Set Designer

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Work Tasks

• Design sets for plays and movies
• Meet with producers to plan the number of scenes, production budget, and schedule
• Make detailed drawings of sets for each scene
• Determine what set is needed and when, and who will move it
• Work for theater, opera and dance companies, motion picture or TV companies, design firms, or advertising companies
• Work with scripts, sketches and drawings, rough drafts, sets, signs, props, and scenic effects, storyboards, scale models of sets, budgets and schedules, and Computer-Aided Design (CAD) programs

Salary, Size & Growth

• $50,000 average per year ($24.00 per hour)
• A small occupation (8,100 workers in 2010)
• Expected to grow moderately (1.7% per year)

Education/Training

• Minimum for Entry: A 4-year degree in an area of design, such as theatrical, plus a portfolio of the artist's best works
• Employers Prefer: A master's degree in fine art, plus a portfolio of the artist's best works
• Skills/Courses: College courses include computer-aided design (CAD) and other art related subjects.