The process began with a technical task that seemed standard for an Art Director role. I was briefed to evolve their existing visual style for high-volume production (50–100 videos/year). They provided their own "control" storyboard and video as a benchmark, which naturally signals a requirement for a refined, scalable system. I spent several days building a modular, component-based library in Figma and Jitter to meet their specific scalability requirements.
However, the actual interview was incredibly unprofessional. Despite I followed the written brief to the letter, they interrupted the presentation at slide two. They claimed they wanted something "completely new" and "not a restyle," directly contradicting the materials and the scalability constraints provided in the brief. The lack of alignment between the brief and the CEO's vision was staggering. Furthermore, the recruitment manager used intimidation tactics, mentioning other candidates to devalue my time and effort.