#someoddpilot

Who We Are


Someoddpilot Inc is a Chicago-based creative company. Our mission is to make art and culture more accessible and provocative with new formats, perspectives, voices, brands and subcultures. Our portfolio includes our creative agency, Someoddpilot, our production studio, Someoddpilot Studios, and our D2C brand, Public Works.

Someoddpilot Studios is our in-house production team and full-service photo/video studio located in Wicker Park. We are a trans-disciplinary team of producers, art directors, videographers, editors and animators who collaborate closely with the Creative Agency and Public Works brand.

Roles & Responsibilities

Participate in the development of integrated solutions that leverage studio offerings and are mutually beneficial for the client and the agency.

Guide the development, writing and presentation of production proposals, scopes of work, schedules and staffing plans for existing clients and new business.

Build and maintain effective client relationships, ensuring that all client’s needs are heard, understood, and addressed in a timely way.

Oversee all production workstreams, incorporating needs and requests of other teams and adjusting production strategies as needed.

Communicate production processes and best practices, while continually seeking improvements to drive efficiencies in production and budget.

Foster relationships with cross-functional teams to ensure projects are delivering against asks while creating an environment that allows for innovation.

Advise account, strategy, and creative teams during the concept stage on production costs and execution options in order to deliver the highest quality work for the most efficient timeline and budget.

Cultivate and maintain strong relationships with outside creative partners, including editors, animators, producers, directors, production companies, post production houses, production crew, etc.

Staff projects and manage resources. 

Manage day-to-day escalations and troubleshooting of production challenges.

Own production budgets and manage the revenue/margins throughout client productions; translate costs to a sell price with appropriate detail to be communicated to the client.

Work with account and legal to develop and execute talent agreements.

Manage annual production planning process and participate in the annual budgeting process in cooperation leadership.

Line manage and develop producers and post producers around execution of all individual job details, providing ongoing constructive feedback.

Reconcile program costs against budget for all productions and work with production team to recognize revenue.

Oversee the successful development and management of production calendars, workback schedules, pre-production and wrap books.

Continue to seek out new production talent for the Someoddpilot roster including directors, crew, editors, animators, VFX artists and more.

Requirements

8-10+ years of production and post production experience which must include, but is not limited to, an agency setting.

Working knowledge of industry production contracts and the ability to negotiate terms independently and seek guidance when necessary.

Extensive experience managing teams of producers, production coordinators, crews creatives, strategists and talent.

Line producing experience is a plus.

Extensive experience overseeing multiple works-streams, and senior-level client partners.

Experience managing and creating content with production budgets from $5,000 to $500k+

Basic knowledge of Adobe Premiere, Adobe After Effects, Adobe Photoshop, editing / animation / vfx software + tools  

Travel will be required (mostly post-covid) 

Strategic thinking and ability to solve problems independently.

Positive, self-motivated and solution-oriented.

Ability to remain calm and move quickly under deadline pressure.

Strong written and verbal communication with the ability to lead as a decision maker.

Inspired to push boundaries and be a thought leader.

Always seeking new ways to push creative boundaries.

Willingness to adapt to the needs of the team.

Desire to thrive in a fast-paced and dynamic environment.

Benefits

Full-time, staff position 

Paid Vacation

Sick Time / PTO 

Paid Holidays

Medical, Dental, Vision

Company-matching Simple IRA 

Long and Short-term Disability Insurance 

Please submit your resume with a link to your online portfolio to: [email protected]

Responsibilities

Design websites, UI, imagery, branding and printed matter

Complete established design directions and iterate across multiple pages or use cases

Work under design leads to deliver projects to the finish line

Collaborate with design, copy, dev and account teams

Brainstorm and ideate initial creative directions

Make content, from concepting to final image construction

Manipulate, construct and edit digital imagery fluently - photographs, illustrations

Flex between a variety of tasks, from concepting big ideas to quickly iterating designs alongside various teams

