Associate Creative Director

Horizon Media; New York (NY); On-site; USD 140,000 - 160,000; Full time

Job summary

Blue Hour Studios, an affiliate of Horizon Media, seeks an Associate Creative Director who will drive exceptional, original thinking across social, film, digital and IRL campaigns. You’ll mentor mid-level and junior creatives while partnering with clients and leadership to elevate visual storytelling.

You’ll shape aesthetics, lead pre- through post‑production, and ensure deliverables match the creative vision, mentoring teams to deliver consistently strong work.

Qualifications

• 6+ years of experience in creative and content production for brands or agencies.
• Portfolio featuring examples of branded content and advertising work for brands
• Fluency in Adobe Creative Suite (Premiere, Photoshop, Illustrator, After Effects)
• Fluency in presentation and slide design in Google Slides, PowerPoint and Keynote
• Fluency in Microsoft Office (PowerPoint, Word, Excel are preferred)
• Superior attention to detail, and incredibly collaborative nature
• Strong verbal and written communication skills to convey ideas and direction
• Confident client presenter and storyteller
• Experience in creative direction for photo and video shoots

Responsibilities

• Be a social expert: understand social trends and audience behavior to uncover insights.
• Lead creative development from idea to execution across film, digital, social, and IRL experiences.
• Mentor and manage junior and mid-level creatives.
• Steer the visual side of productions with cohesive look and feel.
• Own creative through pre-production, production, and post with clients and partners.
• Partner with leadership to evolve workflows and set quality standards.
• Explore new AI-driven tools to keep the team's craft future-ready.
• Foster an inclusive, innovative culture encouraging experimentation.

Skills

6+ years experience

Branded content portfolio

Adobe Creative Suite

Slide design

MS Office

Attention to detail

Communication skills

Client presentation

Creative direction

Tools

Adobe Creative Suite

Job description

Job Description

Hello, Blue Hour

Formed in 2019, Blue Hour Studios is a social-first agency and affiliate of Horizon Media. We build community and fandom by playing at the intersection of creators, culture, content and commerce. The company is headquartered in New York.

At Horizon and Blue Hour Studios, we understand the value that different perspectives can bring to our clients and culture, so we strive for an environment where our employees feel welcomed, safe and empowered. We value you and believe that your authentic voice and unique perspective allows us to create a more rewarding culture, and experience, together. We hire talented people, challenge them and give them every opportunity to grow.

What You’ll Do

40% - Creative Development & Concept Ideation

25% - Content & Creative Production

25% - Supervision & Team Management

10% - Client Relations

Job Summary

The role of the Associate Creative Director at Blue Hour Studios is to consistently bring exceptional, original creative thinking across any format. You are expected to independently concept and execute creative ideas that answer client briefs with unexpected solutions. You will lead by example—mentoring mid-level/junior creatives and collaborating across disciplines to develop and present creative ideas.

You are an expert visual storyteller and confident in defining the aesthetic direction of everything from a piece of social content to large-scale 360 campaigns.You are skilled and hands on but can be equally focused on mentoring a team to elevate their visual output.

This role reports into the Creative Director, and works closely in collaboration to ensure quality of all creative execution.

As an Associate Creative Director, you will…

• Be a social expert: Possess a strong understanding of social, changing algorithms, and audience behaviors, to uncover new insights and ways of engaging communities

• Lead creative development from idea to execution for ideas across film, digital, social, and IRL experiences

• Mentor and manage junior and mid level creatives through close collaboration

• Steer the visual side of productions, ensuring a cohesive look and feel and overseeing details that result in a final deliverable that matches the creative vision

• Have a proven track record owning creative through pre-production, production, and post , working closely with clients, creators, influencers, and production partners

• Partner with leadership to evolve creative workflows , establish quality standards, and identify new tools or AI-driven technologies to keep the team’s craft future-ready.

• Foster an inclusive, innovative culture that encourages experimentation and curiosity.

Supervisory Responsibilities

The Associate Creative Director will manage junior members of the Creative and Creator team.

Preferred Skills & Experience

• 6+ years of experience in creative and content production for brands or businesses in an agency or brand environment

• Portfolio featuring examples of branded content and advertising work for brands

• Fluency in Adobe Creative Suite (Premiere, Photoshop, Illustrator, After Effects)

• Fluency in presentation and slide design in Google Slides, PowerPoint and Keynote

• Fluency in Microsoft Office (PowerPoint, Word, Excel are preferred)

• Superior attention to detail, and incredibly collaborative nature

• Strong verbal and written communication skills to convey ideas and direction

• Confident client presenter and storyteller

• Experience in creative direction for photo and video shoots

#BHS

#LI-TV1

#LI-HYBRID

The statements herein are intended to describe the general nature and level of work being performed by employees, and are not to be construed as an exhaustive list of responsibilities, duties and skills required of personnel so classified. Furthermore, they do not establish a contract for employment and are subject to change at the discretion of the employer.

Horizon Media is proud to be an equal opportunity workplace. We are committed to equal employment opportunity regardless of race, color, ancestry, religion, sex, national origin, sexual orientation, age, citizenship, marital status, disability, gender identity or Veteran status. We also consider qualified applicants regardless of criminal histories, consistent with legal requirements.

Salary Range

$140,000.00 - $160,000.00

A successful applicant’s actual base salary may vary based on factors such as individual’s skill sets, experience, training, education, licensure/certifications, and qualifications for the role. As an organization, we take an aptitude and competency-based hiring approach.__ We provide a competitive total rewards package including a discretionary bonus and a variety of benefits including health insurance coverage, life and disability insurance, retirement savings plans, company paid holidays and unlimited paid time off (PTO), mental health and wellness resources, pet insurance, childcare resources, identity theft insurance, fertility assistance programs, and fitness reimbursement.