Groom Artist (Houdini) - TV featurette

For more than 35 years, Bardel Entertainment has led the animation industry through unwavering commitment to quality, creativity, and innovation. We are an internationally recognized, Emmy Award®-winning studio – in two prominent Canadian cities, Vancouver and Montreal – and the creative force behind top audience hits such as The Dragon Prince, Rick and Morty, Teen Titans Go!, and Diary of a Wimpy Kid. 

Core Responsibilities 

• Create and implement hair, fur, feathers, and other fibrous grooms using specialized software (such as Houdini). 

• Model and sculpt hair/fur guides to define direction, flow, shape, and volume. 

• Generate hair/fur strands from the guides, controlling density, thickness, length, and other attributes. 

• Style the groom to match the character design and the Art Director's vision. 

• Create and apply materials and textures (shading) for hair/fur, controlling color, shine, reflectivity, and other properties. 

• Work on UV mapping and texture layout using software like Maya. 

• Perform render tests of the groom under different lighting conditions. 

• Optimize the groom for efficient performance in animation and rendering, managing render times. 

• Troubleshoot technical issues related to groom deformation during animation or simulation. 

Collaboration & Workflow 

• Collaborate with leadership, production, and team members to solve problems and share insights.  

• Collaborate with the modeling, rigging, animation, lighting, and CFX teams to ensure the correct integration of the groom into the production pipeline. 

• Engage in dailies, rounds, and team discussions to contribute to creative and technical improvements. 

• Adhere to pipeline workflows and technical requirements for seamless integration into the production process. 

• For senior artists, actively mentor junior team members by providing constructive feedback, guidance, and support. 

Time Management & Communication 

• Maintain consistency in quality while meeting production needs. 

• Manage time effectively, working with production to stay on schedule. 

• Keep the team and production staff informed about progress, challenges, and solutions. 

Previous production experience as a Groom Artist (or similar) in TV series or featurette animation. 

• For Junior level, a strong Groom reel (see below). 

Skills & Communication 

• Excellent verbal and written communication skills to effectively promote solutions, share knowledge, and incorporate feedback. 

• Strong time management skills. 

• Experience with grooming in Houdini. 

• Experience in UV mapping and texture layout using Maya. 

• Experience in hair/fur simulation (often in collaboration with the CFX department) is a plus. 

• Knowledge of scripting (Python, MEL) can be a plus. 

A portfolio that demonstrates: 

• A range of grooms for creatures, digital doubles, topology, and blend shapes using Houdini.  

• Eye for detail and good design sense is essential. 

• Knowledge of digital painting (Photoshop, Substance Painter) to create color maps and other groom attributes. 

• Understanding of color theory and its application. 

Location: British Columbia, Canada

Pay Range: CAD $1100 - $1600 per week   

This salary range provided reflects our current expectations for these roles as of this posting’s date. Your final salary offer will consider various key factors, including your education, qualifications, certifications, experience, skills, geographical location, as well as the needs and requirements of the business. 

Flexible work environment, Extended Health and Wellness from day 1, RRSP matching are just some of the benefits. For more details, check out our website. 

At Bardel, we recognize that flexibility is key to doing great work. Our hybrid work environment is a valued perk designed to support individual accountability and empower our teams to work where they’re most productive. We offer the choice to work remotely, balanced with intentional in-person time for collaboration, creativity, and team building. This role requires in-studio attendance at our Vancouver studio during onboarding and predetermined Rush Weeks. 

If this seems like a good fit, what are you waiting for, get your application in!