Director, Design

5 Months ago • 12 Years + • Graphic Design • $110,000 PA - $140,000 PA

Job Summary

Job Description

Illumination is seeking a Director of Design to join their creative marketing team. This role requires a highly skilled designer with a passion for multi-platform storytelling and a keen eye for detail. You will be responsible for developing, pitching, and executing groundbreaking concepts and designs across various mediums, including digital, experiential, partnerships, and consumer products. You will collaborate with writers, directors, and other creatives to bring ideas to life, work with brand partners to create compelling design solutions, and provide clear direction on design elements to ensure alignment with the film's voice and marketing objectives. You will also manage multiple projects and stakeholders, balance creative vision with marketing strategy, and provide ongoing coaching and support for junior staff.
Must have:
  • 12+ years of design experience
  • Experience working on blockbuster films
  • Expertise in Adobe Creative Suite
  • Passion for conceptual design and storytelling
  • Proven track record of creating groundbreaking campaigns
  • Deep immersion in entertainment and pop culture
  • Experience presenting design work to partners
  • Significant leadership experience in design and art direction
  • Diverse background in design for retail, fashion, consumer products, and style guide development
  • Exceptional communication skills for presenting creative concepts
Good to have:
  • Experience working with global IP
  • Experience with integrated partnerships
  • Experience with high-impact designs
Perks:
  • Medical, dental, and vision insurance
  • 401(k)
  • Paid time off
  • Tuition reimbursement

Job Details

Illumination is in search of a Director of Design to join our creative marketing team. We’re looking for an extraordinary designer with fire in their belly—someone with impeccable taste, a passion for multi-platform storytelling, and an intimidating attention to detail.
 
They have experience working with global IP, integrated partnerships, and high-impact designs that demand attention. They’ve wrapped double-decker buses, taken over Times Square, and crafted installations under impossible deadlines. Their portfolio boasts best-in-class case studies and a love for bold, boundary-pushing design, spanning digital, experiential, partnerships, and consumer products.
 
We’re after a Director, Design who loves to get their hands dirty and refuses to settle. Someone who lives for developing, pitching, and executing groundbreaking concepts and designs. They can deliver top-shelf work as both an individual contributor and a cross-functional collaborator. They’re fast, sharp, and get culture.

Responsibilities

    • Be a force for stellar design and craft within the marketing department.
    • Embrace all facets of graphic design from typography to color studies, from logos to layouts, from comps to characters.
    • Collaborate with writers, directors, and other creatives to bring conceptual ideas to life through powerful pitch materials, mock-ups, and references.
    • Play a critical role in concept development for Partnerships & Promotions, generating creative ideas, art direction, and campaign assets.
    • Work with brand partners to identify the most compelling design solutions for digital, advertising, and experiential touchpoints.
    • Partner with vendors and agencies to deliver hardworking campaign assets that connect audiences to our movies in meaningful ways.
    • Provide clear, actionable feedback and direction on design elements from partners to ensure all visual components of our campaign align with the film’s voice and marketing objectives.
    • Confidently communicate design thinking and direction in executive-level meetings and reviews, both internally and externally.
    • Manage multiple projects and stakeholders simultaneously, balancing creative vision with marketing strategy.
    • Ability to self-start in times of uncertainty and work proactively.
    • Provide ongoing coaching, support, and inspiration for junior staff.
    • Build authentic, collaborative relationships that elevate the entire creative marketing team.
    • Strategize how design can address broader business or creative challenges, setting the vision for concept development and execution.
    • Stay up-to-date with trends, cultural shifts, and new influences in the industry.

Qualifications

    • You have 12+ years of design experience leading and collaborating on global marketing campaigns, either in-house or within a studio/agency environment.
    • Bachelor’s degree in Graphic Design.
    • You have theatrical marketing experience working on blockbuster films.
    • You are an expert at Adobe Creative Suite.
    • You are passionate about conceptual design and storytelling, with expertise across various mediums, including digital, social, print, OOH, typography, sizzles, hype reels, and consumer products.
    • You have a proven track record of creating groundbreaking 360° marketing campaigns in partnership with top-tier brands.
    • Your portfolio demonstrates a history of delivering bold, innovative work that stands out in a competitive marketplace.
    • You are deeply immersed in entertainment and pop culture, understanding how content can create emotional and personal connections with audiences.
    • You have experience presenting design work to partners
    • You bring significant leadership experience and deep expertise in design and art direction, viewing design not just as a visual craft but as a conceptual tool for storytelling, building experiences, and shaping brand perception.
    • You have a diverse background in design for retail, fashion, consumer products, and style guide development.
    • You excel at managing a high volume of design reviews without compromising quality.
    • Your exceptional communication skills enable you to present creative concepts to senior leaders and represent the design team effectively in meetings and discussions.
The base salary range for this role is $110,000 - $140,000 per year. We rely on market indicators to determine compensation and an offer will consider various factors including experience, qualifications, skills, and training.  Our comprehensive and competitive benefits package includes medical, dental and vision insurance for employees and their family, 401(k), paid time off, tuition reimbursement and a variety of other perks.


