Animation Director

Who We Are

We are creators who live to be original.

For the past two decades, we've been building a playground for the creation of original work. A place where a diverse collective of artists, thinkers and makers can express themselves, be bold, and experiment freely. A place where brands come to be authentic, challenge conformity and stand out from the crowd.

We're not simply a design studio, production company, or visual effects house. We're a modern creative company. We strategize, we ideate, we design, we create, we make. We go wherever our pursuit of originality takes us.

To be original requires a new school of thought. We are Brand New School.

What We're Looking for

Leading design and creative studio, Brand New School is seeking an Animation Director (2D) for a full-time hybrid role at our LA studio. We are looking for someone who has mastered 2D animation (After Effects and motion design), has a passion for storytelling, and knows how to mentor others. Knowledge of Cinema4D is a bonus, as it's a tool used in addition to our Maya pipeline. This means you've developed a strong personal style but are still capable of working outside of your wheelhouse. You're a clear and easy communicator, great manager of projects and people, has a defined creative process, and is willing to take a leadership role in the department.

Our team is creative, energetic, widely respected and full of talented, intelligent artists. With ~60 employees across the United States, we are a tight community with one common goal - making great work.

Responsibilities

• Lead, manage, and work closely with 2D animation teams.
• Mentor and coach younger animators while also cultivating a sense of community across departments.
• Continue improving processes and ensuring quality output.
• Work with design teams to accomplish creative goal of a project and its team.
• Partner with our Maya CG Supervisor on projects leveraging Cinema4D.
• Balance the demands of producing exceptional work while also satisfying the needs of our clients.
• Manage multiple projects in a collaborative and creative environment.
• Collaborate with producers and creative directors to help resource jobs, plan production pipelines, manage workflow and manage deadlines.
• Be an active participant and contribute to the creative culture of the studio.

Qualifications

• Mastery of Adobe Suite software, especially After Effects, Photoshop, and Illustrator.
• Adobe Animate, Toon Boom, TVPaint, and 3D animation skills are a plus but not a mandate.
• Ability to 2D character animate—via cel animation, character rigging, shape layers.
• Mastery of motion-graphics style animation effects.
• Animation, Design, or related degree, along with relevant work experience.
• Minimum 8 years experience, with at least 3 years as a senior animator.
• Deep familiarity with workflow, saving and rendering best practices.
• Familiar working on projects for all major content platforms.
• Know how to take creative direction, respond to feedback in a timely manner and be respectful of project deadlines.

Benefits

• Competitive salary
• Health, dental, vision, life and disability insurance
• One Medical account
• Company sponsored continued education
• Peer bonus system
• Generous PTO / sick leave
• Company administered 401(k) plan
• Peloton digital membership (12 month)
Dog friendly work environment

Salary Range

$145,000 - $195,000

Brand New School attracts a team with unique skillsets and varying levels of experience. Therefore, the salary range provided is broad and will be refined during the interview process.