Production

Department · Production

The production office runs the show that the floor shoots.

Production hires the crew, books the kit, moves the unit and spends the money, from the first day of prep to the last day of wrap.
Career ladder · 8 grades
Runner to Line producer
Errands, deliveries, phones, printing, the office kitchen.

See the ladder Read: Runner
Learning path · free · 12 films
AI for producers
Where AI saves time and money in development, prep and delivery, what it costs, and the consent, copyright, disclosure and union rules UK producers must follow. Last checked 11 November 2026.

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Watch: Production

8 items

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Career ladder

From first job to head of department

Producers sit above the line producer. Accounts is its own ladder, not the top rung of the office.

Production office

Entry grade Runner Errands, deliveries, phones, printing, the office kitchen.Watch and read
Step 2 Production assistantAlso: PA; often shares the runner's line on the card Paperwork, phones and distribution in the office.Watch and read
Step 3 Production secretary Scripts, schedules, crew lists and the office diary out on time.
Step 4 Assistant production coordinatorAlso: APOC Travel, hotels, kit orders, the back page of the call sheet.
Step 5 Production coordinator Runs the office: crew, suppliers, movement, distribution.Watch and read
Step 6 Production supervisor The production manager's deputy on larger shows.
Step 7 Production manager The schedule, the budget, crew deals and safety on the unit.Watch and read
Top of the ladder Line producer Delivers the production on budget and to schedule.Watch and read

Specialists branch off the ladder at the grade shown; they aren't steps on it

Travel coordinatorbeside Assistant production coordinatorMoves cast and crew: flights, hotels, visas.
Producer's or director's assistantbeside Production secretaryDiary, calls and paperwork for one person.

Production accounts

Parallel ladder

Entry grade Accounts trainee Filing, data entry, petty cash floats and receipts.
Step 2 Assistant accountant Purchase orders, invoices, petty cash and supplier payments.
Step 3 First assistant accountant Runs the ledgers and the weekly cost report for the accountant.
Step 4 Production accountant Runs the accounts team, the cost report and payroll.Watch and read
Top of the ladder Financial controller Oversees the money across a large show or a slate (common practice).

Grade by grade: what you need before moving up

Production office
Grade	What you do	Before moving up
Runner	Errands, deliveries, phones, printing, the office kitchen.	Reliability, a clean driving licence, a credit or two.
Production assistantAlso: PA; often shares the runner's line on the card	Paperwork, phones and distribution in the office.	Knowing every department's paperwork.
Production secretary	Scripts, schedules, crew lists and the office diary out on time.	Fast, accurate paperwork and knowing every department.
Assistant production coordinatorAlso: APOC	Travel, hotels, kit orders, the back page of the call sheet.	Running whole areas without being checked.
Production coordinator	Runs the office: crew, suppliers, movement, distribution.	Several credits as APOC; budgets and cost reports start to make sense.
Production supervisor	The production manager's deputy on larger shows.	Hiring, deals and the cost of each decision.
Production manager	The schedule, the budget, crew deals and safety on the unit.	Credits as coordinator or supervisor; command of the budget.
Line producer	Delivers the production on budget and to schedule.	Production management credits at the scale of the show.

Production accounts
Grade	What you do
Accounts trainee	Filing, data entry, petty cash floats and receipts.
Assistant accountant	Purchase orders, invoices, petty cash and supplier payments.
First assistant accountant	Runs the ledgers and the weekly cost report for the accountant.
Production accountant	Runs the accounts team, the cost report and payroll.
Financial controller	Oversees the money across a large show or a slate (common practice).

Bectu scripted production card, 2026–27 · Every department's ladder: Careers A–Z · Getting work · Working freelance

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AI in film and TV

How AI fits this department

Producers use AI for breakdowns, scheduling drafts, pitch material and localisation. UK commissioners expect AI use to be disclosed, and faces and voices need written consent.

Learning path: AI for producers The AI channel Consent and credit

Production, in detail

What production does

The production office is the unit's back office and switchboard. It opens in prep, usually weeks before the shoot, and closes after wrap once the last invoice is paid.

Crew and contracts. Start paperwork, deal memos, timesheets and right-to-work checks.
Kit and suppliers. Purchase orders, hire agreements, deliveries and returns.
Movement. Travel, hotels, unit transport and the movement order.
Paperwork. Scripts and their revisions, the cast list, the crew list and the daily progress report.
Money. The accounts team pays crew and suppliers and reports the cost against the budget each week.

The floor answers to the 1st AD. The office answers to the production manager, who answers to the line producer and the producers.

Who production works with

Everyone. The production manager works closely with the 1st AD on the schedule, with locations on permissions and unit base, with transport on movement, and with every head of department on their crew and their budget line.

Kit and vocabulary

Call sheet: the next day's plan, produced by the 2nd AD and signed off by the production manager.
Movement order: directions, maps and parking for each location.
Daily progress report (DPR): what was shot, when, by whom, and what went wrong.
Purchase order (PO): the approval to spend before the invoice arrives.
Cost report: the weekly picture of spend against budget, from accounts.
Prep, shoot, wrap: the three phases of a production, each with its own office rhythm.
Crew list: names, grades, phone numbers. Keep it private.

How to get in

Most people start as a runner or production assistant on a feature or HETV office. Some come from an office or events job, which is good preparation. Accounts entrants often come from bookkeeping or an accountancy course. The Production Guild runs step-up training for production and accounts grades.

Pay: Bectu scripted production card, 2026–27, which covers the office and accounts grades.

Where Futures in Film helps

Our production office course (dates soon: register interest) works through a call sheet, a movement order, a DPR, a stripboard breakdown and a petty cash reconciliation. On a production simulation week you hold an office grade through prep, shoot and wrap. If you have never been on a set, start with Your first day on set.