Project Manager - Animations

For a quarter of a century, the Jellycat family have brought joy, wonder and playful fun to people of all ages, in every part of the world. Utterly original and in a class of their own, they are currently among the most loved and collected toys of their kind. How has this gentle tribe endeared themselves to so many? Perhaps it is their whimsical expressions. Or the deliciously soft fabrics. Or the beautiful way in which they sit in your hand. Whatever it is, there is something magical and unmistakeable about each one of them.

As Animation Project Manager, you'll be the operational backbone of our animation production, managing the end-to-end workflow from initial creative brief through to final asset delivery. This role sits at the intersection of creative excellence and production efficiency, coordinating multiple external studio relationships while ensuring our brand quality and timelines are maintained.

You'll work directly with our Executive Creative Director, Creative Operations leadership and external animation partners to build scalable production systems that can support significant volume growth while working as part of the central Project Delivery Team providing to ensure governance and visibility to our Senior Leadership Team.

This role is for a highly motivated and dynamic Project Manager with experience managing multiple, complex animation projects.

This role is designed for a leader who thrives in a fast-paced environment, actively seeks out project responsibilities, and excels at bringing together diverse teams to achieve common goals. The ideal candidate will be someone who does not shy away from diving deep into project details and works closely with team members at all levels to drive project success.

You'll be;

• Owning the end-to-end production workflow for all animation projects from brief intake through final delivery. Manage production timelines across multiple concurrent projects in Monday.com with varying complexity levels (CGI character creation, standard animations, drop-style animations, reformatting). Coordinating capacity planning across external partners ensuring optimal resource allocation.

• Serving as a primary point of contact for external animation partners on all production matters. Conducting regular capacity check-ins and production status meetings with external partners. Brief animation studios clearly on project requirements, brand guidelines, and quality expectations. Provide structured feedback and facilitate revision cycles between creative leadership and studio teams. Managing studio invoicing, purchase orders, and budget tracking.

• Leading the project from conception to completion working primarily with our Executive Creative Director and creative team, but also with the wider Jellycat business to ensure requirements are clear, documented and delivered. The individual will ensure the project is delivered on time, within scope, and budget. You need to embrace hands-on involvement in all project phases, actively engaging with team members, stakeholders, and vendors to maintain project momentum.

• Fostering a culture of collaboration within the project team. Facilitating regular team meetings and workshops to ensure open communication, problem-solving, and team alignment. Acting as a mediator to resolve conflicts and encourage a positive work environment.

• Establishing and maintaining strong relationships with our CEO, CMO and Executive Creative Director as well as all project stakeholders. Ensuring their needs and expectations are clearly understood and addressed through continuous engagement and communication.

• Proactively identifing potential project risks and issues. Leading the effort in problem-solving and decision-making processes with a collaborative approach, involving the relevant team members and stakeholders.

• Ensuring all animation output meets Jellycat's premium brand quality standards and creative vision. Implement quality checkpoints throughout production pipeline.

• Promoting a culture of continuous improvement by encouraging feedback from team members and stakeholders. Implement best practices in project management, leveraging team insights and industry trends to enhance project efficiency and effectiveness.

• Efficiently securing and allocating project resources including cross functional team members, budgets, ensuring the right mix of skills and expertise is available to meet project demands. Actively participating in the selection and onboarding of project team members.

You'll have;

• 5+ years in animation production coordination or project management, preferably in an agency or studio environment.

• Proven experience managing external creative partners, particularly animation studios.

• Strong understanding of animation production workflows including script development, animatic creation, set design, animation, and post-production.

• Project management expertise with demonstrated ability to manage multiple concurrent projects with varying timelines.

• Experience with project management platforms ( Monday.com experience highly desirable, but expertise with similar tools like Asana, Jira, or Basecamp will transfer).

• Budget management experience including tracking production costs, managing purchase orders, and financial forecasting.

• Exceptional organisational and time management capabilities.

• Outstanding communication skills with ability to translate between creative vision and production requirements.

• Proactive problem-solving with ability to identify and resolve bottlenecks before they impact timelines.

• Detail-oriented with high standards for accuracy and completeness.

• Ability to provide clear, constructive feedback to creative partners.

• Comfortable working in a fast-paced, high-growth environment with competing priorities.

• Strong stakeholder management across diverse teams and seniority levels.

Desirable Experience

• Experience with comedy animation or character-driven content (understanding of comic timing, physical comedy, visual gags).

• Familiarity with IP agreements and creative rights management in animation production.

• Experience scaling production operations during rapid growth periods.

• Background working with UK animation studios (Aardman, Blue Zoo, Cartoon Saloon, or similar).

• Knowledge of asset management systems (Aprimo experience a plus) and content distribution workflows.

• Previous experience in luxury consumer goods or premium brand environments.