Unit Production Manager (UPM)

The unit production manager (UPM) is the production's chief operating officer. Where the line producer sets the budget and overall plan, the UPM executes it daily: approving purchase orders, managing vendor deals, processing crew contracts, tracking cost reports against the budget, and solving the endless logistics a shoot generates.

On many productions the line producer and UPM are the same person wearing two hats (the UPM title is the one recognized by the Directors Guild, which also covers UPMs). On larger shows they split: the line producer faces the financiers and the big picture; the UPM faces the crew, the vendors, and today's problems.

The UPM's scoreboard is the cost report — the weekly document comparing money spent and committed against budget, line by line. When a production is "over" or "under," it's the cost report saying so, and it's the UPM who has to explain why and find the offsetting savings.

For writers and emerging producers, the UPM is a reminder that films are delivered by administration as much as inspiration. When your project reaches the stage of needing real production management, our concierge desk can help you scope what that team looks like at your budget tier.