Animation Intern

Hornets Sports & Entertainment (HSE) is a leading sports and entertainment organization dedicated to excellence both on and off the court. With new leadership and a strong strategic vision, HSE is focused on building a premier NBA franchise and delivering best-in-class experiences for fans, partners, and employees.

In addition to Charlotte Hornets basketball, Spectrum Center serves as a premier venue for concerts, family shows, and major sporting events. HSE is committed to positively impacting the Charlotte community by fostering connection, inclusion, and engagement through sports and live entertainment.

HSE is seeking an Animation intern to play a key role in assisting the department with day-to-day content creation and a wide variety of visual projects for all Hornets home games and select HSE events.

This is a paid, in-person internship. Interns will be paid $15.00 per hour, with the ability to work a minimum of twenty (20), maximum of thirty (30) hours per week. The 2026-2027 season program runs from September 7, 2026, through April 23, 2027.

Candidates must submit a portfolio, demo reel, or examples of work in order to be considered for this internship position.

Core Values

HSE embodies the following core values:

• Integrity
• Teamwork
• Competitiveness
• Candor
• Accountability
• Resilience

HSE is an equal opportunity employer and value diversity at our company. HSE does not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, gender, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability status.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities

• Support the daily operations of the Animation department by assisting with creative and production tasks.
• Design and produce high-energy graphic content for scoreboards and arena video boards, adapting to various display formats (LED, multiple screen compositions) with video effects, compositing, typography and 2D/3D animations.
• Contribute to the conceptualization and development of animations for all HSE brands.
• Assist in the implementation, execution and organization of graphic elements while maintaining a well-structured asset library.
• Ensure all projects align with HSE brand guidelines, maintaining consistency and high-quality standards.
• Collaborate effectively with multiple departments, incorporating feedback and creative direction as needed.
• Support game-day graphic staff by ensuring brand consistency, executing partnership activations and managing dynamic visual content during all Hornets games.
• Participate in the full internship program, including workshops, speaker series, job shadowing, and working on an intern project.
• Perform other duties as assigned.

Required Skills, Experience, and Abilities

To be successful in this position, candidates should demonstrate the following:

• Passion to work in motion graphics/animation field.

• Male collegiate basketball players must have exhausted their NCAA eligibility before participating in the HSE internship program.

• Familiarity with the following programs & equipment is required:

• Intermediate ability in After Effects & Photoshop

• Working knowledge of a 3D program is preferred (Cinema 4D, Maya, Blender)

• Microsoft Office and other computer software

• Hardworking, dedicated and organized.

• Creativity, enthusiasm and willingness to learn on the fly while using prior knowledge in fast-paced, deadline driven environment.

• Strong communications/media background is preferred.

• Able to maintain confidentiality and use discretion when privy to sensitive information.