A Look at Video Games Credit Definitions for New Media Producers

Click to view the Video Games Credit Definitions

While film and television have enjoyed official accreditation for decades, new media producers have been the new kids on the block; not until now have their credits had the official endorsement of the Producers Guild of America. On April 5, 2010, the PGA’s Board of Directors officially ratified a clearly defined set of job descriptions and guidelines covering producing titles in new media. The result of three years of research and careful drafting by the PGA’s New Media Council, these new credit guidelines cover a variety of different and discrete new media platforms.  Over the course of the coming weeks and months, we’ll be highlighting the various platforms represented by the New Media Council, and the job definitions for each.  This week, we are proud to present the Guild’s job definitions for members of the producing team for video games. 

New media producers are in the vanguard of storytelling via digital platforms and are proud to have the Producers Guild’s acknowledgment of the importance of their contribution to entertainment. These guidelines, like those for film and television credits, set an important stake in the ground, allowing for consistent and fair accreditation in new media across all platforms. Credits represent and reflect the body of work, the reputation, and the creative personality of any accredited producer. With objective and consistent credit standards, new media producers can present themselves more effectively to potential employers, and appropriately recognize the work of their teams on projects they oversee. And of course, proper accreditation serves as an essential yardstick for membership in the Producers Guild.

This groundbreaking work represents yet another phase in the development of new media as art and commerce. No longer will new media platforms utilize a "Wild West” mentality when it comes to credits, inventing new credits one day and then discarding them the next. As the industry continues to embrace digital platforms, not only as marketing and social networking tools, but as storytelling vehicles unto themselves, we are proud to see the PGA taking a leadership role in recognizing and codifying these essential contributions.

We are well into the new century. The Producers Guild of America continues, like so many of its members, to look forward. Storytelling is, after all, agnostic of platform; the PGA recognizes and celebrates all of it, continuing to keep its eyes on the horizon.