How to hire a production artist

How to hire a production artist, step by step

Here's a step-by-step production artist hiring guide:

• Step 1: Identify your hiring needs
• Step 2: Create an ideal candidate profile
• Step 3: Make a budget
• Step 4: Write a production artist job description
• Step 5: Post your job
• Step 6: Interview candidates
• Step 7: Send a job offer and onboard your new production artist
• Step 8: Go through the hiring process checklist

What does a production artist do?

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1. Identify your hiring needs

   The production artist hiring process starts by determining what type of worker you actually need. Certain roles might require a full-time employee, whereas part-time workers or contractors can do others.

   Determine employee vs contractor status

   Is the person you're thinking of hiring a US citizen or green card holder?

   Yes

   No

   You should also consider the ideal background you'd like them a production artist to have before you start to hire. For example, what industry or field would you like them to have experience in, what level of seniority or education does the job require, and how much it'll cost to hire a production artist that fits the bill.

   This list shows salaries for various types of production artists.

   Type of Production Artist	Description	Hourly rate
   Production Artist	Graphic designers create visual concepts, using computer software or by hand, to communicate ideas that inspire, inform, and captivate consumers. They develop the overall layout and production design for various applications such as advertisements, brochures, magazines, and corporate reports.	$19-45
   Animator	The animators are specialized artists who conceptualized ideas from their creative minds with technology applications. Animators cater to different specialties depending on their expertise... Show more	$25-53
   Visual Merchandiser	A visual merchandiser is responsible for arranging product displays at retail outlets, attracting customers to purchase the items. Visual merchandisers should be updated with the latest trends in the market to prioritize retail displays and floor plans... Show more	$12-25

   Show more

2. Create an ideal candidate profile

   Common skills:

   • Graphic Design
   • Adobe Photoshop
   • Adobe Creative Suite
   • Adobe Illustrator
   • Adobe Indesign
   • Production Art
   • Photography
   • Mac
   • Sketch
   • PowerPoint
   • HTML
   • Print Production
   • Color Correction
   • Digital Assets

   Check all skills

   Responsibilities:

   • Manage print jobs, design, copywriting.
   • Produce and code HTML emails that are browser/email client-friendly, as well code landing pages in CSS.
   • Code web pages with HTML5, CSS, JavaScript, PHP, and WordPress.
   • Update and maintain CMS website.
   • Work almost daily in the mac studio.
   • Submit sketch approvals to USDA for their review.

   More production artist duties

3. Make a budget

   Including a salary range in your production artist job description is a great way to entice the best and brightest candidates. A production artist salary can vary based on several factors:

   • Location. For example, production artists' average salary in south dakota is 52% less than in washington.
   • Seniority. Entry-level production artists earn 57% less than senior-level production artists.
   • Certifications. A production artist with a few certifications under their belt will likely demand a higher salary.
   • Company. Working for a prestigious company or an exciting start-up can make a huge difference in a production artist's salary.

   Average production artist salary

   $61,870yearly

   $29.75 hourly rate

   ---

   Entry-level production artist salary

   $40,000 yearly salary

   Updated January 20, 2026

   Average production artist salary by state

   Rank	State	Avg. salary	Hourly rate
   1	California	$87,474	$42
   2	Washington	$84,880	$41
   3	District of Columbia	$79,898	$38
   4	Maryland	$72,766	$35
   5	New York	$69,721	$34
   6	Massachusetts	$68,870	$33
   7	Oregon	$68,000	$33
   8	Florida	$64,693	$31
   9	Michigan	$63,672	$31
   10	Illinois	$63,462	$31
   11	Virginia	$61,023	$29
   12	Colorado	$60,465	$29
   13	North Carolina	$57,758	$28
   14	Pennsylvania	$57,535	$28
   15	Ohio	$57,347	$28
   16	Minnesota	$57,232	$28
   17	Connecticut	$55,994	$27
   18	Texas	$54,574	$26
   19	Georgia	$53,804	$26
   20	Maine	$50,295	$24

