Job description
Role Overview:
You will partner with the Technical Art Director, Art Director, Rendering Engineers and Senior Discipline Leads to define a cohesive, visionary look for Maxis titles. You will drive the quality and visual standards across multiple platforms and support the technical development for Maxis projects. You will also participate in research and development to support new Art and Design-driven features unique to our projects by leveraging current methods and pipelines. You will proactively seek opportunities to elevate the game, enjoy improving workflows using emerging technologies, embrace constructive feedback, and thrive in a highly collaborative environment. You will report to a Studio Development Director.
Key Responsibilities
You will partner with the Art Director and support the Senior Discipline Artists to develop and refine the lighting for our characters, environments, and gameplay modes
You will create high-quality, real-time lighting solutions in-game using physically-based rendering
You will research emerging technology and share suggestions with the Technical Art team on process and aesthetic improvements
You will actively participate in milestone reviews You will review work from external partners and peers by participating in critiques
Qualifications
Minimum of 4 years of production experience as a Lighting Artist A contributor on published titles from pre-production through to shipping
An understanding of PBR lighting theory, current game tech and development methods, for example: PBR materials, real time workflows, and subsurface scattering
A working knowledge of industry standard rendering methods (baked and real-time) for mobile and PC with an understanding of hardware scalability constraints
Familiarity with optimization and tuning adjustments for performance to stay within technical budgets across multiple platforms
Experience with lighting in the UE4 pipeline, including a desire to learn and develop hands-on skills working in UE5-Lumen
An understanding of spatial composition and lighting techniques that influence mood, tone, and aesthetic within a scene (natural lighting, key lighting, three point, etc.)
A demonstrated understanding of rendering principles for human skin, hair, and clothing
Experience collaborating with object/character/environment modelers, VFX artists, and rendering engineers to develop new solutions/tools/tech/pipelines
Some proficiency in industry-standard software such as Maya, ZBrush, Substance Painter/Designer, and Photoshop
Excellent written and verbal communications skills
Bonus Qualifications
A demonstrated sense of color theory, color grading, and correction
A photography, cinematic, or traditional art background Shader authoring experience
A passion for making and playing games