
Above Agency AB · Stockholm
Above is looking for a Design Director to join our creative team based in our Stockholm studio. This is a permanent full-time role. Job Description As a Visual...
Above is looking for a Design Director to join our creative team based in our Stockholm studio. This is a permanent full-time role.
Job Description
As a Visual Design Director you will be a key player in driving cutting-edge design and innovation projects for some of the world’s most exciting brands. You will help us identify and secure new commercial opportunities, acting as a strategic partner for new and existing clients.
With a high level of conceptual thinking, you will have a direct impact in shaping excellent project deliveries through craft and creativity, while also shaping our culture, team capabilities, and ways of working across disciplines.
Our work is exciting and diverse in nature, spanning digital experiences such as websites, apps, and HMI. We collaborate across disciplines to create impact across all organizational levels and future horizons — from category-defining hero products to multidimensional digital ecosystems.
What we are looking for
We are looking for an inspiring, forward-thinking Design Director who demonstrates excellence in craft, creativity, leadership, and emerging technologies:
A bit about Above
We are a Scandinavian innovation agency dedicated to driving positive change through the integration of design, strategy, and technology. Our creative 360-approach allows us to break down boundaries between the physical and digital, while fusing hardware and software into meaningful experiences.
We work with leading global brands, local Scandinavian heroes, and a fantastic collection of startups. We’re a team of warm, welcoming, dedicated professionals with diverse international backgrounds. In everything we do, we strive for world-class results and believe you share that mindset.
Join a team that values collaboration, creativity, and tangible impact through thoughtful design.
Join our team
Please submit your portfolio, CV, and personal letter.
We welcome international applications and are generally able to assist with work permits and relocation.
Building on SSE's internationally recognized commitment to the arts, this role represents an opportunity to further shape one of the world's most advanced intersections of artistic practice, research, innovation, and education. The Executive Director will work closely with academic leadership, artists, donors, researchers, students, and external partners. About the Role The Executive Director will provide both strategic and operational leadership for the Center for Art & Innovation and serve as a key bridge between the worlds of art, academia, philanthropy, and innovation. Reporting to the Center’s Scientific Director, the Executive Director will play a central role in translating the Center’s vision into impactful programs, partnerships, and initiatives. The ambition is to further strengthen the Stockholm School of Economics' international profile. The role combines cultural leadership, organizational development, fundraising, community building, and program execution. It requires a leader who is comfortable operating across institutional boundaries and building relationships with artists, researchers, students, donors, and external partners. Key Responsibilities Strategic Leadership and Center Development Shape and implement the long-term vision and strategy for the Center for Art & Innovation Translate strategic ambitions into sustainable programs, partnerships, and initiatives. Position the Center as a leading international platform connecting art, research, innovation, and society. Drive the development of organizational structures, processes, and ways of working that support long-term growth and impact. Arts and Program Development Curate the Center’s artistic programs and activities, currently developed by the Art Initiative. Read more about the Art Initiative here. Oversee the delivery of artistic programs, exhibitions, residencies, seminars, performances, and public events. Expand and diversify artistic engagement across disciplines, including visual arts, music, and emerging creative practices. Build relationships with artists, curators, museums, galleries, and cultural institutions in Sweden and internationally. Coordinate the art related educational and research initiatives Coordinate, further develop and integrate the portfolio of educational offering of the arts in the curriculum of SSE’s students and Executive Education. Support coordination across the community of scholars in the School who work at the intersection of the arts and business, and support collaboration with other Schools globally. Fundraising and External Relations Develop and steward relationships with donors, foundations, patrons, and strategic partners. Identify and secure funding opportunities that support the Center’s growth and long-term sustainability. Prepare funding proposals, donor communications, and impact reporting. Serve as an ambassador for the Center and SSE in national and international contexts. Operations, Planning, and Governance Lead the day-to-day operations of the Center. Assume overall responsibility for budgeting, planning, reporting, and resource allocation. Ensure effective coordination across SSE departments, centers, and external collaborators. Establish clear structures for project management, evaluation, and organizational follow-up. Community Building and Outreach Foster engagement across the SSE community, connecting faculty, students, researchers, executive education participants, and external practitioners. Support interdisciplinary collaborations and new forms of public engagement. Strengthen the Center’s visibility through communications and awareness. Build networks that connect artistic, academic, entrepreneurial, and societal perspectives. Candidate Profile We are looking for an accomplished leader with a strong track record in the cultural sector. The ideal candidate will have: A genuine interest and curiosity in the role of the arts in relation to research, education, innovation, and societal development. Leadership experience within a museum, cultural institution, foundation, gallery, university-based arts organization, or comparable environment. A strong network within the arts and cultural sectors. Experience in fundraising, donor relations, sponsorship, or partnership development. Strong operational and organizational capabilities. Excellent communication, stakeholder management, and relationship-building skills. Other The recruitment involves assessment tests, interviews and a reference check. Background checks will be conducted on final candidates. We encourage you to apply promptly as we are actively reviewing applications on an ongoing basis. About the Stockholm School of Economics The Stockholm School of Economics is ranked as the top business school in the Nordic and Baltic countries and enjoys a strong international reputation. World-class research forms the foundation of our educational offering, which includes Bachelor, Master, PhD, MBA, and Executive Education programs. Through creativity and collaboration, the Stockholm School of Economics provides an environment where ambitious students and accomplished researchers meet to address contemporary challenges within business and economics, particularly those concerning sustainability, diversity and innovation. SSE is a member of the Stockholm Dual Career Network (SDCN). Through SDCN, partners of international recruits are offered professional support in establishing their careers in Sweden. SSE is committed to a balanced gender distribution and values a variety of backgrounds and experiences among our employees. We therefore welcome all applicants regardless of their gender, ethnicity, gender identity or expression, disability, sexual orientation, age, or religion or other beliefs. We strive to have a fair and inclusive recruitment process.
