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How to Interview a Producer

Film producers are the people who orchestrate an entire film production. They hire the director, set the budget and play a role in nearly every other decision made on the film. They work closely with the director to ensure the director has everything needed to do the best job possible and that the director stays on schedule and on budget. Because of the diverse responsibilities of producers, they can make fascinating interview subjects when discussing a film. Interviewing a producer requires some preparation.

Instructions

    • 1

      Research the producer so you know what films he has worked on before, what his general background is and any other interesting trivia about him. This helps you determine the best questions to ask.

    • 2

      Write down a list of basic questions for the producer but leave enough time in the interview for you to ask improvised questions based on the producer's previous answers. You should be prepared with some questions to ask before beginning the interview so you're not wasting the producer's time.

    • 3

      Ask the producer how she got into producing. Acting, directing and other specialized jobs in the film industry usually have schools that specialize in them or classes to learn the trade whereas producing really doesn't. As a result, producers often have varied stories about how they broke into the industry.

    • 4

      Discuss the previous films the producer has worked on briefly to get his perceptions on the various projects and what he has learned from each of them.

    • 5

      Talk about any current films on which the producer is working. The producer is likely doing the interview at least partially to promote the new film so a good portion of the interview should be dedicated to discussing it.

    • 6

      Inquire about any funny stories or surprising moments from the producer's career. Everyone has different stories to tell and the producer may be able to give you a memorable incident to close out your interview.

Film Production

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