   Average production artist salary by company

   Company

   Rank	Company	Average salary	Hourly rate	Job openings
   1	Apple	$124,572	$59.89	20
   2	Quirky	$118,421	$56.93
   3	Marcus & Millichap	$114,491	$55.04
   4	J.P. Morgan	$110,113	$52.94
   5	JPMorgan Chase & Co.	$101,933	$49.01	8
   6	Digital Domain	$101,834	$48.96
   7	Cricut	$101,463	$48.78	2
   8	PIXOMONDO	$100,831	$48.48
   9	Fanatics	$97,642	$46.94	8
   10	Tesla	$96,147	$46.22	2
   11	SAP	$94,788	$45.57	2
   12	VF	$92,693	$44.56
   13	Industrial Light & Magic	$91,464	$43.97
   14	The Children's Place	$89,298	$42.93
   15	Gap Inc.	$89,148	$42.86
   16	Foot Locker	$87,528	$42.08
   17	Philips	$85,782	$41.24	1
   18	Live Nation Entertainment	$85,704	$41.20	58
   19	Blue Sky Studios	$84,479	$40.61
   20	Psyop	$84,344	$40.55

4. Writing a production artist job description

   A good production artist job description should include a few things:

   • Summary of the role
   • List of responsibilities
   • Required skills and experience

   Including a salary range and the first name of the hiring manager is also appreciated by candidates. Here's an example of a production artist job description:

   Production artist job description example

   The Production Artist is detail-obsessed, has a strong understanding of the principles of design as well as design software, and is motivated to deliver accurate and precise design files that adhere to set branding and production standards. The Production Artist will collaborate with design partners and key stakeholders to execute assigned projects and ensure conceptual creative ideas are produced at scale to meet campaign/project needs. This is a part-time position, working on average 20 hours a week.

   The ideal candidate for this role has the ability to work quickly on multiple projects with a keen focus on deadlines, details and accuracy.

   Essential competencies:

   • Critical Thinking Skills (Problem Solving)

   • Communication Skills (Approachability)

   • Relationship Skills (Collaboration)

   • Adaptation Skills (Flexibility)

   
   

   Essential Functions – must be able to perform with or without a reasonable accommodation

   Design and production

   • Take ownership while collaborating with marketing partners, designers and art director to ensure delivery of final creative assets for assigned projects with speed and accuracy.

   • Design to pixel-perfection and translate key art/concepts into various sizes and execution to meet campaign/project needs for all mediums; including but not limited to publication design and layout; digital graphics for social media, web and email; direct mail, event promotional materials and signage; environmental and interactive displays.

   • Support maintenance of brand standards and serve as an internal brand steward, reviewing marketing materials for accuracy and adherence to standards.

   • Support efficiency and scalability by contributing to and supporting design systems, toolkits and style guides.

   • Refine components and patterns – establishing and iterating on foundations and frameworks and creating clear and concise documentation on specs and usage principles.

   • Execute design concepts into final assets with a keen focus on accurate production of the end product.

   Process

   • Maintain an up-to -date and organized set of files for project archives and utilize the department’s digital assets management systems and file servers.

   • Keep current with digital technology, software advancements and web accessibility, proposing new technologies and sharing this knowledge with the team.

   • Adhere to project timelines and partner with marketing managers and marketing operations lead to mitigate and escalate work issues and impacting parameters for project deadlines.

   • Attend department, status, direction, presentation and feedback meetings to offer project status updates.

   • Receive direction from art director and project managers while meeting deadlines on a variety of projects simultaneously. Ensure work is reviewed and approved before posting files for use.

   • Present thought process and solutions to peers, partners and management in a clear, professional manner. Where appropriate include research that will support chosen strategies.

   
   

   Non-Essential Functions

   • Performs other duties as assigned.

   
   

   Required Education, Licenses & Experience

   • 3+ years design experience working in a design or advertising agency and/or corporate marketing & communications department.

   • Demonstrates experience working in a fast-paced environment.

   • Prior experience with translating creative concepts to multiple sizes/executions.

   • A strong online portfolio available for viewing.

   • Basic understanding of design principles that support accessibility.

