Understanding Credits
by Troy DeVolld
Prompted by a recent discussion with Andy Dehnart at realityblurred.com, here’s the key to understanding credits in reality television: Stop trying to make sense of them and start relying on context in relationship to the credits as a whole if you want to understand who’s who.
When you see nine Executive Producers listed on a show, a few could be network execs overseeing the show, a few could be owners or execs at the production company, and still others could be showrunners or even talent and their managers.
The difference between a Co-Executive Producer and a Supervising Producer? Sometimes none. A show may have one or the other or both (in which case the Supervising Producer is likely supporting the Co-EP), and each title can stand without the other. I’m aware of a few companies that don’t issue Co-EP credits for some reason, so the Supervising Producer is overseeing some part of production and/or post and reporting to an EP.