Associate Production Manager - Marketing & Custom Animation

ABOUT US

At Sony Pictures Animation we support visionary filmmakers, champion the distinct hand of the artist, and relentlessly break convention to create bold, visual storytelling that stuns audiences around the globe.

We believe our marketing and custom content pieces—from high-profile brand partnerships to bespoke animated short-form promos—are vital extensions of our feature films and series. These custom spots are often the audience's very first gateway into our worlds, meaning every single frame, beat, and pixel must hit the exact same standard of artistic brilliance as the films themselves.

Sony Pictures Animation is a pre-production animation studio based in Los Angeles, California, creating both feature animation and animated series with artists from around the world. We pride ourselves on empowering filmmakers to lead the creative process, and allowing the hand of the artist to be truly felt, with the goal of producing bold and innovative visual storytelling.

THE ROLE

We are looking for an Associate Production Manager (APM) – Marketing & Custom Animation who thrives at the intersection of creative ambition and operational precision. In this department, our Production Manager commands the high-level roadmap and overall department schedule. As the APM, you are the engine on the ground: driving the day-to-day momentum, empowering artists, and turning complex creative demands into flawless, world-class custom content.

WHAT YOU'LL DO

• Drive Day-to-Day Execution: Partner with the Production Manager to translate the overarching master schedule into clear daily priorities, ensuring artists stay focused and deliverables hit their target dates without compromising visual quality.
• Champion Creative Alignment: Serve as the central communication bridge between artists, internal departments (Story, Edit, Production), external studio partners, and third-party vendors to maintain open, efficient creative workflows.
• Manage & Support Artists One-on-One: Work closely with artists on an individual level to organize workloads, eliminate roadblocks, and ensure director and producer notes are clearly understood and executed with precision.
• Master Asset & Pipeline Logistics: Oversee incoming and outgoing digital materials, maintain strict asset organization and naming conventions, and facilitate reviews across all internal and external pipelines.
• Track & Anticipate Needs: Maintain detailed tracking documents, synthesize clear action-item notes during creative reviews, and flag potential specs or timeline shifts early so the team stays ahead of the curve.
• Pitch Decks: Develop and update long lead pitch decks for Consumer Products and Partnerships meetings.
• Content Delivery: Oversee reference material delivery to various SPE business units and external partners.
• Approval Coordination: Track the status of creative approvals from third parties and SPE business units through the review and approval process; maintaining accurate logs of feedback, approvals, deadlines, and pending items.Meetings: Handle the scheduling of department meetings as needed.

WHAT YOU BRING

• 3+ years of production management experience in feature animation or VFX environments, with a strong grasp of the animation pipeline.
• Uncompromising Standards: A passion for animation and custom content, paired with a commitment to maintaining elite visual quality in fast-paced marketing turnarounds.
• Communication Mastery: Outstanding interpersonal and organizational skills, with a proven track record of supporting diverse creative teams in dynamic environments.
• Technical Proficiency: Hands-on expertise with production tracking software (e.g., ShotGrid/Flow), spreadsheets, asset management workflows, and basic familiarity with digital creation tools like Photoshop.

The anticipated base salary for this position is $1,500 to $1,800/week. This role may also qualify for incentives and/or comprehensive benefits. The actual base salary offered will depend on a variety of factors, including without limitation, thequalifications of the individual applicant for the position, years of relevant experience, level of education attained, certifications or other professional licenses held, and if applicable, the location of the position.

Sony Pictures Animation is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We evaluate qualified applicants without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability, veteran status, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, or other protected characteristics.

SPE will consider qualified applicants with arrest or conviction records in accordance with applicable law.