Art Director, YouTube Effects

Note: By applying to this position you will have an opportunity to share your preferred working location from the following: San Bruno, CA, USA; Mountain View, CA, USA.Minimum qualifications:

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent practical experience.
• 6 years of experience in a creative leadership role, such as Art Direction, Visual Design, or Creative Direction, with a proven track record of delivering high-quality visual solutions across various mediums (e.g., digital, print, video).
• Experience implementing visual design systems across platforms in an iterative software development environment, applying design tools (e.g., Figma, Photoshop, Illustrator, Sketch).
• Include a portfolio , website, or any other relevant link to your work in your resume (providing a viewable link and/or access instructions).
  
  

Preferred qualifications:

• Master's degree in Design, Human-Computer Interaction, Computer Science, a related field, or equivalent practical experience.
• 3 years of experience working in a cross-functional organization, 2 years of experience leading design projects with 1 year of experience working with executive leaders.
• Experience as an Art Director with a portfolio demonstrating exceptional creative vision and leadership in a relevant field (e.g., games, AR, interactive experiences, animation).
• Deep understanding of art fundamentals combined with a passion for emerging technologies, particularly generative AI and machine learning.
• Ability to communicate conceptual ideas and design rationale within a user-centered design process.
  
  

About The Job

At Google, we follow a simple but vital premise: "Focus on the user and all else will follow." Google’s Visual Designers weave space, typography, color, iconography, and texture together to help people successfully navigate our products. We believe that all of our products should be beautiful and accessible.

Google User Experience (UX) is made up of multi-disciplinary teams of UX Designers, Researchers, Writers, Content Strategists, Program Managers, and Engineers: we care deeply about the people who use our products. The UX team plays an integral part in gathering insights about the behaviors and perceptions of people who use our products to inspire and inform design. We collaborate closely with each other and with engineering and product management to create industry-leading products that deliver value for the people who use them, and for Google’s businesses.

As a Visual Designer, you’ll rely on user-centered design methods to craft industry-leading user experiences—from concept to execution. Like all of our UX jobs, you’ll collaborate with your design partners to leverage and evolve the Google design language to build beautiful, innovative, inspired products that people love to use.

As an Art Director, you will lead the creative charge in the exploration of visual effects using the latest, cutting edge technologies. You will define the aesthetic direction for our projects and provide guidance to artists, designers, and engineers to create groundbreaking work using generative AI and on-device ML.

At YouTube, we believe that everyone deserves to have a voice, and that the world is a better place when we listen, share, and build community through our stories. We work together to give everyone the power to share their story, explore what they love, and connect with one another in the process. Working at the intersection of cutting-edge technology and boundless creativity, we move at the speed of culture with a shared goal to show people the world. We explore new ideas, solve real problems, and have fun — and we do it all together.

The US base salary range for this full-time position is $142,000-$211,000 + bonus + equity + benefits. Our salary ranges are determined by role, level, and location. The range displayed on each job posting reflects the minimum and maximum target salaries for the position across all US locations. Within the range, individual pay is determined by work location and additional factors, including job-related skills, experience, and relevant education or training. Your recruiter can share more about the specific salary range for your preferred location during the hiring process.

Please note that the compensation details listed in US role postings reflect the base salary only, and do not include bonus, equity, or benefits. Learn more about benefits at Google .

Responsibilities

• Lead the exploration and experimentation with generative AI and other emerging capabilities to discover new artistic possibilities and innovative visual styles.
• Define and maintain a clear set of design principles and guidelines for the creation of AI/ML powered visual effects, ensuring consistency and quality across all projects.
• Develop comprehensive creative briefs that effectively communicate project goals, artistic vision, and technical requirements to internal teams and external agencies.
• Guide and mentor artists and designers, providing creative direction, feedback, and support throughout the production process.
• Oversee the creative production of both internal projects and external agency engagements, ensuring projects are delivered on time, within budget, and to the highest standards.
  
  
  

Google is proud to be an equal opportunity workplace and is an affirmative action employer. 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. See also Google's EEO Policy and EEO is the Law. If you have a disability or special need that requires accommodation, please let us know by completing our Accommodations for Applicants form .