   • Knowledge of current versions of Adobe Creative Suite, (InDesign, Illustrator, After Effects and Photoshop) and working knowledge of Microsoft Office Suite.

   • Critical Thinking Skills (Problem Solving): Applying analysis, creativity, resilience and logic to reach optimal outcomes; developing and implementing solutions.

   • Communication Skills (Approachability): Being consistently approachable, open to feedback direct and truthful; building trust and authentic professional relationships.

   • Relationship Skills (Collaboration): Participating as an active, contributive and supportive member of a team to achieve shared goals; listening, sharing and trusting.

   • Adaptation Skills (Flexibility): Appropriately adapting behavior to changing conditions; modifying approach to succeed with new situations and timelines.

   
   

   Preferred Education, Licenses & Experience

   • Bachelor's degree in graphic, visual or human interaction design or equivalent experience.

   • Experience working in Adobe XD or other prototyping tools.

   • Experience in digital advertising design.

   • Experience with design of large format/environmental signage.

   • Knowledge of Jira or similar project management tools.

   • Experience in website or app design.

   • Experience working in an Agile development environment.

   
   

   Working Conditions Occasionally (1-33%) Frequently (34-66%) Constantly (67-100%)

   • Constant standing, bending, sitting, kneeling

   • Occasional overnight travel

   
   

   Copy this example

   

5. Post your job

   There are various strategies that you can use to find the right production artist for your business:

   • Consider promoting from within or recruiting from your existing workforce.
   • Ask for referrals from friends, family members, and current employees.
   • Attend job fairs at local colleges to find candidates who meet your education requirements.
   • Use social media platforms like LinkedIn, Facebook, and Twitter to reach potential job candidates.

   Post your job online:

   • Post your production artist job on Zippia to find and attract quality production artist candidates.
   • Use niche websites such as dribbble, authentic jobs, working not working, coroflot.
   • Post a job on free websites.

6. Interview candidates

   To successfully recruit production artists, your first interview needs to engage with candidates to learn about their interest in the role and experience in the field. You can go into more detail about the company, the role, and the responsibilities during follow-up interviews.

   It's also good to ask about candidates' unique skills and talents to see if they match your ideal candidate profile. If you think a candidate is good enough for the next step, you can move on to the technical interview.

   The right interview questions can help you assess a candidate's hard skills, behavioral intelligence, and soft skills.

7. Send a job offer and onboard your new production artist

   Once you've decided on a perfect production artist candidate, it's time to write an offer letter. In addition to salary, it should include benefits and perks available to the employee. Qualified candidates may be considered for other positions, so make sure your offer is competitive. Candidates may wish to negotiate. Once you've settled on the details, formalize your agreement with a contract.

   It's also important to follow up with applicants who do not get the job with an email letting them know that the position is filled.

   After that, you can create an onboarding schedule for a new production artist. Human Resources and the hiring manager should complete Employee Action Forms. Human Resources should also ensure that onboarding paperwork is completed, including I-9s, benefits enrollment, federal and state tax forms, etc., and that new employee files are created.

8. Go through the hiring process checklist

   • Determine employee type (full-time, part-time, contractor, etc.)
   • Submit a job requisition form to the HR department
   • Define job responsibilities and requirements
   • Establish budget and timeline
   • Determine hiring decision makers for the role
   • Write job description
   • Post job on job boards, company website, etc.
   • Promote the job internally
   • Process applications through applicant tracking system
   • Review resumes and cover letters
   • Shortlist candidates for screening
   • Hold phone/virtual interview screening with first round of candidates
   • Conduct in-person interviews with top candidates from first round
   • Score candidates based on weighted criteria (e.g., experience, education, background, cultural fit, skill set, etc.)
   • Conduct background checks on top candidates
   • Check references of top candidates
   • Consult with HR and hiring decision makers on job offer specifics
   • Extend offer to top candidate(s)
   • Receive formal job offer acceptance and signed employment contract
   • Inform other candidates that the position has been filled
   • Set and communicate onboarding schedule to new hire(s)
   • Complete new hire paperwork (i9, benefits enrollment, tax forms, etc.)

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