Collaborate with UX teams and developers on digital projects

Requirements

3+ years of design experience a must, consumer and cultural brands a plus

Holistic grasp of digital design (UI design, graphic design, motion, experience design) a must

Content making, concepting, image construction, photo-editing experience a must

Solid general design background - web, UI, imagery, brands and print

Experience collaborating directly with UX, digital designers and developers

Proficient in Creative Cloud, Sketch, InVision

Highly skilled in Photoshop - fast, fluent and capable

Past experience working within established design systems

Who we are

Someoddpilot Inc is a Chicago-based creative company. Our mission is to make art and culture more accessible and provocative with new formats, perspectives, voices, brands and subcultures. Our portfolio includes our creative agency, Someoddpilot, our production studio, Someoddpilot Studios, and our D2C brand, Public Works. 

We are an equal opportunity employer, and strongly value diversity in our team.

A cover letter about how you see your past experience making you a fit for this role is strongly encouraged for consideration.

This position requires an exceptional, dynamic, and high energy leader who believes in the power of art and culture to deliver transformative products, content, and experiences to enrich the Chicago creative community and beyond. With strong communication, creative and analytical skills, the right candidate will leverage cultural and data-driven consumer and business insights to drive strategies for product, content, and experience development. Break-through communication moves and partnerships will deliver significant audience growth and brand awareness. Our Brand Manager will be a team player and leader who works collaboratively across functions to ensure organizational and operational alignment to deliver meaningful, timely, and authentic brand experiences for our Public Works audience in our fast-paced and growing organization.

This role works hand-in-hand with our Founder and Creative Director, and reports directly to the Managing Director.

Who We Are  Someoddpilot Inc is a Chicago-based creative company. Our mission is to make art and culture more accessible and provocative with new formats, perspectives, voices, brands and subcultures. Our portfolio includes our creative agency, Someoddpilot, our production studio, Someoddpilot Studios, and our D2C brand, Public Works. 

Responsibilities • Build and oversee the development and execution of the annual business plan for Public Works in conjunction with Someoddpilot’s long-term strategic plan, including positioning, content strategy, programming and events, and apparel releases. 

• Lead strategic brainstorming workshops for PW stakeholders around programming, content, and apparel concepting, translate these ideas into actionable plans 

• Establish development and production processes, manage timelines, budget, and resources

• Coordinate with internal agency teams (strat, copy, design, dev, production, acct, finance) to execute and launch initiatives 

• Build meaningful and equitable relationships with Chicago’s arts, music, and indie communities; leverage these for content and programming 

• Drive high-volume audience growth 

• Leverage owned, paid, and earned media for awareness and engagement, track and report ROI 

• Manage PR and editorial relationships 

• Establish and maintain key performance indicators that ensure brand health and growth targets are achieved effectively and efficiently

• Analyze effectiveness of initiatives; make recommendations and take measures to ensure new initiatives meet or exceed KPI requirements

• Co-manage brand P&L, including development of volume and spending forecasts

• Manage a retail manager with the possibility of an expanded team in the future, pending growth 

 Qualifications • 3+ years of progressive brand management experience in the D2C retail or tech space, or an events and content-focused media brand 

• Experience working brand strategies into consumer activations 

• Experience in content, programming, or product development 

• Strong attention to detail and comfort with ambiguity 

• Ability to work cross-functionally with creative, operations, and external partners 

• Strong commercial acumen, with some experience in budget or P&L management 

• Ability to identify and apply critical consumer insights and cultural trends into new programming, content or product development

• Experience directing and collaborating with internal and external partners for development and execution 

• Demonstrated skill in leading strong cross-functional teams 

• Demonstrated success in an early stage and or rapidly growing consumer business (lifestyle, media)   

Love To Haves  • Background in arts and culture, connections across this community in Chicago and beyond 

