Studio Art Manager

At Velan Studios we foster a culture of curiosity. Our games embrace diversity and are fueled by the adventurous spirit of our team. We are the creative minds behind titles like Mario Kart Live: Home Circuit Knockout City Hot Wheels Rift Rally Midnight Murder Club as well as the VR game Bounce Arcade and our journey continues! Our studios mission is to pioneer groundbreaking gaming experiences and reimagineplayin new to pushing the boundaries of traditional gaming blurring the lines between reality and fantasy and revolutionizing the industry one game at a time.

Are youlooking for a rare opportunity to help shape the next generation of artists in a growing mid-sized aboutbringingboth strategic vision and a genuine commitment to nurturing talent across every level of the artdepartmentwedlike to talk to you!Velan Studios is looking for a Specialist or Principal levelArtist to fill a role as theStudio Art Manager

Wereseeking aseasonedleaderreporting to the CEOtolead and grow our art organization acrossTorontoand Troystudios. This role will oversee a team of approximately 30artists working under a structured hierarchy of seniorpeople managersprojectleads and sub-leads ensuring the department delivers exceptional quality across all projects while cultivating a strong culture of feedback development and creative excellence.

Responsibilities

• Leadership & Mentorship
• As a key partner in building our next generation of creative talent theStudio Art Managerwill work closely withseniorpeople managers to empower their project leads strengthen feedbackloopsand ensure the departmentmaintainsa strong bench of artists readyfor new challenges.
• Lead and coach senior people managers ensuring they in turn mentor leads and sub-leads with clarity and consistency.
• Champion career development frameworks succession planning and skill-building initiatives to strengthen the internal talent pipeline.
• Setting job expectationsfor disciplines at every stage; from job postings hiring onboardingyear-endreviews while ensuring clarity and consistency across people leaders.
• Strategic & Operational Impact
• Partner with Studio Leadership and Production to define the long-term art vision standards and goals for both locations.
• Oversee art resource planning and headcount allocation across all active projects balancing creative ambitions with production needs.
• PartneringwithHuman Resourcesand Productionto foreseehiring needs based on current and future project needsas well as recruitinginternships outsourcingexternal outreachand external developer relationships
• Creative Direction & Quality
• Collaborate closely with Game Directors Art Directors and department leads toupholdthe studios visual identity and artistic direction.
• Identifyand drive departmental initiatives that improve artistic quality workflow efficiency and cross-discipline collaboration.
• Support creative problem-solving and ensure alignment between creative goals and practical production realities.
• Culture & Collaboration
• Serve as a cultural leader across bothlocationsbuilding trust alignment and shared artistic standards.
• Promotestrong communicationchannels across teams and studios to ensure consistency and cohesion in the art organization.
• Model empathy inclusion and leadership transparency as cornerstones of team culture.

• 10 years of experience in game art leadership or related creative leadership roles.
• Experience managing multi-level hierarchies within a production environment with a total team size of 50 artists.
• Proven ability to balance creative excellence with operational decision-making.
• Strong understanding of art production pipelines tools and resource planning.
• Exceptional communication and interpersonal skills; able to inspire influence and develop others.
• Has shipped multiple games in anart-focused role: concept character environment illustration world-building etc.
• Experience usingUnityUnrealor proprietary engines softwareand tools.
• Experience with modern workflowsandknowledge of the entire lifecycle of a project for current AAA games both large and small.
• Excellent collaboration and both written and verbal communication skills.

Job Location & Compensation Info

This is a hybrid or onsite position. Hybrid is 3 days a week in studio. Our studio is located in Toronto ON.
Periodic travel between Toronto and the Capital Region (Troy NY) will be required based on candidates home location.

The salary for this position is typically within the range specified below* per year. Please note that the actual base pay may vary based on factors such as your qualifications skills experience and other relevant considerations.

*Specialist $95000.-$145000. CAD
*Principal $115000.-$170000. CAD

Velan Studios is dedicated to building a diverse inclusive and authentic workplace so if you are excited about a role but your experience doesnt align perfectly we encourage you to submit a General Application. Velan Studios is an equal opportunity employer that is committed to inclusion diversity and providing a workplace free from discrimination and harassment. We seek to create a work culture that matches the diversity of our players.

Required Experience:

Manager