Director, Art Management

About Sony Immersive Music Studios

Sony Corporation of America, located in New York, NY, is the U.S. headquarters of Sony Corporation, based in Tokyo, Japan. Sony's principal U.S. businesses include Sony Electronics Inc., Sony Mobile Communications (USA) Inc., Sony Interactive Entertainment LLC., Sony Pictures Entertainment Inc., Sony Music Entertainment, and Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC. With some 900 million Sony devices in hands and homes worldwide today, a vast array of Sony movies, television shows and music, and the PlayStation Network, Sony creates and delivers more entertainment experiences to more people than anyone else on earth. To learn more: www.sony.com.

Overview

Sony Immersive Music Studios, based in Culver City, CA is focused on reimagining music through creativity and technology. We create and distribute exciting new immersive experiences for music fans around the world using real-time 3D software. We are looking for passionate creators who want to reimagine music and lead a new era of entertainment.  

We are currently seeking an experienced Director level candidate to manage multiple teams across character, environment, UI, VFX and animation.  The candidate will have a strong background in managing art production pipelines with a good sense of art direction, building & maintaining excellent art outsourcing partnerships, strategic planning, and proven track record of career development of individuals.

This candidate will oversee the art department’s development of various immersive projects throughout all phases of production. These immersive experiences will focus mainly on creator platforms like Roblox and UEFN, with the potential for native applications across various platforms. The ideal candidate thrives in a fast pace agile workplace where projects are executed quickly, and managing resources and risk is considered core to their role.

Responsibilities

• Manage a team across various art disciplines from concept art to animation.
• Manage the entire art production pipeline, from pre-production to concept to final delivery.
• Work with the creative team and art leadership to develop and maintain the projects visual style, ensuring consistency in art quality and technical implementation.
• Strong emphasis on technology innovation, exploration, pivoting fast when warranted, and driving business value creatively.
• Collaborate with creative leadership to ensure art assets support creative and design needs.
• Develop and manage relationships with various outsource partners, including providing feedback on assets and ensuring quality and project schedule goals are met.
• Manage and negotiate contracts with outsourcing partners while overseeing art operations and logistics of the contract.
• Oversee Digital Asset Management (DAM) systems and workflows, ensuring art assets are organized, stored, and accessible to team members and/or outsourcing partners as needed.
• Create and manage project schedules, milestone goals, and risk assessments related to art production, while working closely with production leadership.
• Create milestone goals along with sprint specific work for the Art team.
• Manage team work on a day-to-day basis using Jira and Basecamp.
• Ensure art assets are delivered on time and within budget.
• Stay up to date with emerging trends in technologies in the industry.

Qualifications

• 4-6+ years of professional experience as a Studio Art Director or equivalent role.
• 5+ years of experience in a managerial role with direct reports.
• Experience negotiating outsourced art production from staff augmentation to fully outsourced.
• Expert understanding of art pipelines, methodologies, and tools.
• Expert understanding of industry-standard software such as Maya, Blender, Photoshop, and Zbrush.
• Strong communication and collaboration skills.
• Strong project management skills with the ability to manage multiple projects simultaneously.
• Strong eye for art direction, with the ability to provide constructive feedback to internal and external teams.
• Knowledge of technical constraints and art principles.
• Meticulous attention to detail.
• Experience with of Unreal Engine or similar game engine.
• Passion for building fun, intuitive and interactive projects.
• Self-motivated with drive for excellence.

Sony is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion s creed, sex (including pregnancy), gender, national origin, citizenship, ancestry, age, physical or mental disability, military status, status as a veteran or disabled veteran, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, marital or family status, genetic information, medical condition, or any other basis protected by applicable federal, state, or local law, ordinance, or regulation.

Disability Accommodation for Applicants

Sony provides reasonable accommodation for qualified individuals with disabilities and disabled veterans in job application procedures. For reasonable accommodation requests, please contact us by email at careers@sonyusa.com or by mail to: Sony Corporation of America, Human Resources Department, 25 Madison Avenue, New York, NY 10010. Please indicate the position you are applying for.

California based applicants have certain rights under California law. Please see our California Recruitment Privacy Policy for more details.

The anticipated annual base salary does not include any other compensation components or other benefits that an individual may be eligible for.  The actual base salary offered depends on a variety of factors, which may include as applicable, the qualifications of the individual applicant for the position, years of relevant experience, specific and unique skills, level of education attained, certifications or other professional licenses held, and the location in which the applicant lives and/or from which they will be performing the job.

California Pay Range

$180,000—$215,000 USD