• Previous work with an apparel or disrupter lifestyle brand 

• Background in media and content production

• Experience in event programming and activations 

Additional Requirements • Highly motivated, self-directed, innovative and able to work independently and cross-functionally with keen judgement, common sense and resourcefulness

• Adapts and thrives in a demanding, ambiguous, fast-paced environment 

• Proactive and solution oriented. Can sell ideas up, down, and across

• Operates with a high level of charisma, integrity, and savviness; will be the face of the brand at events and the voice of the brand on social 

This is a full-time role located in Chicago. Remote for now, with some light on-site work (with all safety precautions in place in our studio and retail space). When the time comes, we will be fully utilizing the studio, retail, and event space. 

We are an equal opportunity employer, and strongly value diversity in our team.

Please submit your resume with a link to your online portfolio to: [email protected]

Who we are Someoddpilot Inc is a Chicago-based creative company. Our mission is to make art and culture more accessible and provocative with new formats, perspectives, voices, brands and subcultures. Our portfolio includes our creative agency, Someoddpilot, our production studio, Someoddpilot Studios, and our D2C brand, Public Works.

Someoddpilot Studios is our production house and full-service photo/video studio located in Wicker Park. We are a trans-disciplinary team of producers, art directors, videographers, editors and animators who collaborate closely with the Creative Agency team, and Public Works brand team.

Responsibilities:

Prioritize, assign and track large amounts of digital assets (lifestyle + studio photography, digital videos, and social content)

Manage production timelines to ensure that deliveries are all on-time or flagged in advance if there is a problem

Lead daily Studio To-Do’s meetings and manage resource availability and utilization to ensure that no one is over or under-utilized

Manage freelance sourcing and outreach 

Manage studio schedule for all projects

Assist creative and production team with setting up project files for post production

Coordinate with our Production Manager to manage all production expenses, invoicing and contracts (talent, music rights, licensing, edits, etc.)

Overseeing Studios team to manage shoot schedule, ensure production stays on time, within budget, and overages are communicated efficiently

QC all deliveries to ensure that it complies with specs, quality standards and internal & client feedback notes 

Assist account team with scoping Studios productions 

Help create and establish workflows and identify ways for the agency to be more efficient

Report and escalate issues to leadership as needed  

Ability to multi-task and process information quickly 

Be energetic, upbeat, and a leader on set, especially when with clients or on location 

Love to Haves:

Desire and vision to shape and grow our production studio (proactive dreamer) 

Experience line-producing or field-producing

Experience in Apparel, CPG, and Food & Beverage is a plus

Interest in producing original content (music videos, art films, web series) 

Experience working with a Digital Asset Management system or similar tool to track assets through an operational workflow

Managerial familiarity with Adobe CC Suite, Gmail & Google Suite

Experience with Project & Asset Management tools like Basecamp, JIRA, Box, Dropbox, WeTransfer, Click-Up or a similar tool. 

Having a car for runs is a plus :) but not a dealbreaker 

Requirements

Must have at least 3 years experience creating in a production environment (ex: broadcast commercials, photography, digital and social video advertising) in a deadline-driven context 

Background working with editors and animators on video production projects

Background working with photographers and designers on studio and lifestyle production projects

Must have experience with technical problem-solving on-set 

Must be comfortable with client conversations (both social and issue-driven) 

Excellent communicator, both written and verbal

Proactive and self motivated

Works well independently but also a great collaborator

Thrives in a fast paced environment

Positive and problem-solving attitude

Eye for detail and takes the time to make sure every box is checked before something is sent through

Is a people person and knows what it takes to motivate and support your team members while also keeping an eye on the deadlines

This is a full-time role located in Chicago. Remote for now, with some light on-site production (with all safety precautions in place in our studio). When the time comes, we will be fully utilizing the studio and out on location.  

We are an equal opportunity employer, and strongly value diversity in our team.