About Illumination
 
Illumination, founded by Chris Meledandri in 2007, is one of the entertainment industry’s leading producers of event-animated films, including Despicable Me—the most successful animated franchise in cinematic history—as well as Dr. Seuss’ The Lorax, Dr. Seuss’ The Grinch and The Secret Life of Pets and Sing films. The 2023 release of Illumination's The Super Mario Bros. Movie has joined the studio library, now comprising three of the top 10 animated films of all time. Illumination’s iconic, beloved franchises—infused with memorable and distinct characters, global appeal and cultural relevance—have grossed more than $9 billion worldwide. Illumination has an exclusive financing and distribution partnership with Universal Pictures.

Illumination is based in Santa Monica, CA and its studio, Illumination Studios Paris, is located in the center of Paris, France.
 
Illumination's policy is to provide equal employment opportunities to all applicants and employees without regard to race, color, religion, creed, gender, gender identity or expression, age, national origin or ancestry, citizenship, disability, sexual orientation, marital status, pregnancy, veteran status, membership in the uniformed services, genetic information, or any other basis protected by applicable law. Illumination will consider for employment qualified applicants with criminal histories in a manner consistent with relevant legal requirements, including the City of Los Angeles Fair Chance Initiative For Hiring Ordinance, where applicable.

Similar Jobs

Virtuos - Senior Technical Director

Virtuos

France (Hybrid)
1 Month ago
Nintendo - Senior Loyalty Marketing Strategist (Bilingual Japanese)

Nintendo

Redmond, Washington, United States (Hybrid)
1 Week ago
Onward Search - Business Development Operations Support

Onward Search

Culver City, California, United States (Hybrid)
6 Days ago
Warner Bros Discovery - Manager, Payroll

Warner Bros Discovery

Masovian Voivodeship, Poland (Hybrid)
4 Months ago
Onward Search - Resource Manager (Agency)

Onward Search

Denver, Colorado, United States (Remote)
1 Week ago
Untold Tales - Graphic Designer

Untold Tales

Wrocław, Lower Silesian Voivodeship, Poland (On-Site)
3 Weeks ago
Focus Entertainment - Senior Print and Digital Graphic Designer

Focus Entertainment

Île-de-France, France (Hybrid)
4 Weeks ago
PAPAYA - Marketing Graphic Designer

PAPAYA

Warsaw, Masovian Voivodeship, Poland (Hybrid)
2 Weeks ago
Critical mass - Group Creative Director

Critical mass

New York, New York, United States (Hybrid)
5 Months ago
SoCheers - Art Director - Design - Mumbai

SoCheers

Mumbai, Maharashtra, India (On-Site)
7 Months ago

Get notifed when new similar jobs are uploaded

Similar Skill Jobs

Tesla - Service Technician Apprenticeship

Tesla

South Holland, Netherlands (On-Site)
2 Months ago
Keywords Studios - Junior AP Accountant

Keywords Studios

Cinisello Balsamo, Lombardy, Italy (Hybrid)
3 Weeks ago
Hawk Eye Innovations - Match Operations Assistant

Hawk Eye Innovations

Stockholm, Stockholm County, Sweden (On-Site)
1 Day ago
Aristocrat Gaming - Order Fulfillment Operator - Production

Aristocrat Gaming

Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain (On-Site)
1 Month ago
Budge Studios - Production Coordinator

Budge Studios

Quebec, Canada (Hybrid)
4 Weeks ago
Mattel  Inc  - American Girl NYC Personal Shopping Assistant

Mattel Inc

New York, New York, United States (On-Site)
3 Weeks ago
Paytm - Accounting - Junior Manager

Paytm

Noida, Uttar Pradesh, India (On-Site)
5 Months ago
NVIDIA - Senior Software Engineer - Build and Deployment Tools

