Video and motion picture director to assistant video and motion picture director
A video and motion picture director already meets 28% of what the assistant video and motion picture director role asks for. The move turns on 9 required skills not yet in the profile.
65.6/ 100
1 How much of what an assistant video and motion picture director is expected to do is already part of a video and motion picture director’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 assistant video and motion picture director role is recorded as needing, required and optional together. What these numbers mean.
Why this move works
An assistant video and motion picture director role treats 3 of its required skills as things a video and motion picture director already does. You would walk in with these on day one.
- coordinate rehearsals
- film production process
- manage budgets
What stands in the way is 9 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 9 skills that carry over, these are the ones fewest other occupations ask for. An assistant video and motion picture director role needs them, and most people applying for one will not have them already. This is the part of a video and motion picture director background worth leading with.
- already held coordinate rehearsals management skills
- already held attend read-through communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held liaise with event sponsors communication, collaboration and creativity
- already held cinematography arts and humanities
- already held audiovisual equipment arts and humanities
- already held develop drama production process communication, collaboration and creativity
All 9 carried skills, including the 3 the assistant video and motion picture director role treats as required.
Table 3 · What you may need to learn
The 20 missing skills fall into 5 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 develop project schedule required
- still to learn apply organisational techniques required
- still to learn coordinate transportation required
- still to learn handle paperwork required
- still to learn manage staff required
- optional, not held fix meetings optional
- optional, not held recruit personnel optional
- still to learn consult with production director required
- still to learn collaborate with a technical staff in artistic productions required
- optional, not held create storyboards optional
- optional, not held present storyboard optional
- optional, not held purchase props optional
- optional, not held liaise with financiers optional
- optional, not held write work-related reports optional
- still to learn analyse goal progress required
- optional, not held search for a suitable filming location optional
- optional, not held calculate production costs optional
- still to learn apply company policies required
- optional, not held content marketing strategy optional
- optional, not held copyright legislation optional
Table 4 · Where to start
The 3 entries an assistant video and motion picture director role is least likely to hire without. The ordering is computed from the skill data, not from what pays.
- 01 consult with production director practise this
- 02 develop project schedule practise this
- 03 analyse goal progress practise this
Each entry opens a course search for that skill. Career Overlap earns nothing from these links.
Appendix · The rest of the record
All 9 skills that carry over
- already held coordinate rehearsals skill
- already held film production process knowledge
- already held manage budgets skill
- already held attend read-through skill
- already held audiovisual equipment knowledge
- already held cinematography knowledge
- already held develop drama production process skill
- already held ensure visual quality of the set skill
- already held liaise with event sponsors skill
11 supplementary skills, helpful but not required
- optional, not held create storyboards optional
- optional, not held present storyboard optional
- optional, not held purchase props optional
- optional, not held search for a suitable filming location optional
- optional, not held calculate production costs optional
- optional, not held content marketing strategy optional
- optional, not held copyright legislation optional
- optional, not held fix meetings optional
- optional, not held liaise with financiers optional
- optional, not held recruit personnel optional
- optional, not held write work-related reports optional
35 held skills the assistant video and motion picture director role does not ask for
- not needed by the target role adapt a script skill
- not needed by the target role adapt designers’ work to the performance venue skill
- not needed by the target role adapt to type of media skill
- not needed by the target role analyse a script skill
- not needed by the target role assess production needs to plan a production schedule skill
- not needed by the target role attend rehearsals skill
- not needed by the target role carry out auditions skill
- not needed by the target role create production schedules skill
- not needed by the target role create rough cut skill
- not needed by the target role design lighting skill
- not needed by the target role develop creative ideas skill
- not needed by the target role edit digital moving images skill
- not needed by the target role edit recorded sound skill
- not needed by the target role finish project within budget skill
- not needed by the target role follow work schedule skill
- not needed by the target role help set rehearsal schedule skill
- not needed by the target role hire human resources skill
- not needed by the target role lead cast and crew skill
- not needed by the target role lighting techniques knowledge
- not needed by the target role operate a camera skill
- not needed by the target role organise rehearsals skill
- not needed by the target role perform video editing skill
- not needed by the target role photography knowledge
- not needed by the target role set up cameras skill
- not needed by the target role study media sources skill
- not needed by the target role study relationships between characters skill
- not needed by the target role supervise camera crew skill
- not needed by the target role supervise script preparation skill
- not needed by the target role supervise sound production skill
- not needed by the target role tell a story skill
- not needed by the target role watch scenes skill
- not needed by the target role work with motion picture editing team skill
- not needed by the target role work with playwrights skill
- not needed by the target role work with pre-production team skill
- not needed by the target role work with the director of photography skill
2 gaps that are knowledge rather than practice
Knowledge gaps usually close through study. Practical skill gaps usually need something you can point at.
- optional, not held content marketing strategy optional
- optional, not held copyright legislation optional
Other moves recorded from video and motion picture director
- script supervisor 62% covered · moderate
- camera operator 44% covered · substantial
- stop-motion animator 43% covered · moderate
- stage director 40% covered · substantial
- stand-in 38% covered · substantial
- storyboard artist 33% covered · substantial
- set buyer 32% covered · substantial
- production designer 31% covered · substantial
Common questions about this move
Can a video and motion picture director become an assistant video and motion picture director?
Yes, and it is a substantial move. A video and motion picture director already covers 28% of what an assistant video and motion picture director is expected to do: 9 skills carry over, 3 of which the assistant video and motion picture director role treats as required.
What skills does a video and motion picture director need to become an assistant video and motion picture director?
9 required skills are missing, plus 11 optional ones. They fall into 5 areas of the ESCO skill hierarchy, led by management skills. The single most important is consult with production director.
How hard is the move from video and motion picture director to assistant video and motion picture director?
Its learning distance is 65.6 out of 100, which is the substantial 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.