Director, Communications & Awards

Lionsgate; Santa Monica (CA); On-site; USD 125,000 - 140,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical, Vision, and Dental coverage

401(k) matching

Work-life balance benefits

Job summary

Lionsgate in Santa Monica is seeking a Director of Communications & Awards to lead strategic awards campaigns and industry communications for the Motion Picture Group. You will shape award strategies, manage campaigns, and drive visibility with trade media, guilds, and critics, collaborating with publicity, marketing, and executive teams to elevate Lionsgate titles.

The role requires deep awards ecosystem knowledge, strong relationships, and proven leadership in fast-paced environments.

Qualifications

• Experience leading film awards campaigns and industry communications.
• Strong relationships with trade media, guilds, and critics groups.
• Proven ability to manage budgets and campaigns across multiple titles.
• Excellent written and verbal communication for executive audiences.

Responsibilities

• Drive development and execution of awards strategies and trade communications for MPG titles.
• Shape and amplify the MPG brand in press and industry with senior execs.
• Cultivate relationships with trade media, guilds, pundits, and industry tastemakers.
• Lead awards visibility through coverage, roundups, screenings, panels, and events.
• Manage budgets and timelines across internal teams and external partners.
• Oversee awards calendar, submissions, and eligibility with guilds and AMPAS.
• Draft talking points and executive materials for panels and conferences.
• Create and distribute awards materials to guilds and media.
• Monitor awards landscape to inform strategy and positioning.

Skills

Awards strategy

Corporate communications

Film awards campaigns

Public relations

Editorial judgment

Stakeholder collaboration

Media relations

Industry networking

Strategic planning

Education

Bachelor’s degree or equivalent

Job description

Job Title: Director, Communications & Awards

Location: Santa Monica, CA, US, 90404

Summary of Position

The Director of Communications & Awards will play a pivotal role in advancing the brand and positioning of Lionsgate’s Motion Picture Group’s industry profile, awards visibility, and trade communications efforts. This position will shape strategic awards and industry communications initiatives while overseeing the execution of awards-related campaigns and activities across the studio’s slate.

Reporting to the VP of Communications for Motion Picture Group, this individual will serve as a strategic and highly collaborative partner across communications, publicity, and marketing teams. The ideal candidate is deeply plugged into the awards ecosystem, maintains strong relationships across guilds, pundits and trade media, and brings both strong campaign instincts and industry fluency.

Responsibilities

• Drive the development and execution of awards strategies and trade communications initiatives for Lionsgate Motion Picture Group titles across the awards season and on a year-round basis.
• Shape and amplify the overall MPG brand strategy and positioning in the press and industry, in collaboration with senior communications and publicity executives.
• Cultivate and maintain strong relationships with trade media, awards pundits, guild organizations, awards consultants, strategists, critics groups, and key industry tastemakers.
• Drive awards visibility and industry conversation for Lionsgate titles through strategic trade coverage, predictions, roundups, screenings, panels, and industry engagement opportunities.
• Identify and secure strategic opportunities to elevate Lionsgate films, filmmakers, and executives within awards, entertainment, and broader industry conversations.
• Secure high-profile industry opportunities including awards-related roundtables, panels, conferences, screenings, festivals, and speaking engagements.
• Field inquiries and proactively generate coverage in the trade and entertainment media surrounding upcoming projects, studio initiatives, and awards-related campaigns.
• Partner closely with publicity, marketing, and communications teams to align awards strategy, messaging, and campaign execution.
• Collaborate with communications team on announcements, industry issues, leaks, and potential crisis-related matters as needed.
• Draft talking points and executive materials for panels, conferences, presentations, speaking engagements, and industry-facing opportunities.
• Write and develop communications materials including press releases, executive bios, acquisition announcements, and transactional communications.
• Foster and maintain ongoing relationships with guilds, societies, awards organizations, and industry partners to drive campaign visibility, screenings, invitations, and broader awards-related engagement initiatives.
• Develop and manage strategic, targeted awards budgets for titles to ensure spend is efficiently allocated and precisely directed toward high-impact campaign opportunities.
• Drive the execution and management of awards campaign timelines and operational workflows across internal teams, consultants, guilds, agencies, and external stakeholders.
• Oversee overall awards calendar, submissions and eligibility processes across guilds, AMPAS, Golden Globes, critics groups, and awards organizations generally, ensuring deadlines and requirements are managed effectively.
• Manage awards consultants and related campaign budgets in partnership with the VP of Communications and publicity team leads.
• Partner with Marketing and creative teams on awards-related materials including screeners, invitations, mailers, script books, scores, and campaign collateral.
• Oversee the creation, production, and distribution of awards materials and campaign assets to guilds, critics groups, and industry stakeholders.
• Track awards landscape developments, competitor campaigns, industry sentiment, critics awards, guild recognition, and evolving awards-season dynamics to inform campaign strategy and positioning.
• Maintain awards-related historical data, campaign results, and competitive industry analysis for Lionsgate titles and the broader marketplace.
• Partner on executive visibility strategy and participation in key industry and awards-related events, such as screenings, receptions, panels and festivals, including working with events team on tables / tickets

Qualifications and Skills

• 8–10+ years of experience in communications, public relations, awards strategy, with demonstrated experience in film awards campaigns; studio experience preferred.
• 6–7+ years of experience in corporate communications within the entertainment industry preferred.
• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent professional experience.
• Strong strategic instincts, editorial judgment, and corporate communications acumen required.
• Deep familiarity with the awards ecosystem, including guilds, voting bodies, critics groups, and awards organizations.
• Established relationships across trade media, awards pundits, guild offices, and industry tastemakers strongly preferred.
• Exceptional written and verbal communication skills, with experience crafting executive-facing and industry-facing materials.
• Demonstrated ability to collaborate effectively across multiple internal stakeholders, including publicity, marketing, corporate communications, and external partners.
• Ability to operate in a fast-paced, high-volume environment while balancing strategic priorities and hands‑on execution.

Additional Requirements

This position requires five (5) days per week in office.

About Lionsgate

Lionsgate (NYSE: LION) is one of the world’s leading standalone, pure play, publicly traded content companies. It brings together diversified motion picture and television production and distribution businesses, a world-class portfolio of valuable brands and franchises, a talent management and production powerhouse and a more than 20,000-title film and television library, all driven by the studio’s bold and entrepreneurial culture.

Business Unit Overview

Motion Picture Group

Lionsgate operates the largest independent motion picture company in the world. The home of such beloved franchises as John Wick, The Hunger Games, Twilight, Saw and Now You See Me, Lionsgate regularly releases 10-15 wide theatrical films each year, complemented by a slate of 40-50 multi‑platform and direct‑to‑streaming titles. Thanks to an entrepreneurial structure, creative passion, and innovative marketing and distribution strategies, the studio is capable of not only making and extending franchises, but also delivering original successes like La La Land, Wonder, Knives Out, Monster’s Ball, Precious, Fahrenheit 9/11 and Jesus Revolution. The studio has generated nearly $15 billion in global box office and earned 335 Academy Award® nominations and 71 Oscar® wins.

• Full Coverage – Medical, Vision, and Dental
• Work/Life Balance – generous sick days, vacation days, holidays, and Impact Day
• 401(k) company matching

Compensation

$125,000 - $140,000

EEO Statement

Lionsgate is an equal employment opportunity employer. All employees and applicants are evaluated on the basis of their qualifications, consistent with applicable state and federal laws. In addition, Lionsgate will provide reasonable accommodations for qualified individuals with disabilities. Lionsgate will consider for employment qualified applicants with criminal histories in a manner consistent with the requirements of applicable state and federal law.