Art Acquisition Coordinator

The Upper Deck Company•Carlsbad, CA

About The Position

Art Acquisition Coordinators are the lifeline between Upper Deck and artists / art houses to help ensure that projects release on time and that our art meets product and brand requirements and objectives. The Art Acquisition Coordinator provides a key role in Upper Decks ability to acquire original art for a wide variety of entertainment trading card and gaming products. They will work with external artists throughout the development phase of a product to ensure that detailed art direction is created and followed by the artists while observing given timelines. They must research and recommend artists for different products and potentially initiate all contractual negotiations. They may also be the main contact for all the contracted artist’s concerns.

Requirements

2+ years professional experience.
Effective organizational skills with the ability to handle multiple, high priority projects with dedicated attention to detail.
Strong knowledge of pop culture art and artists from the comic, movie, television and gaming fields.
Solid understanding of color theory and human anatomy from a fine art perspective.
Ability to interpret a project’s needs and provide content direction based upon requirements.
Spreadsheet generation with massive amounts of detail regarding up-to-date project status.
Positive ties to various social media environments and various art related message boards.
Superior communication skills across multiple departments to convey up-to-date project information.
Willingness to provide and accept critical feedback while maintaining professional relationships with hundreds of artists and various art houses.
Professional demeanor; team player orientation. Ability to interface with internal parties at all levels.
Ability to perform duties under minimal supervision while exercising reasonable discretion and independent judgment.
The qualified applicant must possess acceptable computer skills (PC or Mac); a working knowledge of Microsoft Office Suite, file sharing and familiarity with the Internet.
Ability to maintain flexible work hours. Work hours are mostly consistent, but necessitate flexible hours based on production requirements.

Nice To Haves

BA in Art/Design or strong and comprehensive work-related experience is preferred.
Collectable Trading card experience is preferred.
Gaming experience (TCG, board, video) is preferred.
Photoshop, or related, experience preferred.
Limited Travel on behalf of the Company, with local convention attendance.

Responsibilities

Must be outgoing in researching and acquiring new and fresh art talent on a project-by-project basis.
Ensures art deliverables are consistent with key product features and budget requirement.
Works with Project Managers on art approvals with various licensors.
Critique of submitted artwork. Sometimes from different stages of the art process.
Creates weekly reports detailing project status regarding project requirements.
Recommends creative solutions to help artists and art houses hit their required deadlines and retain high quality standards.
Capably provides art direction for specific projects based upon a set of provided requirements.
When needed, provides comprehensive verbal and written direction to artists and art houses ensuring created pieces meet product requirements.
Participates in product research and development with the Entertainment Team.
Works with internal teams to generate contracts and negotiate terms with artists and art houses.
Works with Finance on any contract or payment related issues.