Set buyer to director of photography
A set buyer already meets 22% of what the director of photography role asks for. The move turns on 15 required skills not yet in the profile.
78.5/ 100
1 How much of what a director of photography is expected to do is already part of a set buyer’s work. Directional: the figure for the reverse move differs, because moving into a speciality is not the same problem as moving out of one. 2 Every skill the director of photography role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
A director of photography role treats 6 of its required skills as things a set buyer already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- analyse a script
- cinematography
- ensure visual quality of the set
- film production process
- lighting techniques
- photography
What stands in the way is 15 required skills the profile does not yet cover. Table 3 groups them; Table 4 says which to take first.
Table 2 · What you already bring
Of the 6 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. A director of photography role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a set buyer background worth leading with.
- already held cinematography arts and humanities
- already held ensure visual quality of the set communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held lighting techniques arts and humanities
- already held film production process arts and humanities
- already held photography arts and humanities
- already held analyse a script communication, collaboration and creativity
All 6 carried skills, including the 6 the director of photography role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 32 missing skills fall into 7 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, numbered in the order worth working in. Areas carrying the most required skills come first, and inside each one the required skills sit above the optional ones. Nothing here is a verdict on you: it is a list of what this particular job asks for that your current one does not.
- still to learn adapt designers’ work to the performance venue required
- still to learn adapt to type of media required
- still to learn consult with production director required
- still to learn design lighting required
- still to learn watch scenes required
- still to learn work with motion picture editing team required
- still to learn work with pre-production team required
- still to learn develop creative ideas required
- still to learn translate artistic concepts to technical designs required
- optional, not held adapt a script optional
- optional, not held edit digital moving images optional
- optional, not held liaise with event sponsors optional
- optional, not held supervise script preparation optional
- optional, not held work with playwrights optional
- optional, not held attend rehearsals optional
- still to learn supervise camera crew required
- still to learn finish project within budget required
- still to learn follow work schedule required
- still to learn supervise sound production required
- optional, not held hire human resources optional
- still to learn audiovisual equipment required
- optional, not held file-based workflow optional
- optional, not held multimedia systems optional
- optional, not held photographic processing techniques optional
- still to learn study media sources required
- optional, not held read scripts optional
- optional, not held operate a camera optional
- optional, not held select camera apertures optional
- optional, not held set up cameras optional
- optional, not held edit recorded sound optional
- optional, not held perform video editing optional
1 further area in the appendix
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries a director of photography role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 adapt designers’ work to the performance venue practise this
- 02 adapt to type of media practise this
- 03 audiovisual equipment study this
Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.
Appendix · The rest of the record
All 6 skills that carry over
- already held analyse a script skill
- already held cinematography knowledge
- already held ensure visual quality of the set skill
- already held film production process knowledge
- already held lighting techniques knowledge
- already held photography knowledge
The 1 learning area not shown above
- optional, not held ICT software specifications optional
17 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held ICT software specifications optional
- optional, not held adapt a script optional
- optional, not held edit digital moving images optional
- optional, not held edit recorded sound optional
- optional, not held file-based workflow optional
- optional, not held hire human resources optional
- optional, not held liaise with event sponsors optional
- optional, not held operate a camera optional
- optional, not held perform video editing optional
- optional, not held read scripts optional
- optional, not held select camera apertures optional
- optional, not held set up cameras optional
- optional, not held supervise script preparation optional
- optional, not held work with playwrights optional
- optional, not held attend rehearsals optional
- optional, not held multimedia systems optional
- optional, not held photographic processing techniques optional
21 held skills the director of photography role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role acquire antique items skill
- not needed by the target role adapt props skill
- not needed by the target role adapt sets skill
- not needed by the target role build props skill
- not needed by the target role change over props skill
- not needed by the target role check deliveries on receipt skill
- not needed by the target role communicate price changes skill
- not needed by the target role coordinate purchasing activities skill
- not needed by the target role define set building methods skill
- not needed by the target role film studies knowledge
- not needed by the target role identify props skill
- not needed by the target role identify suppliers skill
- not needed by the target role maintain inventory of rented items skill
- not needed by the target role maintain relationship with suppliers skill
- not needed by the target role manage budgets skill
- not needed by the target role manage logistics skill
- not needed by the target role manage rented goods returns skill
- not needed by the target role provide customized upholstery skill
- not needed by the target role purchase props skill
- not needed by the target role room aesthetics knowledge
- not needed by the target role work with prop makers skill
5 gaps that are knowledge rather than practice
Knowledge gaps usually close through study. Practical skill gaps usually need something you can point at.
- still to learn audiovisual equipment required
- optional, not held ICT software specifications optional
- optional, not held file-based workflow optional
- optional, not held multimedia systems optional
- optional, not held photographic processing techniques optional
Common questions about this move
Can a set buyer become a director of photography?
Yes, and it is a career change move. A set buyer already covers 22% of what a director of photography is expected to do: 6 skills carry over, 6 of which the director of photography role treats as required.
What skills does a set buyer need to become a director of photography?
15 required skills are missing, plus 17 optional ones. They fall into 7 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by communication, collaboration and creativity. The single most important is adapt designers’ work to the performance venue.
How hard is the move from set buyer to director of photography?
Its learning distance is 78.5 out of 100, which is the career change band. That accounts for both how much is missing and how specialised those skills are.
How this record was compiled
Both occupations are taken from ESCO, which lists the skills and knowledge each occupation is expected to have and marks every one required or optional. Nothing here is a prediction about hiring, and nothing here knows that a particular employer wants a particular certificate. Treat Table 3 as a starting point for your own research rather than a syllabus. The full method states what these figures can and cannot tell you.