Would you like to be a Hollywood producer?
How does someone go about becoming a movie or television producer? Must you go to film school? Is a special license or degree required? Do you need to get hired by a major studio like Warner Brothers or Fox?
Some people do go to a big film school, like the Peter Stark Producing Program at USC, to learn about producing industry films. But many producers never went to film school, so it is not necessary to go to film school or have an MFA degree from NYU or UCLA.
In California, there are no special licenses required to produce a movie, although you will need a permit to film on the streets of Los Angeles.
As far as getting a deal with a major studio, well by the time that happens you will already be a producer.
Nope, the only thing you need to do to become a producer is to declare one day: “I am a producer. I am working on a project.”
That’s it. That’s all it takes. Then start doing the things that a producer is expected to do. What does a producer actually do? I will answer that interesting question in another article.
That’s basically the way it works. In Hollywood you become whatever you say you are. Unlike other fields like accounting or law, there is no need for any official credentials like a college degree. You need a license to sell pretzels, but any schmuck can be a producer! Of course to be a Hollywood producer, you have to relocate to Los Angeles. If you live in Peoria, it is just not as impressive to say you are a Peoria Film Producer.
If you do think you would like to go to one of the top film schools to learn about producing, visit the Peter Stark Producing Program at USC Cinema Arts.
