Art Director- Media

The Art Director: Media plays a key leadership role in shaping and delivering bold, cohesive design solutions within physical environments for a wide range of interdisciplinary projects. This position requires deep expertise in graphic design, with a strong focus on both linear and interactive media. Exceptional presentation skills and significant client engagement experience are essential.

Part of the Visual Experience Design (VXD) discipline, the Art Director: Media works closely with Creative Technology and Media teams. Reporting to the Director of VXD and partnering with project Creative Directors, this role helps define and drive the creative vision, mentors designers, and ensures alignment across teams.

Art Directors are critical in guiding teams toward innovative, integrated experiential design systems throughout all project phases and ensuring complete delivery of designs for linear and interactive media.

Requirements:

• Degree in Graphic Design or equivalent experience.
• Minimum 3+ years in the role of Art Director as described above; minimum 8 years total of relevant design experience.
• Travel required (domestic and global).
• Must be able to work in our New York Studio as needed- Flexible.
• Must be eligible to work in the United States
• Must reside in NY/NJ/CT/DC/VA or MD
• Please include a cover letter and link to portfolio in your application

Responsibilities

• Champion studio values, collaborative culture, and design process.
• Lead with a rigorous design process that embraces experimentation, iteration, and challenges conventions.
• Design with empathy and ensure accessibility in physical environments.
• Clearly communicate design concepts to teams and clients.
• Inspire teams with innovative, media-rich design solutions.
• Translate project strategies into actionable design direction in partnership with project leads.
• Collaborate closely with Creative Directors to establish and implement unified aesthetics across phases of work and across disciplines.
• Work cross-functionally with VXD, Media, Physical Design, Creative Technology, and Content teams while contributing hands-on design work.
• Coordinate design dependencies, keeping budget, spec, and production constraints in mind.
• Provide clear direction to teams (in collaboration with Discipline Directors) on the definition of complete and “production-ready” media design deliverables.
• Integrate seamlessly into cross-disciplinary standards and practices, contributing process improvements where possible.
• Flag challenges early and propose timely, thoughtful solutions.
• Set and communicate clear time estimates and expectations for yourself and others.
• Manage multiple projects and consistently meet deadlines.
• Help define project workflows and participate in design reviews and working sessions.
• Mentor and support team members with actionable feedback.
• Contribute to studio-wide best practices and help evolve department standards.
• Stay actively engaged in professional development.

Skills and Qualifications

• Proactive, self-motivated, and comfortable working in fluid, collaborative environments.
• Strong communicator with excellent verbal, written, and presentation skills.
• Confident client presence and leadership ability.
• Highly organized with excellent time and project management skills; strong prioritization and delegation ability.
• Exceptional design sensibility with strong conceptual thinking, typography, and layout skills.
• Skilled in quickly sketching and iterating design ideas.
• Strong portfolio demonstrating leadership in media-rich, spatial design projects.
• Expertise in building visual identities, cohesive cross-disciplinary design systems, and clear guideline documents.
• Comfortable balancing high-level vision across workstreams with direct design contributions.
• Fluent in Adobe Creative Suite (InDesign, Photoshop, Illustrator), Figma, Google Slides and Keynote.
• Strong Photoshop skills for compositing and environmental renderings.
• Experience with media integration:
• Interactive Media: Strong understanding; ability to collaborate with Creative Tech, software development and UX/UI teams (direct design skills a plus).
• Linear Media: Strong understanding; ability to collaborate with motion/media teams (design skills in animation/editing/sound a plus).
• Skills in 2D/3D animation; Rhino, Cinema 4D, or other 3D tools preferred.
• Experienced using AI tools, Airtable (or similar), and Miro.

Salary: 100K to 130K (commensurate with experience)

Local Projects offers to its Full-Time staff Health/Dental/Vision, FSA, 401k, access to short-term and Long Term Disability Insurance and Life Insurance, as well as a generous PTO package.

Local Projects is committed to fostering a diverse, equitable, and inclusive workforce where everyone is valued and respected. A range of perspectives strengthens our collaboration and enhances the experiences we create together.

We welcome applications from all qualified candidates, including those from historically underrepresented communities, as we strive to ensure our workplace reflects a variety of backgrounds, experiences, and perspectives.

Local Projects is an Equal Opportunity Employer and does not discriminate based on sex, age, race, color, creed, national origin, alienage, religion, marital status, pregnancy, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, disability, genetic information, citizenship, veteran or military status, or any other characteristic protected by law. All applicants will be considered for employment without regard to legally protected characteristics.