-Camden-Wilmington, PA-NJ-DE-MD |
1,520 |
0.57 |
0.58 |
$ 40.22 |
$ 83,660 |
Metropolitan areas with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Producers and Directors:
| Metropolitan area |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA |
36,850 |
6.44 |
6.57 |
$ 69.04 |
$ 143,610 |
| New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA |
25,960 |
2.99 |
3.05 |
$ 55.31 |
$ 115,050 |
| Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford, CT |
1,100 |
2.02 |
2.06 |
$ 48.93 |
$ 101,780 |
| Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk, CT |
720 |
1.93 |
1.96 |
$ 61.93 |
$ 128,810 |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA |
3,650 |
1.63 |
1.66 |
$ 59.93 |
$ 124,650 |
| Missoula, MT |
80 |
1.35 |
1.38 |
$ 33.27 |
$ 69,200 |
| Atlanta-Sandy Springs-Roswell, GA |
3,490 |
1.35 |
1.37 |
$ 35.12 |
$ 73,060 |
| Santa Fe, NM |
80 |
1.34 |
1.36 |
$ 48.86 |
$ 101,630 |
| Columbia, MO |
120 |
1.28 |
1.30 |
$ 21.68 |
$ 45,090 |
| Washington-Arlington-Alexandria, DC-VA-MD-WV |
3,650 |
1.24 |
1.27 |
$ 44.70 |
$ 92,970 |
Top paying metropolitan areas for Producers and Directors:
| Metropolitan area |
Employment (1) |
Employment per thousand jobs |
Location quotient (9) |
Hourly mean wage |
Annual mean wage (2) |
| Los Angeles-Long Beach-Anaheim, CA |
36,850 |
6.44 |
6.57 |
$ 69.04 |
$ 143,610 |
| Bridgeport-Stamford-Norwalk, CT |
720 |
1.93 |
1.96 |
$ 61.93 |
$ 128,810 |
| San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara, CA |
1,030 |
0.96 |
0.98 |
$ 60.09 |
$ 124,990 |
| San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward, CA |
3,650 |
1.63 |
1.66 |
$ 59.93 |
$ 124,650 |
| New York-Newark-Jersey City, NY-NJ-PA |
25,960 |
2.99 |
3.05 |
$ 55.31 |
$ 115,050 |
| Santa Cruz-Watsonville, CA |
50 |
0.57 |
0.58 |
$ 53.60 |
$ 111,490 |
| Trenton, NJ |
90 |
0.37 |
0.38 |
$ 52.13 |
$ 108,420 |
| Hartford-West Hartford-East Hartford, CT |
1,100 |
2.02 |
2.06 |
$ 48.93 |
$ 101,780 |
| Santa Fe, NM |
80 |
1.34 |
1.36 |
$ 48.86 |
$ 101,630 |
| Nashville-Davidson--Murfreesboro--Franklin, TN |
690 |
0.70 |
0.72 |
$ 46.51 |
$ 96,740 |
Nonmetropolitan areas with the highest employment in Producers and Directors:
Nonmetropolitan areas with the highest concentration of jobs and location quotients in Producers and Directors:
Top paying nonmetropolitan areas for Producers and Directors:
About May 2021 National, State, Metropolitan, and Nonmetropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates
These estimates are calculated with data collected from employers in all industry sectors, all metropolitan and nonmetropolitan areas, and all states and the District of Columbia.
The top employment and wage figures are provided above. The complete list is available in the downloadable XLS files.
The percentile wage estimate is the value of a wage below which a certain percent of workers fall.
The median wage is the 50th percentile wage estimate—50 percent of workers earn less than the median and 50 percent of workers earn more than the median.
More about percentile wages.
(1) Estimates for detailed occupations do not sum to the totals because the totals include occupations not shown separately. Estimates do not include self-employed workers.
(2) Annual wages have been calculated by multiplying the hourly mean wage by a "year-round, full-time" hours figure of 2,080 hours;
for those occupations where there is not an hourly wage published, the annual wage has been directly calculated from the reported survey data.
(3) The relative standard error (RSE) is a measure of the reliability of a survey statistic. The smaller the relative standard error, the more precise the estimate.
(8) Estimate not released.
(9) The location quotient is the ratio of the area concentration of occupational employment to the national average concentration.
A location quotient greater than one indicates the occupation has a higher share of employment than average, and a location quotient less than one indicates the occupation is less prevalent in the area than average.
Other OEWS estimates and related information:
May 2021 National Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates
May 2021 State Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates
May 2021 Metropolitan and Nonmetropolitan Area Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates
May 2021 National Industry-Specific Occupational Employment and Wage Estimates
May 2021 Occupation Profiles
Technical Notes
Last Modified Date: March 31, 2022
United States Department of Labor
