Craig and John explain what producers do — at least, what they’re *supposed to do* — and discuss the myriad subclasses of producers that litter the opening titles of many movies.
Which is the more impressive credit — producer or executive producer? In film, it’s the former. In TV, it’s the latter. But whatever the title, producers are integral to getting a movie or TV show made.
Craig feels producers can be either anxiety buffers or anxiety conductors. John breaks down four essential roles you find producers filling:
1. **The general.** This producer keeps things moving forward and protects the production. She forces you to make decisions.
2. **The diplomat.** This producer makes sure crazy people feel respected, even when they’re being giant pains-in-the-ass. He talks the actress out of her trailer.
3. **The creative.** This producer reminds everyone what kind of movie they’re trying to make. She performs quality control for the production.
4. **The bulldozer.** This producer will smash down a phone booth to help the director get his shot. (This actually happened.)
Some producers can fill multiple roles (like diplomat-creative), but you’ll often find these qualities spread out among several people on a production, regardless of the size.
Who’s that fat cat, and how did he afford such a fancy cigar? Find out on episode seventeen of Scriptnotes.
LINKS:
* [Producer credits and what they mean](http://johnaugust.com/2004/producer-credits-and-what-they-mean)
* [Producers Guild of America](http://www.producersguild.org/)
* [Kelly Manners](http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0543128/) on IMDb
* INTRO: [The Weebles](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hy4lfHYDWt4&feature=related)
* OUTRO: [What More Can I Say (Falsettoland)](http://itunes.apple.com/us/album/what-more-can-i-say-falsettoland/id251490303?i=251490410) performed by the San Francisco’s Gay Men’s Chorus
You can download the episode here: [AAC](http://traffic.libsyn.com/scriptnotes/scriptnotes_ep_17.m4a).
UPDATE 1-4-12: The transcript of this episode can be found [here](http://johnaugust.com/2012/scriptnotes-ep-17-what-do-producers-do-transcript).