Art Director

Cuento Marketing; San Diego (CA); On-site; USD 95,000 - 115,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Hybrid work in SD

Paid time off

Career growth opportunities

Exposure to high-profile brands

Job summary

CUENTO is a creative marketing agency in San Diego blending sports, culture, and brand storytelling. We’re seeking an Art Director to guide projects from concept to execution and elevate the agency’s creative quality.

In this hybrid role, you’ll lead campaigns, brand systems, and multi-platform content; mentor designers, editors, and production partners; and collaborate with strategy, accounts, and video teams to deliver high-impact work.

Qualifications

• 7–10+ years of professional creative/design experience, agency/sports/entertainment/brand marketing background.
• Exceptional portfolio demonstrating conceptual thinking, campaign development, and high-level visual execution.
• Ability to lead projects independently while collaborating across departments.

Responsibilities

• Lead creative development across campaigns, brand systems, social content, presentations, motion concepts, and marketing initiatives.
• Translate strategic direction into compelling visual storytelling and polished execution.
• Present creative concepts and rationale internally and to clients with confidence and clarity.
• Mentor designers, editors, freelancers, and production partners to elevate work.
• Establish scalable design systems and creative frameworks across brands and accounts.

Skills

Brand leadership

Art direction

Typography

Presentation skills

Team mentoring

Tools

Adobe Creative Suite

AI-powered workflows

Job description

• Location: 4 days/week in our San Diego office M-TH. Remote Fridays.
• Compensation: $95,000-$115,000 annually (depending on experience)
• Start Date: ASAP
• Experience Level: 7-10+ years of professional creative/design experience, preferably within an agency, sports, entertainment, or brand marketing environment
• Portfolio should demonstrate conceptual campaign thinking, branding systems, and multi-platform execution.
  

About CUENTO

CUENTO is a creative marketing agency built at the intersection of sports, culture, and brand storytelling. We create strategic, emotionally resonant work for brands, organizations, and teams across sports, enterprise, hospitality, lifestyle, and consumer categories.

Our client roster includes both sports and enterprise brands, requiring creatives who are adaptable, collaborative, and capable of working across a wide range of visual styles, audiences, and business objectives. Sports-related work is a significant part of our creative output, making this role especially well-suited for someone energized by high-visibility campaigns, fast-moving timelines, and culturally relevant storytelling.

We are looking for an Art Director to join our growing creative team in San Diego. This role is ideal for a highly conceptual creative leader who can guide projects from idea to execution while helping elevate the overall quality of work across the agency.

What You’ll Do

• Lead creative development across campaigns, brand systems, social content, presentations, motion concepts, and marketing initiatives
• Translate strategic direction into compelling visual storytelling and polished execution
• Present creative concepts and rationale internally and to clients with confidence and clarity
• Partner closely with the Creative Director to help guide overall creative quality and team output
• Provide art direction and feedback to designers, editors, freelancers, and production partners
• Contribute to concepting sessions, campaign ideation, moodboards, and visual explorations
• Help establish scalable design systems and creative frameworks across brands and accounts
• Collaborate cross-functionally with strategy, accounts, social, production, and web teams
• Ensure projects maintain high creative standards while balancing timelines and business objectives
• Stay current on design trends, culture, sports, digital storytelling, AI creative tools, and emerging platforms
  

What We’re Looking For

• Exceptional portfolio demonstrating conceptual thinking, campaign development, and high-level visual execution
• Expertise across branding, campaign systems, digital/social creative, and presentation design
• Strong leadership instincts with the ability to guide, mentor, and elevate creative teams
• Strong typography, layout, composition, and visual systems skills
• Ability to balance creative ambition with strategic objectives and executional realities
• Excellent communication and presentation skills
• Strong attention to detail, organization, and project ownership
• Ability to lead projects independently while collaborating effectively across departments
• Experience working with sports, entertainment, or culturally driven brands is a plus
• Passion for storytelling, culture, branding, and modern creative trends
  

What Success Looks Like

• Elevates the overall quality and consistency of creative output
• Brings proactive ideas, references, and solutions to the team
• Can confidently lead projects from concept through execution
• Balances creative ambition with speed and adaptability
• Contributes positively to team culture and collaboration
• Builds trust with clients through strong communication and presentation skills
  

Preferred Tools & Skills

• Adobe Creative Suite (Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign)
• Understanding of social-first creative and digital content ecosystems
• Experience with photography direction, video direction, or production workflows is a plus
• Familiarity with AI-assisted creative workflows and emerging creative technologies strongly preferred
  

Reporting Structure

• Reports to the Creative Director
• Collaborates closely with Design, Video, Social, Marketing and Account teams
• Helps mentor and guide junior creatives
  

Why CUENTO

• Opportunity to shape creative for nationally recognized brands and organizations
• Collaborative, idea-driven culture with strong creative ambition
• Diverse client roster spanning sports, lifestyle, hospitality, enterprise, and entertainment
• Opportunity for leadership growth and creative ownership
• Flexible hybrid work environment based in San Diego
• You’ll join a curious, collaborative creative team where designers, editors, and AD’s have real ownership, visibility, and impact across client work.
  
• Hybrid work environment
• Paid time off and holidays
• Opportunities for professional growth and development
• Exposure to high-profile sports and lifestyle brands

CUENTO is an equal opportunity employer.