THE PRODUCER
On set, a producer is mother hen, confidante and referee. All the creative work has been done beforehand. I love the casting, for example, and working with the scriptwriter and director to build up the layers of story and character, to arrive at some sense of tone and atmosphere.
Once filming starts, though, my role is to ensure things run smoothly. So, I massage fragile egos, hand out sun cream or umbrellas as required and try to judge the mood of the team. It’s what makes me a good producer, and why I’m sent in to troubleshoot on long-running series if things get fraught.
is one of those series. It’s a sitcom set in a north Devon ice-cream parlour, and it’s rather good:
