So I've been meaning to do a post about this for a while now but I've always found more "fun" things to write about instead. Then I came across this great reply by Alex Chu from MBAapply buried in a Business School Barrage thread ( Harvard versus Stanford for Entertainment industry) that may or may not have been started by a high school kid. Note: the following is NOT my work. I will add some comments to the end of the post from my personal experience working for one of the major studios in the third bucket (Corporate).
From @MBAApply" :
Types of Jobs in the Entertainment Industry
There are essentially three kinds of jobs in the industry: performance, production, and corporate.
Careers as a Performer
PERFORMANCE: actors, dancers, musicians/singers, etc. BFA or MFA programs. Julliard, Yale School of Drama, Berklee (music), The New School (The Actors Studio), Tisch (NYU), North Carolina, and so forth. And in the UK, you have schools like RADA. Most grads don't end up making a full-time living as performers, but the credential allows them to teach or set up their own vocational schools (which can make more $$$ than you may initially think).
Entertainment Production Jobs
PRODUCTION: producers, directors, editors, writers, cinematographers, grips, gaffers, colorists, production designers, costume, location scouts, and so forth. This is where film schools come in - BFA or MFA programs. Top schools are USC, NYU, UCLA, North Carolina, Florida, Columbia, Emerson, and so forth. These are generalist programs that teach students all different aspects of the production process. Typical career path of a graduate is freelancing in whatever projects they can get in whatever capacity starting as interns/assistants (most recent grads would've done a hodge podge of gigs from editing to grip to camera op to being a production assistant) - and over time, they tend to specialize based on what they keep on getting hired for and what they're good at. For VFX, you also have grads coming out of art schools.
Jobs in the Corporate Side of the Entertainment Industry
CORPORATE: marketing, corporate finance, treasury/accounting, HR, investor relations, corp development, and so forth. These are where MBAs do get hired. The thing is, these jobs are no different than any Fortune 500 job, since you're in a corporate office environment - your job isn't to be on a film set. Your job is really no different than any other corporate job - generating reports and presentations and spreadsheets. It's a stable job, but you're pretty removed from anything creative or anything to do with production. The folks in these positions tend to be a hodgepodge of educational backgrounds: from film school to MBAs to CPAs to JDs. Again, it's in this tiny part of the industry (corporate) where you'll find MBAs. Finally, what's also in here are the agencies: traditionally many of them are lawyers since the work is highly contract driven; it's more apprenticeship driven than credentials - i.e. you have to start as a lowly assistant no matter your background and work your way up.
Benefits of Attending USC
To be blunt, if you're really interested in the business side of entertainment, you really should aim for an MFA at a top film school - the biggest one being USC.
A lot of folks knock USC Film School for being short on substance and long on network, but that's what it's set up to be. The biggest most powerful school alumni network in the industry by far is USC. Think of USC in the entertainment industry like HBS is to the business world. It churns out a lot of grads that end up in every nook and cranny of the industry.
If you're looking to be a producer, USC has the Stark program (an MFA for aspiring producers) as well as its regular MFA. Other schools to look at are NYU and UCLA, in that order, especially if you're looking at the commercial and business side of things. If it's more about being a great director with a unique voice, I'd say NYU has that edge. Or another way to put it: USC is strongest in industry brand/contacts/production, NYU for film directing, and UCLA for writing.
Importance of Networking in the Media/Entertainment Industry
The media/entertainment industry is even more driven by network, since it's project-based (so many folks make a living by freelancing from one gig to the next, with their respective guild or union providing the kinds of health/pension/fringe benefits one would normally get working as an employee at a firm). As such, you hunt for work based on referrals. And given that MBAs are virtually non-existent in many parts of the industry (and even in the corporate bubble, it's not like Wall Street, consulting or Silicon Valley where there's tons of MBAs) - you will have a minimal network to draw upon compared to those who went to film school.
Finally, if you're looking for a steady income or to become rich, don't bother working in entertainment. You will make more money in tech, Wall Street or any other industry with far less effort and uncertainty."
(end of comments from @MBAApply" )
Personal Insights on Working in the Entertainment Industry
There are some awesome nuggets in there for anyone looking to work for the studios. There are VERY few positions where you can latch onto anything creativity related nowadays. I've seen few job postings here and there from some smaller studios where your job entails spreading comps for similar movies/talent, then an investment decision has to be made based on your analysis. Again, you're not really working with much creativity/talent, but it's closer than any other job elsewhere in the studio. There are also positions for financial analysts for productions, but it's mostly accounting and budgeting based rather than financial analysis related.
I can attest the pay thing as well; most can make more chedda elsewhere. They are either attracted by the sexiness of working in entertainment, or they like the stable aspect of the job of working for a big F500 company (and a tiny sliver: really love the company and what it stands for!). I can tell you it's not as glam as it looks from the outside but it still has its perks here and there. I'm not trying to dissuade you from joining a major media company but you do have to take things with a grain of salt!
So...what do you guys think about a corporate job in entertainment?
Wow, this is quite a post. I'll take a crack at responding to it.
First off, I really think that there are two forces at work which are simultaneously holding the entertainment industry back, but at the same time, other things that are helping it along. In terms of wealth disparity, the United States is at an all time high. I really do believe that entertainment, shows like American Idol and game shows and whatnot are clear exhibits of the American dream that fools and works to pacify Americans into not realizing what goes on around them. We have people these that's that watch more television than they do read books, and I really think that due to Americans needing an ever greater source of escapism, the entertainment industry will continue to grow.
At the same time, file sharing is a big problem. I don't think government or industry is ever really going to successfully pass a law that will effectively prevent file sharing, because philosophically speaking art is really a universal idea, and human beings feel entitled to it. I don't know a single fucking person who buys music.
Going forward, I think I overall see good things for the corporate sector of entertainment. I had a friend who was a writer a few years back, then went to go get his MBA, and is now doing some corporate job at ABC. It's really not as glamourous as it seems, and to be honest there isn't a whole lot of creativity anymore- it's mostly about what will turn the biggest profit. That's why you have really stereotypical shows like How I met your mother (basically romantic comedies) as the driving force in the industry, rather than have true creativity and innovation in television. I think shows like breaking bad have managed to break the mold somewhat (and that's why it succeeds), but I disagree with your notion partially when you say that the "sexiness" of the industry is what keeps people- entertainment these days is rather formulaic.
I think as well it's fair to note that it can be difficult to be promoted in this kind of industry. Most of what I am saying is speculation on my part, but I feel like promotion and delegation of responsibility really comes from how much the execs like you, rather than how much work you put in or how smart or talented you are. While in banking, sucking up to the MD can have it's benefits, I feel like in entertainment, performance is much more subjective, and perhaps as a male working in the industry, you'd be at a disadvantage to the hot babes who can sleep with producers or executives in order to get a promotion.
All in all, it's probably an occasionally fun industry to work in, but I don't think what it produces is art any more. Music, television... it all feels quite formulaic, and to be honest I don't even like art anyway. So it's not for me
Sorry if this post is way too fucking tangential. I struggled with a response
MR,
SBed! Great post. Thanks for taking the time to respond. I'm actually surprised at the lack of responses but your reply made up for it! :) That was in-depth.
It definitely isn't as glamorous as I thought it would be. But the products I'm peddling sure is more interesting than diapers or O&G! My department (finance) is all male at this point so I don't quite see the disadvantage yet, but I do see all the "hot babes" walking around all the time (assuming they're all in marketing or some sorts...) :)
I disagree about the formulaic thing somewhat. TV right now is pretty good - The Wire, Game of Thrones, Breaking Bad. I think it comes and goes.
Overall, great post.
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