Thumbnail Concept Artist

9 Minutes ago • 3 Years + • $54,080 PA - $60,320 PA

Concept Art

Job Description

CatFace is seeking a passionate and experienced YouTube Thumbnail Concept Artist to join their creative team. This role involves ideating and designing compelling, click-worthy thumbnail concepts that instantly capture attention and drive audience engagement for the wildly popular YouTube channel 'Aphmau'. The artist will create powerful visual narratives reflecting video tone, humor, and story, often under tight deadlines, with a strong focus on 2D design, composition, character posing, lighting, and emotion.

Good To Have:

Experience with chibi, cute chic, and/or emotionally expressive art styles.
Experience with A/B testing and performance-driven creative work.
Occasionally assist with additional branding assets (e.g. banners, overlays, or key art).
Occasionally assist with final polished compositions.

Must Have:

Develop thumbnail concepts conveying emotion, story, or hook.
Work closely with executives, video leads, and artists.
Collaborate on iterative design feedback.
Research and implement current YouTube and social media trends.
Deliver sketch thumbnails for A/B testing.
Work through ambiguity, take creative ownership, and self-manage tasks to meet fast-moving deadlines.
Present work clearly during reviews.
3+ years of experience in concept art, illustration, graphic design, or visual production.
Strong portfolio showcasing eye-catching YouTube/social media thumbnails or narrative-driven artwork.
Deep familiarity with YouTube visual culture and understanding of clickable thumbnails.
Mastery of composition, color, lighting, and typography for digital platforms.
High adaptability to rapid-fire content needs and evolving trends.
Excellent communication, organization, and time management skills.
Independent, proactive, and capable of managing multiple priorities under tight deadlines.

Perks:

Excellent Medical, Dental and Vision health benefits
401(k) contribution
Flexible time off
Lunch, snacks and drinks provided in the office
Pets in the office once a month
Onsite fitness center
Learning Stipend
Relocation assistance for those coming from outside Austin.

Add these skills to join the top 1% applicants for this job

team-management

timeline-management

communication

character-design

concept-art

graphics-design

game-texts

alphabeta-testing

lighting-shading

composition

CatFace is a leading merchandise and digital entertainment company behind the wildly popular YouTube channel “Aphmau,” a top MINECRAFT creator with over 25 million subscribers and an average of 350 million monthly views. In addition to its massive online presence, CatFace is also the creator of the beloved “MeeMeows” line of cat plushies and related merchandise, available at major retailers including Walmart, Target, Amazon, Claire’s, and more.

Visit our Youtube Channels:

https://www.youtube.com/aphmaugaming

Visit our websites:

www.aphmeow.com
www.catface.com

Our socials:

Instagram: @aphmeow_store

About the Job

CatFace is seeking a passionate and experienced YouTube Thumbnail Concept Artist to join our growing creative team. This is an exciting opportunity for a visual storyteller with a deep understanding of internet culture, who can create compelling, click-worthy thumbnail concepts that instantly capture attention and drive audience engagement.

As part of our fast-paced content team, you will ideate and design powerful visual narratives that reflect the tone, humor, and story of our videos—often within tight timelines. This role is ideal for an artist with a strong foundation in 2D design and an exceptional eye for composition, character posing, lighting, and emotion. Our perfect candidate thrives in a collaborative environment, reacts quickly to digital trends, and adapts creatively to shifting styles and formats.

A portfolio review and presentation will be required at the time of the interview. If a resume is approved, an art challenge will follow

What You'll Do

Develop thumbnail concepts that clearly convey the emotion, story, or hook of a video within a single image.
Work closely with executives, video leads, and other artists to understand the content and tailor visuals that boost performance and viewer retention.
Collaborate on iterative design feedback to ensure thumbnails meet aesthetic and analytical goals.
Research and implement current YouTube and social media trends to keep visuals fresh, bold, and culturally relevant.
Deliver sketch thumbnails for A/B testing and other optimization experiments
Occasionally assist with additional branding assets (e.g. banners, overlays, or key art) when needed.
Occasionally assist with final polished compositions
Work through ambiguity, take creative ownership, and self-manage tasks to meet fast-moving deadlines.
Present your work clearly during reviews and contribute to a culture of feedback and improvement.

What We're Looking For

3+ years of experience in concept art, illustration, graphic design, or related visual production roles.
Strong portfolio showcasing eye-catching YouTube or social media thumbnails, illustrations, or relevant narrative-driven artwork.
Deep familiarity with YouTube visual culture and proven understanding of what makes a thumbnail clickable.
Mastery of composition, color, lighting, and typography for digital platforms.
Experience with chibi, cute chic, and/or emotionally expressive art styles a strong plus.
High adaptability to rapid-fire content needs and ever-evolving trends.
Excellent communication, organization, and time management skills.
Independent, proactive, and capable of managing multiple priorities under tight deadlines
Experience with A/B testing and performance-driven creative work is a bonus.