Freelance Design Director — Video & Animation

Journey; Greater London; Hybrid; GBP 90,000 - 140,000; Full time

Job summary

Journey, a global MDX design agency, seeks an accomplished Design Director in Video & Animation for freelance or fixed-term projects. You will shape design-led responses, lead cross-functional teams, and drive delivery from concept through final animation/video production at our London location.

Ideal candidates have 10+ years of leadership in video design, strong client communication, and a portfolio spanning long-form video, VR, and live events.

Qualifications

• Approximately 10 years of demonstrable and significant experience leading video design and/or animation projects from pre-concept through to delivery on-site.
• Demonstrable interest in a story driven design approach and sustained audience engagement across a narrative experience.
• Evidence of a lateral thinking design ability to take a concept or brief and develop it into a specific form.
• An ability to use applicable software to illustrate design ideas (e.g. After Effects, Premiere Pro & Photoshop).
• Ability to personally manifest design ideas / concepts in visual form quickly and communicate these to a wide range of stakeholders; clients, internal team, collaborating creative team, technical teams etc.
• An inspiring communicator with both clients and team, who can convey creative ideas with passion as well as manage expectations.
• A true interest in and ability to work in an interdisciplinary, collaborative environment and with a range of creatives.
• Experience in leading, inspiring and managing project teams.
• Knowledge of creating work in different territories, with a design portfolio that demonstrates a range of work in different mediums and storytelling formats (i.e. long-form video, music video, theatre show, exhibition, live events, VR etc.).
• A thorough understanding of video design technologies with the ability to communicate both creatively and technically with designers working in 2D and 3D specialisms.
• An ability to multitask effectively and handle multiple workflows at any one time.
• An ability to work under pressure and to tight deadlines.
• Experience with real-time / games-engine technologies (e.g. Unreal, Notch, Touchdesigner).
• A demonstrable understanding of recent key themes and industry shifts in video delivery within live events, performances and exhibitions.
• Experience line managing Designers earlier in their careers with considered professional development and training opportunities.
• An existing network of relationships with commissioning organizations and potential clients.

Responsibilities

• Create and develop design-led responses to briefs.
• Attend client-facing design meetings to assimilate and understand a creative brief.
• Lead and coordinate the design process on multiple, varying scale projects with substantial budgets, taking them from concept through all design phases to delivery.
• Collaborate with project design teams to integrate the design response.
• Appraise and critique the design work of project teams and the wider department.
• Present the results of multiple design stages to the client, collaborators, internal project teams and the wider company.

Skills

Leadership

Video design leadership

Animation direction

Client collaboration

Project management

Story-driven design

Communication

Team mentoring

Tools

After Effects

Premiere Pro

Photoshop

Unreal

Notch

TouchDesigner

Job description

Journey, a global MDX design agency, seeks an accomplished Design Director in Video & Animation for freelance or fixed-term projects. You will shape design-led responses, lead cross-functional teams, and drive delivery from concept through final animation/video production at our London location.

Ideal candidates have 10+ years of leadership in video design, strong client communication, and a portfolio spanning long-form video, VR, and live events.