Terms

• Actor:
  Person playing a character role in the production.
• Artist:
  Person primarily responsible for the artistic content of the production, or the visual content contained in the media work, and who may hold copyright to it – for example, a video artist like Andy Warhol, or a painter commissioned to provide a visual work for the production.
• Artistic Director:
  Person responsible for unifying the feel and vision of a television production, film production, theatrical company, etc.
• Associate Producer:
  Person who takes on responsibilities delegated to them by the Producer. They work on the development and pre-production stages, and on the production. Duties can range from supervising the production design team or post production, or co-ordinating the work of visual effects companies. This is an industry term, and specific roles and responsibilities may vary between jobs and productions.
• Author:
  Person primarily responsible for the intellectual content of the production and who may hold copyright to it – for example, a novelist whose work is adapted into a film.
• Broadcast Engineer:
  Person who works with hardware and broadcast systems that are used across television, radio and new media to broadcast and distribute programs.
• Camera Operator:
  Person responsible for manning the camera. Several people may fill this role on one production.
• Caption Writer:
  Person or organization responsible for editing/adding closed captioning.
• Casting Director:
  Person responsible for initially finding the cast members chosen for a production.
• Choreographer:
  Person responsible for selection or creation of dance compositions and plans and arranges dance movements and patterns for dances and especially for ballets.
• Cinematographer:
  See Director of Photography, the recommended term for this position.
• Co-Producer:
  Person who performs a substantial portion of a creative producing function, or who is primarily responsible for one or more managerial producing functions. A co-producer has less responsibility than a producer for the completion of a project. This is an industry term, and specific roles and responsibilities may vary between jobs and productions.
• Commentator:
  Person who discusses news, sports events, weather, or the like, as on television or radio.
• Composer:
  Person who writes music for a specific production, or who is responsible for the artistic content of a piece of music used within a specific production and who may own copyright to that content. Composers of specific elements (for example, theme music) may be identified in an annotation.
• Concept Artist:
  Person who produces an artistic rendering of an element or elements in a film, TV show, or video game, created as part of the development and visualization of characters, costumes, environments, etc.
• Conductor:
  Person who directs the performance of an orchestra or choir.
• Costume Designer:
  Person responsible for designing and creating costumes and wardrobe for a production.
• Describer:
  Person or organization responsible for describing key visual elements in a production for visually-impaired viewers.
• Director:
  Person who supervises the actors, camera crew, and other staff for a movie, play, television program, or similar production.
• Director of Photography:
  Cinematographer or director of photography (sometimes shortened to DP or DOP) is the chief over the camera crews working on a film, television production or other live action piece and is responsible for achieving artistic and technical decisions related to the image.
• Editor:
  Person who assembles the footage for a production into the final end product.
• Executive Producer:
  Person who secures funding for a production and oversees financial and organizational aspects of the production’s development.
• Filmmaker:
  The person most prominently responsible for the making of a film, especially if they are involved in all phases of production – for example, an independent or experimental filmmaker.
• Foley Artist:
  Person that uses objects to create (or recreate) sound on a foley sound stage to be added to the final audio mix, such as footsteps, the opening and closing doors, or mechanical sounds.
• Graphic Designer:
  Person who creates and designs visual elements for a production, such as logos, posters or brochures.
• Graphic Editor:
  Person who assembles graphics and animation for a production.
• Guest:
  Person who is invited to appear on one or several episodes of a television show, but is not a regular part of the cast or crew.
• Host:
  Person who introduces a television or radio program, presents the various program elements, and interviews any guests.
• Interviewee:
  Person being interviewed.
• Interviewer:
  Person who asks the questions during an interview.
• Lighting Technician:
  Person responsible for the creation of the lighting design for a given production.
• Make-Up Artist:
  Person responsible for designing and creating make-up and prosthetic effects for a production.
• Moderator:
  Person who moderates a discussion.
• Music Supervisor:
  Person responsible for working with the director and composer of a production to manage, select, and/or edit music for the production; this may also be identified as music director or music editor.
• Musician:
  Player of a musical instrument.
• Narrator:
  Person whose voice explains what is happening in a television program or movie, but who generally is not seen.
• Panelist:
  Member of a small group of persons gathered for formal public discussion, judging, or playing a radio or television game.
• Performer:
  Broader term for Actor, Musician, Vocalist or Comedian. A ​person who ​entertains ​people by ​acting, ​singing, ​dancing, ​playing ​music, or providing some other form of entertainment.
• Performing Group:
  Company, band, or group of performers who work together to ​entertain ​people by ​dancing, ​singing, ​acting, ​playing ​music, or providing some other form of entertainment.
• Photographer:
  Person who ​takes ​photographs. In film and television this person may be called a unit still photographer or simply, still photographer, who creates still photographic images intended for use in promotion, continuity and documentation of films and television productions.
• Producer:
  Person who initiates, coordinates, supervises and controls all aspects of the production process, including creative, financial, technological and administrative. A Producer is involved throughout all phases of production from inception to completion. A production may have more than one producer.
• Production Unit:
  Corporate sub-entity or department that initiates, coordinates, supervises and controls all aspects of the production process, including creative, financial, technological and administrative.
• Recording Engineer:
  Person who operates consoles and other equipment to record, control, replay, and mix sound from various live performances and in the production of radio, television, music, and film. Recording Engineers may also be called Sound Recordists, Sound Mixers, or Audio Engineers. There are also specialized engineers such as Sound Engineers (for film sets), ADR Recordists, and Foley Recordists.
• Reporter:
  Person who conducts interviews, reports events, or presents news information for a broadcast.
• Set Designer:
  Person who designs and creates the set for a production.
• Sound Designer:
  Person who works closely with the production team to design any required sounds to include in a production.
• Sound Editor:
  Person who creates the soundtrack by cutting and synchronizing all sound elements. There may be specialized editors for specific sound element types as well, such as a Sound Effects Editor.
• Speaker:
  Broad term for a person whose speech or lecture is included in a production.
• Technical Director:
  Most senior technical person on a production team, who oversees the technical quality of the production and/or supervises the technical crew. This is an industry term, and specific roles and responsibilities may vary between jobs and productions.
• Video Engineer:
  Person who is responsible for technical aspects of video recording and production systems. This is an industry term, and specific roles and responsibilities may vary between jobs and productions.
• Vocalist:
  Person who sings or otherwise vocally contributes a production or a composition used in a production.
• Voiceover Artist:
  Unseen performer who adds their voice to the production in various ways, such as for animated characters or when dubbing into another language. For musical performances use Vocalist.
• Writer:
  Person who created or contributed to the script of a production; usually involved with the production as a work-for-hire.

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