CAREERS

Part-time contract, remote (Canada) | ~10 hours a week to start, growing with the client base | $30 CAD an hour

About The Narrative Refinery

The Narrative Refinery is a boutique social media and content agency based in the Greater Toronto Area. We work with small businesses across a growing range of industries, including beauty, lifestyle, and local service brands, and we handle the whole picture: strategy, photography, design, video, and monthly content that clients approve and post with confidence.

We're a small, founder-led team building toward something bigger, and this role is one of the first hires that gets us there.

About the Role

Right now our founder organizes every asset, designs every post, and edits every Reel herself. This role exists to change that.

The Social Content Editor takes ownership of the editing work and delivers high-performing assets that don't feel like they came from a template. The work is designing and editing specifically for social media: feed posts, carousels, Stories, and short-form video, built from each client's shoot assets and brand direction.

You'll work closely with the founder, who sets the strategy and content plan, and you'll own the craft that turns that plan into a finished feed.

What you will do

• Transform bulk photographer asset deliveries into a month of finished, on-brand social media graphics and videos

• Colour-correct and retouch stills in Adobe Lightroom to align with each client's visual preferences

• Write on-graphic copy for carousels, Stories, and Reel hooks from the founder's content brief

• Design static posts, carousels, and Story graphics in Canva that maintain each client's brand identity and tone

• Edit short-form video from raw footage for Instagram and TikTok, complete with engaging captions, pacing, and sound

• Execute against client shot lists and content plans, and flag assets that don't support the planned concept so alternatives can be developed

• Upload finished content to Rella for client approval in line with the monthly production calendar

• Contribute to the development of asset naming, storage, and archiving standards across all client shoots

Strategy, client communication, community management, and shoot coordination stay with our founder, so your time goes to the creative work itself.

The goal is that a client opens the month's content and says "this feels like us."

What we need from you

Must have

• Graphic design and video editing for social as your primary craft, with a portfolio of published work: feed posts, carousels, Stories, and short-form video

• Fluency in Canva, CapCut, and Adobe Lightroom

• A social-native eye: you understand grids, hooks, safe zones, aspect ratios, and what is currently working on Instagram and TikTok

• Based in Canada and eligible to work here. Our clients and photographers are in the GTA.

• Comfortable working remotely with a founder who travels often, which means clear written communication and reliable turnaround

Nice to have

• Experience with Rella for content uploads and feedback is a strong plus. If you haven't used it, you'll need to be willing to learn, since it's where all content is stored for client approval.

• Experience with brands in industries like beauty, aesthetics, wellness, floral, or local services

• Photography or retouching background

• Experience in an agency or multi-client setting

How we work

• Fully remote. Our clients are in Ontario and our founder travels regularly, so most collaboration happens asynchronously.

• One short weekly video call at a fixed time to review work in progress, answer questions, and give live feedback. Everything else runs through Rella and written notes.

• Most clients run on a quarterly production day, so assets arrive in large batches you can plan a full quarter of content from. Some clients are on monthly photographer sessions.

• Tools: Rella, Canva, Adobe Lightroom, CapCut Pro, Google Workspace

How to apply
Click here and fill out the form to apply

While we’d love to personally respond to each applicant, we receive hundreds of applications. Only successful candidates will be contacted for next steps.

Freelance contract, on location in the Greater Toronto Area | ~20 hours per month | $30 CAD an hour

About The Narrative Refinery

The Narrative Refinery is a boutique social media and content agency based in the Greater Toronto Area. We work with small businesses across a growing range of industries, including beauty, lifestyle, and local service brands, and we handle the whole picture: strategy, photography, design, video, and monthly content that clients approve and post with confidence. We're a small, founder-led team building toward something bigger, and this role is how we make every content day count.

About the role

Our founder builds the strategy and writes the shot list for every client shoot, but we need someone on set to help bring those ideas to life.

Right now the photographer carries the day alone: managing the client, reading the room, and deciding on the fly whether a shot is working. This role puts a creative lead in that room.

The On-Set Creative Lead owns the content day from arrival to wrap. You know the shot list and the strategy behind it, you know what the finished post needs to look like on Instagram and TikTok, and you can tell in real time whether what's being captured will get there. When it won't, you say so and you pivot.

Just as important, you are the person who makes the client and their staff comfortable in front of a camera. Most of our talent are business owners and their staff who have never done this before. Getting the most out of a content day means getting the most out of them.

