Festival Arts Director

Festival of the Arts Director

Full-time Exempt

Reports to Executive Director

35 hours per week

2 days per week work from home (as approved and with event weeks excluded)

Arts Council Oklahoma City is a nonprofit dedicated to enriching lives through the arts. We produce year-round events, offer educational programs, and build partnerships to connect our community through creativity.

The Festival Director will be responsible for conceiving, planning, executing, and evaluating the signature festival (and related events) of ACOKC. This role leads all aspects of the festival lifecycle — programming, operations, logistics, marketing, partnerships, budget, vendor/artist relations, staffing/volunteers, and post-event analysis. The ideal candidate is a strategic thinker with strong event management experience, excellent communication and leadership skills, and a passion for arts and community engagement.

• Lead the overall vision and strategy for the festival, aligning it with the mission and goals of ACOKC.
• Develop, manage, and monitor the festival budget (including revenue forecasts, expense tracking, vendor payments).
• Collaborate with the marketing/communications team to promote the festival: branding, messaging, website, social media, press, community outreach.
• Secure and manage sponsor ships, grants, partnerships, and vendor/artist contracts. Build and maintain relationships with artists, performers, vendors, sponsors, local businesses, community groups, and city departments.
• Oversee scheduling and programming: curated arts, coordinate artist contracts, performance logistics, and technical/production needs.
• Lead operations and logistics: site planning, permits/licensing, vendor layout, vendor relations, safety/security, volunteer management, hospitality, on-site staff scheduling.
• Manage staffing of the festival: hire/manage festival staff, recruit/train/coordinate volunteers, specify roles and responsibilities, ensure strong customer service and attendee experience. Oversee 28 committees responsible for the recruitment of 2,500 volunteers.
• Ensure accessibility, inclusivity, and engagement of underserved communities, aligning with ACOKC’s mission of participation in the arts for all.
• Monitor and enforce compliance with relevant local regulations (permits, insurance, health & safety, ADA/accessibility, vendor/contractor requirements).
• Post-event evaluation: collect data, feedback, metrics (attendance, financials, vendor/artist satisfaction, press coverage), prepare reports and recommendations for improvement.
• Work proactively with the Executive Director and Board on long-term festival strategy, growth opportunities, innovation, risk management, and sustainability.
• Represent ACOKC and the festival in public: events, meetings, media engagements, and community forums.
• Assist the Executive Director in the maintenance of ACOKC buildings.
• Maintain Festival inventory and ACOKC production inventory.

• Bachelor’s degree – (Arts Administration, Event Management, Business, Marketing, or Related Field)
• 5 + Years of progressive event management or festival director-level experience, preferably within arts/non-profit/cultural organizations.

• Demonstrate experience with large-scale, multi-day public events.
• Strong budgeting and financial management skills: comfortable managing complex budgets, revenue streams, and expense forecasting.
• Strategic thinker with close attention to detail and strong organization skills; able to manage multiple projects and deadlines in a fast-paced environment.

• Proven ability to secure sponsor ships, partnerships, and develop funding relationships.
• Easily builds strong working relationships, with the ability to recruit and manage volunteers successfully.
• Excellent leadership and people-management skills.

• Public-facing presence required.
• Knowledge of Excel, Google Suite, Adobe, Canva, and Microsoft Office.

• Flexible availability, including readiness to work during events, lunches, evenings, and weekends. Ability to work independently with minimum…