Producers Are Hired for Their Reputation (Not Their Rolodex)

As a producer, people are hiring and paying you for your reputation - whether they realize it or not.

Producer Sohrab Mirmont (2nd from right) and the film crew and cast at the Salt Lake Film Society screening of the Riddle of Fire.

Yes, a producer should have a deep rolodex of crew and vendors, with backups for every role, sometimes three or four deep. That matters.

But that’s largely the job of a line producer.

Line producers handle schedules, budgets, hiring logistics, tax incentives, and the machinery that keeps a production moving. A great producer can - and should - hire a great line producer to handle those things.

So then what is the job of the producer? If a line producer can do all of that, what good is a producer?

Producer Sohrab Mirmont at the screening of From Way Up Here with actress Mac Steele Foster.

Here’s the answer: the producer creates the conditions for excellence.

The film works for the producer and the director together. It’s a duo. When you have a strong director paired with a strong producer, you create a culture where everyone underneath them does not want to let them down.

Sometimes you get a dictator of a director and a sage of a producer. That dynamic can create friction - but it’s often the producer who smooths things out, absorbs pressure, and keeps the ship steady.

The people work for the producer.

The producer approves the checks. The producer guides the production’s every move. The producer enables the crew to do their best work - and the best crews do their best work when they feel protected, valued, and respected.

That’s where reputation comes in.

Producer Sohrab Mirmont (Middle, Red Shirt) on the set of Please Be Funny.

Reputation is what people think of you before they meet you. It’s what they’ve heard. What they believe. And it’s either confirmed or destroyed the moment you step on set.

A producer with a great reputation is like a hero you haven’t met yet. When that reputation turns out to be true, it inspires people to rise to the occasion. To give more than required. To care more. To learn. To earn the right to be in that room again.

Take a Jerry Bruckheimer film. You hear the name and you already know what kind of set it will be. Well-run. No shortcuts. High standards. If you’re hired on that film, you bring your A-game - because reputation has already set the bar.

That’s what a great producer brings: reputation; the ability to turn scripts into well-run productions where excellence is expected and supported.

A great producer fights for their crew. They fight to get people paid quickly. They make sure food is right. Breaks happen. No one is worrying about money, meals, or logistics - because the only thing the crew should be thinking about is the work.

When I control the money, I like to pay people the day the job finishes. Often, larger companies slow that down - but the intention still matters. People remember how you treat them.

Producer Sohrab Mirmont and camera operator Matt Oliveira on set of Green Flake.

A prominent industry figure still tells the story of when I called him the day after his job wrapped and said, “You want to get paid? I’ve got a check ready for you.”

That sticks.

So if you want to be a producer, don’t start with budgets or gear or contacts.

Start by asking yourself: What kind of reputation do I want ten years from now?

Then work backwards.

Want to learn more about producing and on-set filmmaking? Check out these valuable articles:

1: The Production Assistant Handbook

2: Directing Actors: Get the Best Performance On-Set from your Actors 3: Story: 6 Methods for Great Storytelling

[ Written by Sohrab Mirmont for Mirmont Pictures. ]