Please submit your resume with a link to your online portfolio to: [email protected]

Who we are

Someoddpilot is a Chicago-based creative agency that works with brands who want to stand for something, not just say something. Although we didn’t set out to be an agency, over the years we’ve evolved to become a creative partner for some truly awesome brands, all while furthering our desire to make the world a more inspiring place.

Responsibilities:

Conceptual brainstorming leading to wireframing and initial creative directions.

Lead workshops, ideation sessions, and design reviews as needed, strategically incorporating feedback (from both the client and your colleagues) into the next steps.

Help manage client relationships through direct communication while maintaining expectations around deliverables, timelines, design concepts.

Flex between a variety of tasks, from concepting big ideas to quickly iterating the product design alongside the development team.

Simultaneously create new, cutting-edge experiences in the digital space while often embracing tried-and-true best practices.

Work alongside design leads to deliver projects to the finish line.

Requirements:

4+ years of UX/UI design experience working with digital products and responsive websites, with a focus on the e-commerce and marketing space.

Have a holistic understanding of digital design (including research, UX design, graphic design, experience design).

Understanding of the web development process and common agile methodologies.

Experience collaborating directly with UI designers and developers.

Proficient in Creative Cloud, Sketch, InVision, Agile software (e.g. JIRA), and familiar with prototyping tools.

Past experience with holistic design practices (e.g. user personas, sitemaps, user flows, visual hierarchy, wireframes, interactive prototypes, style guides, user testing plans, production-ready UI), often working within global branding standards/guides.

Experience in user testing, testing plans, and research methodologies.

We are an equal opportunity employer, and strongly value diversity in our team.

Please submit your resume with a link to your online portfolio to: [email protected]

The ideal candidate is a happy, intelligent, and engaging person who is well organized, detail-oriented, and curious—we highly encourage experimentation here. You must be completely professional (and completely ridiculous) whenever appropriate. You should have a great eye for design, and a minimum of 4 years of professional experience as a full-stack web developer. Great written and verbal communication skills are essential to succeeding here; that’s how you’ll create solutions to could-be problems quickly and efficiently. You should also possess the experience, confidence, and drive to lead teams to produce truly exceptional work.

Did you read this ad and think “this is exactly the kind of accomplished place I’ve always wanted to work at”? Are you craving increased growth and opportunity that only comes from an agency small enough to hear and appreciate your voice? Come check out our studio and the people that make it great.

Duties:

Creative problem-solving.

Utilize strong software architecture patterns.

Write clear, scalable, efficient code.

Expert understanding of the web development process, including: 

application design 

quality assurance testing 

deployment methodologies

Solve issues found in less advanced browsers when the need arises.

Interface with clients to discover and refine project requirements, and assist with implementation.

Manage bugs, todos, and feedback processes.

Administer databases, MySQL, MariaDB, etc.

Procure and configure server and Hosting Environments, LAMP, AWS, etc.

Custom continuous integration systems and services configuration.

SSH configuration and server communications.

Server security and lockdown including data breach protocols.

CMS configuration.

API construction and documentation.

Maintain/Create internal development processes.

Assist/train other developers

Communicate with clients

Required Knowledge:

CMS Experience:

WordPress

Drupal

Salesforce Commerce Cloud (bonus points)

Shopify+

Configuring servers for SSH connections

Continuous Integration Scripting (GitHub Actions, CircleCI, etc.)

Bash Scripting

AWS configuration and infrastructure setup

LAMP stack operations

PHP

UNIX/LINUX/Windows/macOS Experience

MySQL/MariaDB

NodeJS, Vue, bonus for Angular and React

Git

Gulp, Grunt, and/or Webpack

CSS preprocessors like SASS or Less.

ES6

We are an equal opportunity employer, and strongly value diversity in our team.

Full benefits, paid vacation, etc.

