Contract: Production Coordinator (Remote, US)

Why You'll Love This Role: 

Newsela’s in-house multimedia studio is up and running, and we’re looking for an exceptional Production Coordinator to help us scale it to the next level.

You’ll support two exciting content initiatives reaching millions of students and teachers:

• A fun, character-driven animated series for K–8 students that builds knowledge, sparks curiosity, and makes learning unforgettable.
• Educational mini documentaries that explain fascinating topics through engaging storytelling, motion graphics, and visual journalism.

As our Production Coordinator, you’ll own the operational heartbeat of the studio. You’ll ensure productions stay organized, collaborators stay aligned, and projects move smoothly from concept through final delivery.

While many of our core systems and workflows are already in place, this role is critical to refining, scaling, and strengthening them as our output grows. You’ll help optimize how we work, improve efficiency, and ensure our creative teams can do their best work without friction. If you enjoy improving processes, solving complex production challenges, and collaborating with talented artists, writers, animators, and educators, this is a unique opportunity to help shape the next phase of our studio’s growth.

What You'll Be Doing:

Production Management & Coordination

• Maintain and update Airtable production trackers for all video projects (status, assignments, delivery dates, feedback cycles).
• Track progress across writing, design, illustration, animation, audio, and post-production phases.
• Manage daily and weekly status reports, flagging risks, blockers, and deadlines.
• Schedule internal and external production syncs, reviews, talent VO records  and feedback sessions as needed.
• Maintain Slack channel communication for projects updated and organized

Asset & File Management

• Organize and version-control all project assets (scripts, storyboards, illustrations, animation files, VO, music, exports) across Google Drive / Frame.io.
• Ensure naming conventions and folder structures are followed consistently across the team.
• Coordinate delivery of final assets to appropriate internal and external stakeholders

Freelancer & Vendor Communication

• Serve as the day-to-day point of contact for freelance animators, illustrators, and audio engineers.
• Collect invoices, contracts, and W-9s; route them through Newsela’s vendor process.
• Track freelancer assignments, deliverables, and availability.
• Support onboarding of new contractors into workflows and toolkits.

Process & Workflow Improvement

• Help document and refine production processes for animation and multimedia projects.
• Support implementation of new workflow tools or integrations (e.g., AI-assisted asset tagging, Airtable automations).
• Collaborate on building templates for schedules, trackers, and production documentation.
• Document and keep credits updated for all videos

About You:

2–4 years experience as a Production Coordinator or Production Assistant in animation, educational media, or digital video production.
Familiarity with animation production stages, script, storyboard, animatic, layout, animation, final delivery.
Strong project management and organizational skills with proficiency in Airtable, Google Workspace, and Adobe Creative Cloud.
Clear and professional communication with internal teams and external vendors.
Ability to multitask across multiple active projects in a fast-paced environment.

Preferred

• Experience coordinating for animation studios or EdTech video production
• Knowledge of tools like Frame.io, Slack, and AirTable.
• Understanding of accessibility and education-centered media production.
• A passion for storytelling that helps kids learn and feel inspired.

All offers of employment are contingent upon the successful completion of a background check as