Director of Studio & Creative Engagement

About Crunchyroll

Founded by fans, Crunchyroll delivers the art and culture of anime to a passionate community. We super-serve over 100 million anime and manga fans across 200+ countries and territories, and help them connect with the stories and characters they crave. Whether that experience is online or in-person, streaming video, theatrical, games, merchandise, events and more, it’s powered by the anime content we all love.

Join our team, and help us shape the future of anime!

About the role

Join Crunchyroll at the heart of anime creation. As our Director of Studio & Creative Engagement, you'll shape the future of anime by building and nurturing relationships with Japan's top studios and creative partners. Reporting to the VP of Content Strategy & Development, you'll lead our commissioning and co-production efforts — identifying projects, refining creative pitches, and helping bring beloved stories to life for fans worldwide.

You'll serve as the important bridge between our studio partners in Japan and company partners across Content, Strategy, and Production. You'll play a hands-on role in shaping the next generation of Crunchyroll Originals, ensuring that every project we champion reflects our passion for storytelling and our commitment to anime culture.

Location: Los Angeles, CA (Hybrid) — Relocation assistance available for exceptional candidates

What You'll Do

• Lead direct engagement with anime studios and production partners in Japan to identify projects.

• Refine creative proposals according to Crunchyroll's content strategy and global audience goals.

• Collaborate with stakeholders to support greenlight decisions, pitch reviews, and ongoing communications throughout development.

• Maintain visibility into project pipelines and production progress, ensuring transparency and momentum across the organization.

About You

We're excited about candidates who bring a balance of creativity, cultural fluency, and operational excellence. You have:

• 7+ years of experience in content development, creative production, or anime/IP evaluation.

• Deep familiarity with the Japanese anime production ecosystem, with direct experience collaborating with studios, creators, or production committees.

• Fluency in both Japanese and English, with an ability to conduct business in both languages.

• A proven ability to identify and shape compelling stories and IP.

• Exceptional organizational, skills and experience managing multiple creative projects in motion

About the Team

The Content Strategy & Development team defines what content powers Crunchyroll's global growth and how to bring it to life. We blend creative vision with strategic insight, collaborating across teams and regions to ensure our anime slate excites fans, expands franchises, and celebrates creators.

If you're passionate about storytelling, love building relationships across cultures, and want to help bring the next generation of anime to life, we'd love to hear from you.

Why you will love working at Crunchyroll

In addition to getting to work with fun, passionate and inspired colleagues, you will also enjoy the following benefits and perks:

• Receive a great compensation package including salary plus performance bonus earning potential, paid annually.

• Flexible time off policies allowing you to take the time you need to be your whole self.

• Generous medical, dental, vision, STD, LTD, and life insurance

• Health Saving Account HSA program

• Health care and dependent care FSA

• 401(k) plan, with employer match

• Employer paid commuter benefit

• Support program for new parents

• Pet insurance and some of our offices are pet friendly!

#LifeAtCrunchyroll #LI-Hybrid

The Pay Range for this position is listed. Actual pay will vary based on factors including, but not limited to location, experience, and performance. The range listed is just one component of Crunchyroll’s Total Rewards offerings for employees. Other rewards may include performance bonuses, employer matched retirement savings, time-off programs, and progressive health benefits and perks.
Pay Transparency - Los Angeles, CA
$150,000—$170,000 USD

About our Values

We want to be everything for someone rather than something for everyone and we do this by living and modeling our values in all that we do. We value

•
Courage. We believe that when we overcome fear, we enable our best selves.

•
Curiosity. We are curious, which is the gateway to empathy, inclusion, and understanding.

• Kaizen. We have a growth mindset committed to constant forward progress.

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Service. We serve our community with humility, enabling joy and belonging for others.

Our commitment to diversity and inclusion

Our mission of helping people belong reflects our commitment to diversity & inclusion. It's just the way we do business.

We are an equal opportunity employer and value diversity at Crunchyroll. Pursuant to applicable law, we do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability status.

Crunchyroll, LLC is an independently operated joint venture between US-based Sony Pictures Entertainment, and Japan's Aniplex, a subsidiary of Sony Music Entertainment (Japan) Inc., both subsidiaries of Tokyo-based Sony Group Corporation.

Questions about Crunchyroll’s hiring process? Please check out our Hiring FAQs: https://help.crunchyroll.com/hc/en-us/articles/360040471712-Crunchyroll-Hiring-FAQs

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