Look Development Artist - Senior

Position: Look Development Artist - Senior

Hiring Range: $117,000 to $130,000/year for a 40 hour work week

Project Contract: Start as soon as possible for 3 months

Company Benefits: Extended healthcare from day 1, premiums 100% covered by Image Engine, up to 8 paid Health and Wellness days per year.

*Candidates are required to be based in British Columbia and eligible to work in Canada*

ABOUT IMAGE ENGINE

Image Engine is a world-class VFX studio based in Vancouver, BC, that has built a reputation for excellence in the visual effects industry since 1995. We specialize in crafting stunning visual effects for feature films and television with an award-winning portfolio that includes The Book of Boba Fett, The Mandalorian, Game Of Thrones, Lost in Space, Jurassic World, and District 9.

We offer a full range of visual effects services, from concept designs and pre-visualization to CG animation, compositing, and explosive volumetric digital effects. Our crew is passionate about storytelling and pushing the artistic and technical boundaries to deliver the highest quality work on every project. R&D is central to our philosophy of driving creativity through innovation and we're committed to continually evolving our robust production pipelines.

At Image Engine, we value diversity and teamwork, and we're proud to foster a workplace culture that is supportive, respectful, and empowering. We believe that our success is a reflection of our exceptionally talented team, and we're always looking for passionate and dedicated individuals to join us on our mission to create unforgettable visual experiences. Join our team and be part of something extraordinary.

POSITION PURPOSE

The Senior Look Development Artist is responsible for delivering high quality assets in a quick and efficient manner. They will act as an example to and mentor junior artists and will deliver all tasks within the required timeframe. They will have practical experience in all areas of Look Development of varying levels of difficulty and will be able to apply briefing notes with minimal direction from team Leads or Supervisors. The Senior Look Development artist will complete all aspects of Look Development work across multiple shows and deliver all tasks within the agreed upon timeframe. They will quality check all of their work and occasionally will assist the Leads to quality check the work of junior artists should the situation require it.

 In addition, the Senior Look Development artist will assist the Leads and Asset Supervisor to flag creative or technical challenges or concerns. They could be asked to assist in the Lead role on a short term basis in the event of an absence or production needs. They will participate in team meetings when necessary.

DUTIES & RESPONSIBILITIES

• Create final look developed assets with minimal supervision and within the studio pipeline
• Apply client notes to all assets with minimal guidance
• Identify solutions and approaches to solve difficult assets without guidance
• Write and/or modify custom Arnold/OSL shaders to realize the desired look for production integration
• Define standard render passes
• Assist in developing standard lighting rigs & setups for look development
• Provide dailied versions for assigned tasks in an agreed upon time by your Supervisor/ Lead
• Attend dailies, reviews & team meetings and participate as required
• Work closely with Lead Lookdev Artist, Lead Lighting TD's and Supervisors to ensure that all assets work within the scope of lighting & color pipeline requirements
• Work closely with texture artists to create necessary texture maps for your work on creatures, props and environments

• Communicate with the R&D/ shader developer in order to ensure all necessary parameters and functionality are included in production shaders
• Manage time and resources to meet weekly targets

EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE

• 5+ years’ of Look Development experience with high end film
• Demonstrated proficiency in defining and creating photo-realistic assets
• Experience with rendering large datasets
• Thorough understanding of traditional art skills (Form, architecture, anatomy, topology, colour theory) and how to apply those skills in a digital medium
• Excellent attention to detail when finalizing, approving or quality controlling assets

• Ability to balance quick turnaround while achieving a high degree of aesthetic quality

SKILLS AND ABILITIES

Technical skills

• Senior level experience in MEL / Python / C++
• Proven Senior level experience in Maya 
• Experience with LINUX/UNIX 
• Ability to come up with creative and efficient rendering solutions

Core skills

• Ability to help with bidding; determine the timeframe and scope required for each project
• Ability to troubleshoot and deal with competing priorities and projects
• Ability to take direction positively, work well within a diverse group, and thrive under the pressure of tight production deadlines
• Ability to adapt quickly to new technologies and applications
• Ability to teach new techniques and apply new approaches to push assets to the next level
• Excellent time management and communication skills