Career change as a music producer

Career change paths

• Head of a cultural center

  Also: Cultural manager

  With on-the-job trainingPromotion

  As head of a cultural center or as a cultural manager at theaters, festivals or municipalities, you plan the program, finances and staff.

  What you bring:

  You have planned productions, led teams and been responsible for budgets.

  How to get there:

  Cultural organizations and municipalities advertise such positions and look for leadership experience. Further training in cultural management alongside work, lasting a few months, helps.*

  * No guarantee of accuracy.

  Physically light

  €4,445gross per monthMedian salary

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• Event manager

  Also: Event director

  With on-the-job training

  As an event manager or event director, you plan and lead company events, trade fairs and conferences.

  What you bring:

  You can coordinate the workflows, technology, staff and deadlines of a production and stay calm when things go wrong.

  How to get there:

  Agencies and companies train production people from film and stage. Courses on assembly venue regulations (Versammlungsstättenrecht) and event safety take a few days.*

  * No guarantee of accuracy.

  Often at weekendsLots of contact with people

  €4,165gross per monthMedian salary

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• Corporate video producer

  Also: Video content officer in corporate communications

  With on-the-job training

  In the communications of companies, authorities or associations, you produce videos, podcasts and livestreams for internal and external channels.

  What you bring:

  You can tell stories in pictures and carry out shoots from the concept to the edit.

  How to get there:

  Companies hire film and radio people directly and train them in the topics and approval procedures. Working hours are usually more regular than in productions.*

  * No guarantee of accuracy.

  Mostly no weekendsFixed daytime hoursLittle customer contact
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• Instructor at a media academy

  Also: Film and video instructor at a private vocational school

  With on-the-job training

  At media academies and film and vocational schools, you teach future media designers and film professionals in practice and theory.

  What you bring:

  You know camera, lighting, sound, editing and directing from many productions and can show the craft vividly.

  How to get there:

  Private schools and academies hire experienced practitioners as instructors, often on a freelance basis. At state vocational schools, you usually need a teaching qualification for this. To train apprentices in a company, you also need the trainer aptitude certificate (Ausbildereignung).*

  * No guarantee of accuracy.

  Mostly no weekendsFixed daytime hoursPhysically light

  €5,140gross per monthMedian salary

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• Motion designer

  Also: Media designer for moving images

  With on-the-job training

  As a motion designer, you design animated graphics, explainer videos and moving images for agencies, broadcasters and companies.

  What you bring:

  You think in images, cuts and rhythm and know editing and effects software.

  How to get there:

  A portfolio of your work is decisive. Courses for software such as After Effects or Cinema 4D take a few weeks. You can work freelance.*

  * No guarantee of accuracy.

  Mostly no weekendsFixed daytime hoursPhysically lightIn an officeHome office possible

  €4,000gross per monthMedian salary

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• Presentation trainer

  Also: Trainer for appearing on camera

  With on-the-job training

  As a trainer, you coach managers, teachers and specialists for presentations, video messages and appearances.

  What you bring:

  You know how people come across in front of a camera and an audience and how to lead them to a good performance.

  How to get there:

  Trainers usually work freelance or for training providers. A trainer course of a few weeks and first references make the start easier.*

  * No guarantee of accuracy.

  Mostly no weekendsFixed daytime hoursPhysically lightLots of contact with people

  €5,254gross per monthMedian salary

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• Project manager

  Also: Project lead in the communications industry

  With on-the-job training

  In agencies, companies or publishers, you lead projects from planning to final sign-off and coordinate internal and external stakeholders.

  What you bring:

  As a producer, you have managed budgets, schedules, contracts and large teams, which is classic project management.

  How to get there:

  Agencies and companies train production people in their procedures. A project management certificate, for example from IPMA or PMI, makes the switch easier.*

  * No guarantee of accuracy.

  Mostly no weekendsFixed daytime hoursPhysically lightLots of contact with peopleIn an officeHome office possible

  €5,850gross per monthMedian salary

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• Theater educator

  Also: Performing arts teacher

  With further training

  As a theater educator, you work with amateurs on their own plays at theaters, schools, youth centers or in adult education.

  What you bring:

  You can develop scenes, lead people on stage and bring groups to a result.

  How to get there:

  Further training to become a theater educator according to the standards of the Federal Association for Theater Education (Bundesverband Theaterpädagogik) comprises at least 1,700 teaching units, and the duration depends on the institute. With directing experience, you can take on projects on a fee basis even before that. Permanent positions exist, for example, at theaters.*

  * No guarantee of accuracy.

  Fixed daytime hoursLots of contact with people

  €3,750gross per monthMedian salary

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Salary: median of all full-time employees in the job, gross per month excluding special payments, as of April 2025. Half earn more, half earn less. Source: Federal Statistical Office of Germany (Destatis), table 62361-0030, license dl-de/by-2-0. Assigned to the jobs by quereinsteiger.de. No guarantee of accuracy.