We're looking for a FX Artist to craft believable, high-fidelity real-time effects for a visually grounded game. You'll be responsible for the explosions, fire, smoke, fluids, weather, environmental ambiance, weapon and impact effects, and gameplay-critical readability that make our world feel physical and alive. You'll work closely with art, design, and engineering to push realism while hitting performance and clarity targets. Example of responsibilities Create and own high-quality real-time visual effects: fire, smoke, explosions, debris, fluids, atmospherics, weather, and surface/impact responses, grounded in real-world reference. Build effects that balance visual fidelity, gameplay readability, and runtime performance across target platforms. Author shaders and materials for FX, and collaborate with tech artists/engineers on simulation, lighting integration, and optimization. Develop and maintain reusable VFX systems, tools, and libraries to scale quality across the team. Partner with design and animation to ensure effects communicate gameplay clearly (telegraphs, hit feedback, state changes). Profile and optimize effects (overdraw, particle counts, draw calls, GPU cost) and debug issues across the pipeline. Contribute to look development, references, and visual targets alongside the Art Director and VFX Lead. It would be awesome if you have 5+ years of professional VFX experience in games, with at least one shipped title (or comparable production work). Strong real-time VFX skills in a modern engine; Unreal Engine (Niagara) and/or Unity (VFX Graph/Shuriken). Solid understanding of the physics and behavior behind realistic effects Proficiency with node-based shaders/materials and a good grasp of real-time lighting and rendering. Experience authoring textures and simulations using tools such as Houdini, EmberGen, Substance, or similar. A strong artistic eye, timing, silhouette, color, composition, and motion. Performance-minded: comfortable profiling and optimizing for frame budgets. Strong communication and collaboration skills across art, design, and engineering. Nice to have Houdini for VFX simulation and tool/HDA creation. Experience with fluid/destruction systems (e.g., Chaos, FLIP/Pyro). Scripting (Python, Blueprint, or similar) for tooling and automation. Background in film/VFX or a strong traditional art/photography foundation. At Embark we offer competitive salaries, a generous profit-sharing program, and much more, but most of all we invite you to take part of a journey into the unknown, to build creative, surprising and beautiful experiences together. We welcome people from all backgrounds and are looking forward to reading more about you (in English)!
Do you want to be part of creating fantastic, unique and entertaining iGaming experiences in a competitive global market? We are looking for a talented 2D Animator/VFX Artist with a strong passion for bringing life, entertainment and excitement to our growing games portfolio.ELK is a leading developer in the iGaming industry, known for our innovative, visually stunning, and critically acclaimed game titles and IPs. We push the boundaries of gameplay and visual fidelity, setting new standards in the iGaming world. ABOUT THE ROLE: We take great pride in creating and offering our players a wide range of different art styles and themes in our iGames. A typical work week as a 2D Animator can consist of: Effect creation: Create eye catching VFX and 2D animations that will make symbols, objects, characters, etc. come to life! Collaborate Across Disciplines: Work closely with other animators, artists and programmers to collaboratively build “best in class” iGames. Communication: Partner with the Art Director to follow the unique theme of each game. Be open to feedback and take the initiative to independently enhance and perfect your work, while still ensuring it aligns with the creative vision. Innovation: Push the boundaries of what is possible in the realms of iGames to create visually stunning and memorable experiences. WHO ARE YOU? We believe you are a passionate animator with an eye for details and the urge and ideas to make the best looking iGaming experiences ever. You are creative and innovative and aim to find solutions which maximize the game experience in relation to the technical limitations. To thrive with us, you need to be a team player with a good ability to handle feedback and work together with different disciplines. You are self-driven, and responsible and strive to develop your skill and others constantly. It is important that you are organized and solution-oriented with the ability to tackle challenges and solve problems with a strong sense of ownership and deliver on deadlines.QUALIFICATIONS: 🔸 Experience: Minimum of 3 years of experience creating 2D animations and VFX with focus on mobile within the gaming or similar industry. 🔸 Software skills: Strong knowledge of After Effects. Meritorious if you have experience in Photoshop and Spine. 🔸 Portfolio: A captivating portfolio/showreel demonstrating excellent animation abilities including the impactful use of VFX. 🔸 Creativity: A passion for animation and a sharp eye for detail are essential, along with the ability to adapt to various art styles. Your understanding of timing will be crucial, as you’ll create the level of excitement for the players. 🔸 Passion for Gaming: A passion for video games and an understanding of what makes them visually engaging and immersive. 🔸 Language: The ideal candidate will possess excellent English language skills, both in written and verbal communication, as this is essential for daily tasks and collaboration. Proficiency in Swedish is a plus but not required. WE OFFER: An ever-changing opportunity to explore different art styles, concepts, and themes together with highly skilled creatives in various crafts. Our project cycles are short, and you will be able to thrive in your creativity and passion by creating a range of visually stunning, unforgettable iGaming experiences. We are proud to be an equal opportunity employer. We celebrate diversity and are committed to creating an inclusive environment for all employees, where everyone is respected, valued, and empowered to succeed. An on-site setting at our awesome office, 2 minutes from T-Centralen in Stockholm, where you get to meet and collaborate with 170 nice colleagues every day. If this is you, please fill in your application below and include your showreel and CV. For the right candidate, the recruitment process includes: interviews (digitally and at our studio), as well as a work assignment. We will fill the position as soon as we have found the right candidate, so do not hesitate to submit your application as soon as possible! Please note that our Talent Acquisition team will be taking a small summer break during the month of July. The selection will be paused during this period. Please note that ELK Studios does not offer visa sponsorship or relocation assistance!