Please submit your resume with a link to your online portfolio to [email protected]

The ideal candidate is a happy, intelligent, and engaging person who is well organized, detail-oriented, and curious—we highly encourage experimentation here. You must be completely professional (and completely ridiculous) whenever appropriate. You should have a great eye for design, and a minimum of 4 years of professional experience as a front-end web developer. Great written and verbal communication skills are essential to succeeding here; that’s how you’ll create solutions to could-be problems quickly and efficiently. You should also possess the experience, confidence, and drive to produce truly exceptional work.

Did you read this ad and think “this is exactly the kind of accomplished place I’ve always wanted to work at”? Are you craving increased growth and opportunity that only comes from an agency small enough to hear and appreciate your voice? Come check out our studio and the people that make it great.

Duties:

Creative problem-solving.

Utilize strong software architecture patterns.

Write clear, scalable, efficient code.

Solve issues found in less advanced browsers when the need arises.

Manage bugs, todos, and feedback processes.

Providing accurate timing estimates on work.

Contributing to documentation (instructional and technical specification)

Contributing to the company development standards working closely with a Technology Director.

Maintaining a high awareness of industry issues and trends, particularly in regard to accessibility, usability, and emerging technologies.

Essential Knowledge:

Executing visual and interaction designs into HTML, CSS, and JavaScript.

Creating semantically correct, visually appealing web pages or interfaces.

Creating, editing or modifying templates for a CMS or web development framework.

Understanding of front end web frameworks like Bootstrap or Foundation.

Programming interactions with JavaScript and/or JavaScript libraries.

Testing cross-browser, cross-platform, and/or cross-device compatibility for inconsistencies.

Testing for compliance to specified standards such as accessibility standards in the client's region or domain.

Conducting observational user testing, or reviewing designs against usability heuristics.

Experience with web development languages of HTML, CSS and JavaScript/jQuery.

HTML

Familiarity of HTML syntax for multiple specifications, including HTML 5.

Knowledge of the semantic meaning of all HTML elements.

Familiarity with the semantic markup for display of lists, tabular data, forms, articles, etc.

Knowledge of markup used for layout such as dividers.

Knowledge at the level to be able to hand-code markup.

CSS

Specifying different CSS for various media, devices and displays.

Best practices in CSS file organization and structure.

Methods for including CSS inline, internal and external via linked style sheets.

How to define, combine and group CSS selectors for HTML elements, ID, classes, pseudo classes, child or sibling.

Syntax of CSS declarations, properties and attributes.

CSS box model and methods for CSS positioning, absolute, and relative.

Knowledge of properties and attributes to control the display.

Familiarity with differences in CSS 2 and CSS 3.

Proficient with a CSS Preprocessor such as SASS or LESS.

Best practices

Methods to ensure browser & device compatibility

Methods for degrading gracefully for older browsers and displays.

Methods to ensure accessibility.

File compression techniques for improving speed.

JavaScript

Knowledge of the operators, variables, datatypes, objects, properties and methods.

Familiarity with control structures such as objects, functions, conditional statements, arrays, loops and expressions.

Forms and regular expression validation and submitting data.

Knowledge of how to apply logical operators and conditional statements.

Knowledge of the DOM HTML objects and their properties.

API’s

Integrating with 3rd party APIs.

Contributing to the creation of custom APIs.

We are an equal opportunity employer, and strongly value diversity in our team.

Full benefits, paid vacation, etc.

Please submit your resume with a link to your online portfolio to [email protected]

Who we are

Someoddpilot is an award-winning creative agency located in the heart of Wicker Park, Chicago. Founded in 1999, we were born out of a record label and now partner with global brands that want to stand for something, not just say something. From strategy, to design, to development, to video production, our work is produced in-house by our boundary-pushing creative team. It’s a fun (and weird) place to be.

Reach out to us if you:

Can collaborate seamlessly with technologists, creatives, strategists, managers and clients,

Are a creative problem solver, and write clear, scalable, efficient code.

Let us know if you have additional experience in these worlds;

Animation

AR/VR or Mixed Reality

Immersive experiential

Procedural Data Visualization

Unity or other real-time rendering for digital experiences