The film producer

Jobs such as directing, writing and acting are all well defined in the entertainment industry. Producing on the other hand is a different story, and adding titles such as associate, executive and supervising just make it even more confusing. Richard Zanuck once stated, "The producer is like the conductor of an orchestra. Maybe he can't play every instrument, but he knows what every instrument should sound like." 

In general, the producer is responsible for turning creative ideas into practical or marketable concepts. They are also the person(s) who get studios to finance projects. Because producers are essentially supervisors at whatever level they produce, there is no union or guild that governs the jurisdiction of producing like what is seen in other professions such as writing, directing or acting. There is also no special school one can attend to learn the skills of being a successful and effective producer like there is for the other professions in the entertainment industry. 

In most cases, the producer is in charge of bringing the production together, bringing in the creative elements and taking care of the numerous and frequent problems that may occur with film development and production. For those that actively produce, this can mean any number of activities including but not limited to: hiring the writer to write the original screenplay, selling the script to a studio, signing the major actors, doing the budget, hiring the crew, and making sure the set gets made on time. It is very clear that a single person cannot perform all these tasks. Likewise, different people prefer to do different tasks, but all perform some facet of a producer's overall responsibility; getting the motion picture developed, mounted and sold.

In movie credits, there are a lot of titles with the word producer (or some variation) listed. They can be typed into many different categories according to the nature and extent of their responsibilities. Some of these categories are Staff Producers, Independent Producers, Executive Producers, Associate Producers and "producer hyphenates." Production companies and or organizations employ Staff producers on continual bases. Often, they are assigned to specific projects, and often specialize in specific types of films. Independent producers are responsible for the bulk of theatrically released films, and will be discussed in more detail later.  An Executive Producer title is invariably the least descriptive. Generally, unless a person is directly involved in the film, you will not know exactly what task this person has performed. This title could be used to describe the person who raised every last cent to get the film made, or could be a person who made one phone call to a studio and then had nothing further to do with the project. The title could be for a person who was on the set constantly making sure the budget was kept intact, or simply for an actor who wants a little more credit for the film. Associate Producer on the other hand often refers to a person who physically produced the project, making sure everything happens according to schedule and handling all production difficulties and problems that may come about once the money is allotted. Producer hyphenates combine the role of producer with other roles such as writing and or directing. Those who take on all three tasks: writer-producer-directors, immerse themselves in the project, and almost totally control the quality of the final product (along, of course, with the studio itself).