Producers Guild of America

The Producers Guild of America (PGA) is a 501(c)(6) trade association representing the interests of television producers, film producers and emerging media producers in the United States. The PGA's membership includes over 8,400 members of the producing establishment worldwide.

The Producers Guild of America offers several benefits to its members, including seminars and mentoring programs, and entrance to special screenings of movies during Oscar season.

The PGA traces its roots back to the merger of the Screen Producers Guild and the Television Producers Guild in 1962, under Walter Mirisch's leadership. The organization's Golden Laurel Awards, later renamed the Producers Guild of America Awards, began in 1990 and became significant predictors of Oscar success.

Over time, the PGA expanded its influence, establishing councils for various production branches, regional chapters like PGA East in New York, and addressing emerging media with the New Media Council in 2002. In 2012, the organization introduced a certification mark allowing producers to signify their significant contributions to a production. The PGA has also taken proactive measures to combat sexual harassment in the industry, establishing guidelines, a task force, and implementing mandatory anti-harassment training. Following the Harvey Weinstein scandal, the PGA expelled him from the organization.

The Producers Guild of America began as two separate organizations, with the Screen Producers Guild being formed on May 16, 1950. Its first president was William Perlberg. In 1957, television producers followed suit, forming the Television Producers Guild, with Ben Brady as its first president. These merged in 1962 to form the PGA under producer Walter Mirisch. Subsequent Presidents of the PGA have included Stanley Rubin, Leonard B. Stern, Kathleen Kennedy, Marshall Herskovitz, and the teams of Hawk Koch / Mark Gordon, and Gary Lucchesi / Lori McCreary.

The Golden Laurel Awards (subsequently renamed the Producers Guild of America Awards, a.k.a. PGA Awards) were first held in 1990, establishing the Guild Awards as one of the bellwethers for the Academy Awards. 20 of the 29 winners of the Producers Guild of America Award for Best Theatrical Motion Picture have gone on to win the Academy Award for Best Picture.

The Producers Guild of America's awards show was originally established in 1990 as the Golden Laurel Awards, created by PGA Treasurer Joel Freeman, Diane Robison, Terrie Frankel, Bernard Wiesen, and Charles B. FitzSimons with the support of Guild President Leonard B. Stern, in order to honor the visionaries who produce and execute motion picture and television product. The ceremony has been hosted each year by celebrity host/presenters, including Ronald Reagan, Ted Turner, Garry Marshall, Jack Lemmon, James Earl Jones, Grant Tinker, Michael Douglas, Walter Matthau, Shirley MacLaine, Marlo Thomas, Kevin Spacey, Mark Wahlberg, Kerry Washington, Anne Hathaway, Steve Carell, Neil Patrick Harris, and Jennifer Lawrence, among others.

In 2001, the Producers Guild of America merged with the American Association of Producers (AAP), enabling the Guild to represent all members of the producing team. Since that time, the Guild has been composed of three Councils: The Producers Council (representing producers, executive producers and co-producers), the AP Council (representing associate producers, production managers, production supervisors, segment and field producers, production coordinators, visual effects producers, and post-production staff) and the New Media Council.