NVIDIA

Bengaluru, Karnataka, India (Hybrid)
3 Months ago
WebFX - Jr. Digital Communications Account Manager

WebFX

Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, United States (On-Site)
6 Months ago
Blazesoft - Investment Analyst

Blazesoft

Canada (On-Site)
1 Year ago

Get notifed when new similar jobs are uploaded

Jobs in Santa Monica, California, United States

Next Level Business Services - Java Developer

Next Level Business Services

San Jose, California, United States (On-Site)
5 Months ago
IGT - Game Design Mathematician

IGT

Las Vegas, Nevada, United States (On-Site)
5 Months ago
Microsoft - Director - Responsible AI

Microsoft

Redmond, Washington, United States (On-Site)
1 Week ago
Nintendo - Intern - User Experience

Nintendo

Redmond, Washington, United States (On-Site)
5 Months ago
Meta - Software Engineering Manager, Product

Meta

New York, New York, United States (Remote)
5 Months ago
NVIDIA - Senior HPC Performance Engineer

NVIDIA

Santa Clara, California, United States (On-Site)
1 Week ago
Mattel  Inc  - American Girl Server (Seasonal)

Mattel Inc

New York, New York, United States (On-Site)
2 Days ago
The Walt Disney Company - Principal Software Engineer

The Walt Disney Company

Santa Monica, California, United States (On-Site)
1 Week ago
Epic Games - Senior VFX Artist

Epic Games

Cary, North Carolina, United States (On-Site)
2 Months ago
Google - Product Safety Test Engineer

Google

Sunnyvale, California, United States (On-Site)
1 Week ago

Get notifed when new similar jobs are uploaded

Graphic Design Jobs

Onward Search - Art Director

Onward Search

New Jersey, United States (On-Site)
1 Week ago
Trend Micro - Junior Multimedia Editor

Trend Micro

Manila, Metro Manila, Philippines (On-Site)
6 Months ago
Tencent - IT Operations Intern

Tencent

(On-Site)
1 Month ago
CubicDesignz - Motion Graphic Designer

CubicDesignz

Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India (On-Site)
7 Months ago
ByteDance - Senior Visual Designer

ByteDance

San Jose, California, United States (On-Site)
4 Weeks ago
The Walt Disney Company - Graphic Design Intern

The Walt Disney Company

Paris, Île-de-France, France (On-Site)
1 Week ago
ByteDance - Senior Visual Designer

ByteDance

San Jose, California, United States (On-Site)
1 Month ago
ByteDance - Senior Visual Designer

ByteDance

San Jose, California, United States (On-Site)
1 Week ago
Focus Entertainment - Senior Print and Digital Graphic Designer

Focus Entertainment

Île-de-France, France (Hybrid)
4 Weeks ago
Rockstar Games - Senior Graphic Designer

Rockstar Games

New York, New York, United States (On-Site)
7 Months ago

Get notifed when new similar jobs are uploaded

About The Company

About Illumination

 

Illumination, founded by Chris Meledandri in 2007, is one of the entertainment industry’s leading producers of event-animated films, including Despicable Me—the most successful animated franchise in cinematic history—as well as Dr. Seuss’ The Lorax, Dr. Seuss’ The Grinch and The Secret Life of Pets and Sing films. Illumination’s soon-to-be released The Super Mario Bros. Movie will join a studio library that includes two of the top 10 animated films of all time. Illumination’s iconic, beloved franchises—infused with memorable and distinct characters, global appeal and cultural relevance—have grossed more than $8 billion worldwide. Illumination has an exclusive financing and distribution partnership with Universal Pictures. Illumination’s upcoming films in 2023 include The Super Mario Bros. Movie and Migration.


Illumination is based in Santa Monica, CA and its studio, Illumination Studios Paris, is located in the center of Paris.

Santa Monica, California, United States (On-Site)

Santa Monica, California, United States (On-Site)

Santa Monica, California, United States (On-Site)

Santa Monica, California, United States (On-Site)

Santa Monica, California, United States (On-Site)

Santa Monica, California, United States (On-Site)

Santa Monica, California, United States (Hybrid)

Santa Monica, California, United States (Hybrid)

Santa Monica, California, United States (Hybrid)

Santa Monica, California, United States (Hybrid)

View All Jobs

Get notified when new jobs are added by Illumination

Level Up Your Career in Game Development!

Transform Your Passion into Profession with Our Comprehensive Courses for Aspiring Game Developers.

Job Common Plug