Director​/Principal Motion Designer, Design

Position: Director / Principal Motion Designer, Expedia Design
At Expedia Group, we help travelers explore the world, one journey at a time. As a global travel company powered by passionate people, trusted partnerships, and leading technology, we connect travelers, partners, and advertisers through our consumer brands, B2B network, and travel advertising business.

Here, you'll do meaningful work that helps millions of people discover, book, and experience travel with more ease, confidence, and joy. Our five Behaviors-Traveler First, Think Big, Operate with Excellence, Ownership Mindset, and Succeed Together-help foster a supportive environment where people can grow their careers and have the flexibility, benefits, and support to do their best work. Join us and build for travelers everywhere.

Locations:
San Francisco, Seattle, New York, Los Angeles, or Austin

About the Role:

Motion is how our products feel and how our stories land. As Director / Principal Motion Designer, you'll define Expedia Design's motion language and raise the bar for both product and brand.

You are equally at home refining a micro-interaction in the app and directing a sizzle reel for a major campaign.

You'll partner closely with product designers, engineers, brand, and marketing. You'll also act as the connective tissue between design intent and what actually ships.

What You'll Do:

Define and evolve our motion language

Establish motion principles, patterns, and guidelines that make our products feel delightful, clear, and unmistakably Expedia Build motion into our design system so teams can use it consistently and at scale

Design UI motion for product

Craft the details that make an app feel polished: transitions, micro-interactions, state changes, loading and success moments, and moments of delight

Prototype to explore and validate ideas, and advocate for motion that serves usability, not just decoration

Bridge design and engineering

Write clear, implementable motion specs for engineers (timing, easing, springs, choreography, triggers) across iOS, Android, and web Partner with engineering on implementation and review builds to make sure the shipped experience matches the intent

Stay current on motion implementation approaches across tech stacks (e.g., native animation frameworks, Lottie, Rive, CSS/JS animation) and advise teams on the right approach for each use case Create editorial and promotional motion

Design, build, or direct sizzle reels, product launch videos, and promotional and storytelling pieces

Develop concepts, storyboards, and narratives, and guide them through production, whether you execute them yourself or direct internal teams and external partners

Lead and elevate

Be the go-to expert and voice for motion across Expedia Design, setting the quality bar and giving thoughtful, constructive critique

Mentor designers and partners on motion craft, and build motion capability across the organization

Influence stakeholders, from product leadership to brand and marketing, on why and how motion matters

What You Bring:

Must have:

Deep expertise in UI motion design, with a portfolio that shows polished, purposeful product animation

Proven ability to create engineering-ready motion specs and hand off across iOS, Android, and web Strong working knowledge of how motion is implemented in code across different tech stacks, and the practical constraints of each Mastery of industry-standard motion and prototyping tools (e.g., After Effects, Figma, Principle, Rive, Lottie workflows, or equivalent)
Demonstrated ability to design, build, or direct editorial motion work such as brand films, sizzle videos, and promotional content

Strong storytelling, art direction, and sense of timing, rhythm, and craft

Excellent communication and collaboration skills, with experience influencing cross-functional partners at a senior level

Experience raising the craft bar for a team or organization, through mentorship, standards, or leadership

Nice to have:3D design skills (e.g., Cinema 4D, Blender) and experience integrating 3D into product or brand storytelling

Experience building or contributing to a motion system within a design system

Experience in travel, consumer marketplaces, or other high-volume consumer products

Hands-on familiarity with front-end or native animation code, enough to prototype or contribute directly

What Success Looks Like:

Our products have a recognizable, cohesive, and delightful motion identity

Engineers have clear specs and ship motion that matches design intent

Brand and campaign storytelling is elevated through compelling motion…