Per Diem Art Directors, News and Features

The Los Angeles Times is seeking art directors who can work on an as-needed basis with its design team. The ideal candidates have experience working in print and digital media, with a portfolio that shows off high-level skills in design, typography and visual storytelling. This person will be comfortable working under the deadlines of a busy newsroom and be willing to roll up their sleeves when needed to build story layouts for print and digital stories, design branding for newsletters or podcasts and art-direct or create illustrations. 

In this position, you might:

• Design, art-direct and coordinate projects and the print and digital builds of our stories using our CMS
• Collaborate with copy editors, assigning editors, reporters, website producers, graphics editors and visual journalists to tell stories with impact
• Design and art-direct A1 as well as section covers and inside pages for daily California, Business, Sports and Opinion sections and weekly Entertainment and Weekend features sections, as well as special projects, plus section booking as needed
• Create photo illustrations for daily digital stories and social media
• Learn and follow style guidelines
• Work with design managers to ensure brand coherence

Requirements:

• A minimum of one year of experience at a comparable journalistic publication or website
• Must be willing to work weekend shifts, and may be required to work evening hours for special coverage
• Excellent time management skills
• Exceptional verbal and written communication skills
• Strong editorial news judgment, impeccable journalistic instincts and an unimpeachable commitment to ethics
• Ability to work effectively in a team environment
• Demonstrated ability to design for daily digital stories
• A portfolio of work that demonstrates excellence in photo editing, typography and art direction
• High energy and enthusiasm for journalism and visual storytelling
• A keen eye for current design trends and the ability to create designs in a variety of styles
• Ability to work on a tight deadline, especially in breaking news situations
• Strong working knowledge of design software such as InDesign, Photoshop and Illustrator
• Positive self-starter capable of performing under pressure and making good decisions
• Previous experience with CCI Newsgate (now CUE) or similar CMS is a plus

The position is listed as Per Diem Employee in the Los Angeles Times Guild. Employees will be part of a pool and eligible for available shifts on a monthly basis. They generally will work fewer than 25 hours per week, with no guaranteed or fixed schedule. We will consider candidates who would work remotely in other time zones as well as those who would work in El Segundo, Calif. Afternoon, night and weekend work is expected.

Qualified applicants should upload a resume, cover letter and portfolio to Creative Director Amy King and Senior Deputy Design Directors Jim Cooke, Allison Hong and Faith Stafford through the Apply link.

The L.A. Times is an equal opportunity employer and welcomes all qualified applicants regardless of race, ethnicity, religion, gender, gender identity, sexual orientation, disability status, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law. We actively work to create an inclusive environment where all of our employees can thrive. This Privacy Notice for Los Angeles Times sets forth how we will use the information we obtain when you apply for a position with us. Explore our company history, achievement, values, mission and more on our career site. 
 
The pay scale the Company reasonably expects to pay for this position at the time of the posting is $35.00. Please visit our career site to view the benefits available to our employees. We recommend adding our applicant tracking system domain (@dayforce.com) as a safe sender or contact, sometimes these emails get filtered to candidates' spam folders.