Resume template · Updated October 2026
Art director resume template
Short answer
Daniel suits an art director: rounded headings and skill pills give a designed but readable look, and skills print before experience so tools and craft areas are seen first. The fictional sample art directs campaigns, photo shoots and brand systems at a design agency. Show campaigns, shoots, team size, brand work and results, and link a portfolio.
Download the art director sample
Jordan is a fictional art director. Replace every detail with your own before you send it.
The files are made in your browser by Resumity's own exporters, from this sample. The builder opens it as your own resume: click any line to replace it. Free plan, no watermark.
Why Daniel suits an art director resume
Daniel prints summary and skills before experience, with rounded headings and skills as pills. It looks designed without stealing focus from your portfolio, and it shows craft areas and tools before the jobs, the way creative leads screen.
Second choice: Leslie. Leslie is quieter and puts experience first, a fit for senior art directors with long client lists.
What goes in each section, in Daniel's order
Daniel prints its sections in a fixed order, the same in the PDF and the Word file. Here is that order for this sample, and what to put in each section.
- Professional Summary. Agency or in-house, sectors, media (print, digital, video), years of experience and one award or result.
- Skills. Art direction, layout, typography, photo and video direction, brand systems and tools.
- Work Experience. Bullets on campaigns, shoots directed, brand systems, team or freelancers managed, results and awards.
- Education. Design or fine arts degree with the year.
The sample resume as text
The same content as the files above, so you can copy a line or compare it with your own.
Jordan Fields
Art Director, Brand and Campaign
Portland, OR | jordan.fields@example.com | (503) 555-0149 | sample-jordan-fields.example.com/work
Art director with eight years at design and advertising agencies. Lead campaign visuals, photo shoots and brand systems for outdoor, food and tech clients.
Experience
Art Director, Rose City Design Co., Portland, OR (04/2021 to Present)
- Art direct about 12 campaigns a year across print, social, web and video for outdoor and food brands.
- Direct about 15 photo and video shoots a year with photographers, stylists and crews.
- Led the identity refresh for a regional coffee brand, from logo update to packaging system.
- Direct a team of three designers and up to five freelancers on busy projects.
- Campaign work won two regional design awards.
Senior Designer, Cascade Creative, Portland, OR (06/2017 to 03/2021)
- Designed campaigns and brand materials for tech and retail clients.
- Built social and display ad templates.
- Prepared print production files.
Education
Bachelor of Fine Arts, Graphic Design, Pacific Northwest College of Art (05/2017)
Skills
Art direction, Photo shoot direction, Typography, Brand identity, Campaign concepts, Adobe Creative Cloud, Figma, Keynote, Creative feedback
How to make the sample yours
Describe campaigns
Clients or brands, media and your role. Name public work if allowed.
Show shoots directed
Photo and video shoots per year and the crews you worked with. Shoot direction sets art directors apart from designers.
Include brand systems
Identity refreshes or design systems you led.
Show team work
Designers and freelancers you direct, and your copywriter partner.
Add results and awards
Campaign results the client shared, and awards with the year.
Keywords to keep where they are true
Terms this kind of resume is usually searched for. Use the posting's exact wording, and only for work you have done.
- art director
- art direction
- campaign design
- photo shoots
- typography
- layout
- brand identity
- design systems
- Adobe Creative Cloud
- Figma
- concept development
- visual storytelling
Mistakes to avoid
- Work you did not direct.
- Confidential campaigns.
- A resume so designed it is hard to read.
- No portfolio link.
How the sample PDF reads in text extractors
We exported this sample with Resumity's PDF exporter in Chrome on 2026-10-29 and read the file back with three open-source text extractors. This shows whether software that turns a PDF into text can recover it; it is not a test of any commercial applicant tracking system. How we test templates.
| Extractor | Name, email, phone | Headings | Bullets intact |
|---|---|---|---|
| pdf.js 4.10.38 | All found | 4 of 4 | 8 of 8 |
| pdftotext (Xpdf) 4.00 | All found | 4 of 4 | 8 of 8 |
| pypdf 6.13.0 | All found | 4 of 4 | 8 of 8 |
Frequently asked questions
What should an art director resume focus on?
Campaigns, shoots directed, brand systems, team work, results and awards. Creative leads want to see ideas carried through to finished work.
How designed should my resume be?
A little. Show taste in type and spacing, but keep it easy to read and easy for software to parse. Let the portfolio show your full range.
How do I move from senior designer to art director?
Show concepts you led, shoots you directed and designers you guided. Directing others is the main step up. A portfolio piece that shows the concept, the shoot and the final layouts makes the case well.
Should I list my copywriter partner?
You can mention working with a copywriter on campaigns. It shows you work in a creative pair, which agencies expect. If you moved agencies together, a short note explains the overlap in your timelines.
Is this template right for in-house art directors?
Yes. Replace clients with brands or product lines and describe how you work with marketing teams.
How long should the resume be?
One page for most art directors. Your portfolio carries the visual proof.
Will applicant tracking systems read this Daniel PDF?
The sample PDF read back with its contact details, all 4 section headings and all 8 bullets intact in three open-source text extractors (pdf.js, pdftotext and pypdf). Commercial systems such as Workday, Greenhouse or Taleo were not tested, and each employer configures its own.
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