Character Art Director

Horizontal Talent; Los Angeles (CA); On-site; USD 129,000 - 186,000; Full time

Job summary

Horizontal is seeking a hands-on Character Artist to bring beloved characters to life for consumer products. You will sketch, refine, and guide artists and vendors to keep artwork true to identity and brand standards.

Develop fresh poses, expressions, outfits, and group interactions; translate model sheets into product assets; maintain on-model consistency across apparel, toys, and packaging. The role requires a strong portfolio, solid anatomy and drawing skills, and experience coordinating

Qualifications

• Strong portfolio with character illustration and storytelling.
• Solid anatomy, gesture, movement, and expression.
• Experience in consumer products, animation, licensing, or related field.
• Experience directing artists and vendors from concept to delivery.

Responsibilities

• Develop fresh character poses, expressions, outfits, and group interactions for consumer products.
• Sketch, refine, and revise artwork directly, stepping in on priority projects when hands-on creative support is needed.
• Translate model sheets, turnarounds, animation references, and approved production art into assets tailored for consumer products.
• Maintain visual consistency, ensuring artwork remains on-model, on-character, and aligned with brand standards.
• Create drawovers and redlines to address anatomy, proportions, likeness, silhouettes, expressions, and costume details.
• Build and organize scalable character art libraries for apparel, accessories, toys, packaging, publishing, retail, softlines, and more.
• Identify gaps in existing artwork and recommend new assets based on title, seasonal, and business needs.
• Brief, direct, and review the work of character artists, freelancers, vendors, and agencies from concept through final delivery.
• Collaborate with style guides, product development, franchise, marketing, and creative production partners.
• Prepare final assets for style guides, seasonal packs, retail programs, and global character art libraries.
• Manage multiple creative workstreams while tracking quality, timing, and feedback across deliverables.

Skills

Character illustration

Pose exploration

Expression work

Anatomy knowledge

Outfit development

Visual storytelling

Art direction

Digital drawing tools

Tools

Photoshop

Illustrator

Digital drawing tools

Job description

Horizontal is seeking a hands-on Character Artist to bring beloved characters to life for consumer products. You will sketch, refine, and guide artists and vendors to keep artwork true to identity and brand standards.

Develop fresh poses, expressions, outfits, and group interactions; translate model sheets into product assets; maintain on-model consistency across apparel, toys, and packaging. The role requires a strong portfolio, solid anatomy and drawing skills, and experience coordinating