What you will do

• Lead on-location content days for assigned clients

• Review the shot list, content plan, and linked examples before each shoot, and arrive with a run of show for the day

• Assist the photographer on directing framing, sequence, and coverage so every planned post has the stills and video it needs, including 4:5 and 9:16 versions

• Call it out when a shot isn't working, and implement creative pivots on the spot without losing the intent of the plan

• Coach and encourage talent on set: business owners, staff, and occasional models, most of whom may be camera shy

• Manage the client contact during the shoot, keep the day on schedule, and handle the small logistics that come up in a working business

• Capture behind-the-scenes clips and notes for the editing team, including anything the client raised on set

• Send a short post-shoot recap to the founder: what was captured, what was missed, what to change next time

What we need from you

Must have

• Experience directing or producing photo and video shoots for brands, ideally content made for social media

• A working understanding of the social production process from brief to post, and of what performs on Instagram and TikTok right now

• The confidence to speak up on set, including to the photographer and the client, when the shot doesn't look right

• Warmth and patience with people who are nervous on camera, and a track record of getting natural, usable content out of them

• Based in the Greater Toronto Area with reliable transportation to client locations

• Consistent availability for recurring bookings on a monthly and quarterly cadence

• Clear, prompt written communication, since coordination with the founder happens by message

Nice to have

• Photography or videography background, so you can step in with a phone or second camera when it helps

• Experience working from a client's shot list or creative brief rather than building one from scratch

How we work

• Every shoot comes with a shot list and content plan, with linked examples of the look we're going for, shared in advance with you, the photographer, and the client

• Sessions are booked on a recurring schedule per client with advance notice, so you'll know your dates well ahead

• You'll work alongside our freelance photographers; the photographer captures, you direct

• Our founder travels regularly, so pre-shoot coordination is at times asynchronous and you'll have a direct line if needed on shoot days

How to apply:‍ ‍Click here and fill out the form to apply

About The Narrative Refinery

The Narrative Refinery is a boutique social media and content agency based in the Greater Toronto Area. We work with small businesses across a growing range of industries, including beauty, lifestyle, and local service brands, and we handle the whole picture: strategy, photography, design, video, and monthly content that clients approve and post with confidence. We're a small, founder-led team building toward something bigger, and our photographers are a core part of how we deliver.

About the role

Every client we work with gets a recurring shoot, and the photographs and footage from that shoot become the raw material for a full month or quarter of social content. You are the person on location capturing it.

This is a shoot-and-deliver role. Our founder builds the strategy, writes the shot list with linked examples, and briefs the client ahead of time. You arrive prepared, capture the list, add your own eye where it helps, and deliver raw files. Editing, design, captions, and posting happen on our side.

Because our founder is not on set, we rely on our photographers to be self-directed, personable with clients and their staff, and comfortable making small creative calls in the moment when a planned shot doesn't work in the space.

What you will do

• Shoot recurring on-location sessions for assigned clients at their business, either a two-hour monthly session or a full quarterly production day

• Capture the shot list shared in advance through Rella, covering stills for feed posts, carousels, and Stories, plus short-form video clips and b-roll for Reels and TikTok

• Direct staff, products, and spaces on set to get the planned shots, and communicate clearly with the client contact throughout the session

• Deliver all usable frames and clips, not a curated edit, as raw files to our shared Google Drive within 2 business days of the shoot

• Follow our file naming and folder structure so assets are ready for editing on arrival

• Flag anything from the shoot the founder should know, such as shots that couldn't be captured, staff availability, or ideas the client raised on set

• Suggest shots or angles beyond the list when you see something that would work for the brand

Strategy, shot lists, client communication before and after the shoot, editing, and posting stay with our team, so your time on site goes entirely to capturing.

What we need from you

Must have

• A portfolio of brand, product, lifestyle, or commercial photography, ideally work that ended up on a business's social accounts

• Your own camera, lenses, and lighting suitable for small interiors such as salons, clinics, studios, and shops

• Experience shooting short-form video clips and b-roll on the same session as stills

• Comfort directing people who are not models, including business owners and their staff

• Based in the Greater Toronto Area with reliable transportation to client locations. Please note the areas you can cover without travel fees.

• Consistent availability for recurring bookings on a monthly or quarterly cadence

• Clear, prompt written communication, since most coordination happens by message rather than in person

Nice to have

• Experience with beauty, aesthetics, wellness, floral, veterinary, or local service businesses

• Familiarity with how content performs on Instagram and TikTok, and what a shot needs to work in a 4:5 or 9:16 frame

• Experience working from a client's shot list or creative brief

• Experience with Rella, or willingness to learn, since that's where shot lists live

How we work

• Shot lists are shared as a Rella note with you and the client ahead of every shoot, with linked examples of the look we're going for

• Sessions are booked on a recurring schedule per client, so you'll know your dates well in advance

• Raw files are delivered through Adobe Lightroom and Google Drive; we do all colour, retouching, and design in-house

• Our founder travels regularly, so coordination is asynchronous and you'll have a direct line by message for anything that comes up on set

• Freelance contractor agreement, invoiced per shoot

How to apply

Click here and fill out the form to apply