Senior Illustrator

Wild Blue Studios is a workers’ cooperative dedicated to creating world class entertainment art. What does it mean to be part of a cooperative company? Every member has equal legal ownership of the company and equal say in the direct democracy of the workplace. While we maintain distinctions in role and seniority on projects, even our most junior members are treated as peers and receive the same voting power when approving administrative decisions.

We are artist-owned, artist-operated, and dedicated to a zero alienation environment in which to create industry leading art for our clients and for ourselves.

Wild Blue is also entirely remote and has been since its founding in 2017. All members are free to work from home or any other location that meets their needs. We have members across the United States.

Wild Blue Studios provides the employment benefits you would expect from a worker-focused company including:

• Comprehensive health coverage in any state including coverage for gender affirming healthcare
• 20+ sick days, including mental health needs
• 27 paid company holiday days in 2022, plus 10 additional paid vacation/personal days
• Remote working environment and flexible hours by time zone
• Competitive, equitable, and transparent pay
• 401(k) savings program with 3% company contribution after your first 3 months of employment

Per our bylaws, the highest salary in the company cannot exceed a 3:1 ratio of the lowest.

At Wild Blue, we have a code of Core Values that contains the following principles and defines them: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1AJm75zr8JbYizxXxbF9MJNS07TPtjQNQ_2ZahPrtrTo/edit?usp=sharing

We believe that when people feel respected and included they are more creative, fulfilled, and safe. Diverse voices are crucial to originality and quality.

We are an equal opportunity employer and are committed to growing a supportive, diverse, and inclusive cooperative.

Senior Illustrator Job Description

Starting Salary: $90,000

Senior roles at Wild Blue are the engines of growth for the studio. Your unique artistic voice, as well as your ability to adapt to client styles determines what kind of work we can accomplish and how many more junior artists we can employ under your mentorship.

As a senior illustrator, you are a craft master and formal leader who is able to:

• Take even the most complex painted assets to 100% polish under your own power, including excellent file structure management both for interoperability and later use
• Lead by example in soliciting and delivering efficient, actionable feedback on assets via written notes, verbal discussion, and paintovers
• Work seamlessly with a producer to build responsible project timelines
• Pick up partially completed/polished assets in any state from other members and bring them to finish without going backwards in process
• Assess member artist strengths and weaknesses in order to select and deploy project teams tailored to the tasks at hand
• Proactively and enthusiastically mentor more junior artists in craft and professional skills
• Contribute to sourcing and managing contractors
• Work with global artists in different time zones and navigate language barriers

Seniors in the cooperative structure are also de facto culture leaders. Others look to them to demonstrate good practices and uphold our Core Values (linked above).

Qualifications:

• Mandatory 5+ years of experience as a professional artist
• Craft skill alone does not satisfy the requirements for our senior roles
• Extensive experience working in a production environment and shaping practices
• Experience working as an official or de facto leader on art teams
• Enthusiasm for participating in and constantly improving an all-remote development model
• Enthusiasm for (not necessarily experience with) engaging with the cooperative model and adopting an ownership mindset for your workplace

Application Materials:

• Portfolio, as either a link to portfolio website (Art Station acceptable) or as a pdf. We have a slight preference for link.
• Cover letter, not to exceed one page (preferred file format is pdf)
• Work history, either as a traditional CV or bulleted list of recent positions held (preferred file format is pdf)

Wild Blue Studios is an equal opportunity employer. This is an at-will employment position.

To apply, please submit materials via this form. Email applications will not be accepted.