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Lead Artist

United States

Mob Entertainment is a startup multimedia studio that is best known for our hit indie horror game "Poppy Playtime".  This franchise is one of the hottest new properties in gaming, and our team is naturally expanding as our ambition expands.  To give a taste of our brand's popularity, more than 100 billion YouTube views of Poppy Playtime related content have occurred since the game's launch 4 years ago. 

 

Lead Artist

Position Summary

We are seeking an experienced and highly collaborative Lead Artist to help define and execute the vision for an exciting new project. This role combines hands-on content creation, team leadership, and cross-disciplinary collaboration to deliver a compelling, immersive experience. The ideal candidate has a strong background in game art production, a deep understanding of horror aesthetics and visual storytelling, and the ability to lead a small, agile team through rapid development cycles.

The Lead Artist will partner closely with Creative Direction, Design, Engineering, Art Leadership, and Production to establish artistic standards, solve visual challenges, and ensure high-quality execution.

Responsibilities

Artistic Leadership & Vision

  • Champion and maintain the game's visual style, quality bar, and artistic direction.
  • Translate creative goals into actionable art direction and production plans.
  • Establish visual language for environments, characters, props, lighting, and atmosphere ensuring consistency across all game content.
  • Provide clear visual feedback throughout development.

Team Leadership & Management

  • Lead, mentor, and develop a multidisciplinary art team.
  • Conduct regular reviews, critiques, and feedback sessions.
  • Help prioritize work, remove blockers, and support team growth.
  • Partner with production to create realistic schedules and scope recommendations.
  • Contribute to hiring, onboarding, and performance management processes.

Hands-On Art Production

  • Create and refine concept art, paint-overs, key art, visual targets, and production assets as needed.
  • Support artists during critical production milestones and content reviews.
  • Develop visual solutions that balance artistic quality with technical constraints.
  • Drive rapid iteration while maintaining a high standard of visual polish.
  • Identify production risks early and propose practical solutions.
  • Balance visual ambition with project timelines and resource constraints.

Cross-Functional Collaboration

  • Partner with technical artists and engineers to ensure assets meet technical and performance requirements.
  • Collaborate with art and audio teams to enhance atmosphere and immersion.
  • Communicate artistic decisions effectively to relevant stakeholders.

Qualifications

Required

  • 7+ years of professional game art experience, with at least 2 years in a lead role.
  • Shipped at least one commercial game as an Art Director, Lead Artist, Art Lead, Senior Artist, or equivalent.
  • Strong portfolio demonstrating high-quality visual development and production artwork.
  • Expertise in one or more disciplines including environment art, concept art, character art, or visual development.
  • Strong understanding of composition, color theory, lighting, mood, and visual storytelling.
  • Experience mentoring artists and providing actionable feedback.
  • Excellent communication and collaboration skills.
  • Experience working in Unreal Engine or similar modern game engines.

Preferred

  • Experience shipping horror, thriller, survival, or atmospheric games.
  • Familiarity with cinematic storytelling and film-inspired visual language.
  • Experience working on small-to-mid-sized teams with compressed timelines.
  • Understanding of real-time lighting, material workflows, and optimization practices.
  • Knowledge of technical art pipelines and production workflows.
  • Experience supporting transmedia initiatives, trailers, cinematics, or marketing content.

 

Salary

The base salary range for this position is listed below. Final compensation within the applicable salary range will be determined based on factors such as the applicant’s experience, qualifications, and work location.

San Francisco, CA; New York City, NY; Los Angeles, CA; Seattle, WA; Boston, MA; & Seattle, WA DC Metropolitan Areas:   $132,000 - $169,000 USD annually

Austin, TX; Denver, CO; Nashville, TN; Atlanta, GA; Chicago, IL; Dallas, TX; & Miami, FL Metropolitan Areas:  $115,000 - $147,000 USD annually

All Other U.S. Locations: $98,000 - $125,000USD annually

Benefits

Mob Entertainment offers the following benefits to all eligible U.S.-based full-time employees: profit sharing; medical, dental, and vision insurance; 401(k) matching; FSA/HSA; paid time off; sick time; holidays; and parental leave.

 

 

Mob Entertainment is proud to be an equal opportunity workplace and complies with all federal, state, and local laws prohibiting discrimination in employment. We are committed to providing equal opportunities to applicants and employees without regard to race, color, national origin, religion, sexual orientation, gender, age, disability, military service, or any other protected class under applicable state or local law. Mob Entertainment also considers all qualified applicants with criminal histories consistent with Fair Chance laws as well as any other applicable state and local laws.

 

 

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