Freelance Design Director

Complex; Los Angeles (CA); On-site; USD 83,000 - 165,000; Full time

Job summary

Complex seeks a freelance Design Director to elevate the Branded Art and Design team, shaping visuals across video, photo, display, merch, and experiential campaigns. You will partner with editorial, account management, product, and events groups to ideate and execute high-impact deliverables, guiding designers while staying true to the Complex brand voice.

The role demands a versatile, collaborative creator who can translate cultural insights into compelling, platform-spanning design—from

Qualifications

• Experience leading design across multi-channel campaigns.
• Strong capability to translate brand guidelines into iconic visuals.

Responsibilities

• Mentor and lead: guide internal and external designers, bringing concepts to life.
• Collaborate with cross-functional teams to create visual roadmaps for deliverables.
• Execute projects from concept to launch within current brand systems and visual ID.
• Present work to senior leadership and clients when required.
• Translate large campaign initiatives into display and social deliverables.
• Conceptualize and execute experiential brand experiences from pop-ups to large events.
• Design limited-edition merch drops reflecting fashion sensibility.

Skills

Art Direction

Brand Design

3D Rendering

Campaign Ideation

Team Leadership

Job description

Company And Culture

Complex is the definitive platform for global youth culture and music lifestyle, seamlessly integrating cutting-edge content, commerce and live experiences with unparalleled scale. Through innovative content, Complex tells stories of music, streetwear and style, sports, art and beyond. Its content engages in a dynamic conversation with the audience, reflecting and shaping the zeitgeist of convergence culture. A powerful media juggernaut paired with a curated marketplace, Complex is redefining the way fans interact with their favorite brands and artists and reshaping the future of digital culture and commerce.

Why We're Hiring

Our team is growing and looking for a freelance Design Director to raise the bar within the Complex Brand Partnerships team. You'll work within the Branded Art and Design team cross functionally with branded content (editorial and video), account management, product and experiential to ideate and execute deliverables. We offer a full range of products-from digital content to live events to our clients and need someone with a strong technical skillset and ability to work from concept ideation to finished execution bringing a wide range of deliverables to life.

We're seeking a well rounded utility player with a multi-disciplinary approach and deep expertise within innovative graphic design, social design, display media, printed collateral, merch and experiential concepting. This role is ideal for a creative visionary who understands how to transform cultural insights and partner brand guidelines into iconic visual expressions across mediums-from digital to physical. This individual is self-motivated, highly collaborative, and relentlessly curious, consistently sparking new ideas, pushing boundaries, and elevating design and creative across a range of platforms.

What You'll Do

You’ll work cross-functionally with the Branded Production and Publishing teams, Experiential Producers, Product, Web Development and Account Managers to craft thoughtful executions from forward-thinking video, photo, and social campaigns to immersive events.

You'll report into design and branded content leadership elevating content on a variety of platforms and you're adept at being a player-coach who can both do the work and guide partnering designers towards better visual outputs.

You’ll demonstrate an ability to listen and receive internal and external creative feedback with a high level of urgency, professionalism, and attention to detail. You'll consistently create engaging designs with a strong focus on Art Direction. An ability to composite in 2D is a must and a background in 3D rendering is a major plus.

You can execute within design and production workstreams in a fast paced environment and you have a strong understanding of the Complex brand, the different IP within our world, and how to maintain our tone of voice in branded work.

The Specifics

• Mentor and Lead: Concept and pitch work to internal and external teams. Work with designers bringing concepts and campaign objectives to life
• Collaborate: Working with design leaders, account managers, experiential and product to create a visual roadmap for a variety of deliverables
• Executing projects: Taking projects from concept to launch, creating within existing workflow systems while marrying brand guidelines and the Complex visual ID
• Presenting: You'll pitch and sell your work in to senior leadership and brand clients as necessary
• Display and Social Design: Ability to translate larger campaign initiatives and creative into display and social deliverables
• Experiential and Event Design: Work with design leadership on conceptualizing and executing physical brand experiences from bespoke pop-up activations to large-scale experiences like ComplexCon
• Apparel: Design of limited-edition merch drops, and collabs bringing fashion sensibility to product