Lead Artist

Are you always on the fore front, looking at how improvements can be made and strive for a higher quality bar? Do you enjoy collaborating not only with passionate artists, but also cross disciplines with other teams for the betterment of the product? If you feel excited about answering yes to both questions, we’d like to have a chat with you!

We have a newly created opportunity for a Lead Artist to join our talented art team at Piranha Games. Under the guidance of Art Director, you will lead the Art team to achieve the expected art quality within the technical and memory constraints of the project. In this role, you will be the driver for setting the quality benchmark for the art team and also defining the art pipeline for greater art creation efficiencies.

What you will be doing:

• Work closely with the Art Director and Creative Director to develop environment goals and assets that fulfill the requirements of the project’s game and visual design
• Help define the art creation process from concept to completion to advance efficiencies in 3D art production.
• Create and edit 3D assets in 3ds Max, Zbrush and Photoshop that serve as a quality benchmark for the art team
• Work with the art team and engineering to develop and maintain a robust and flexible art pipeline.
• Provide visual solutions when translating abstract ideas into viable game features 
• Collaborate with Game Designers, Engineers, and Producers to enhance the quality of the product
• Lead a group of Environment Artists to create compelling and consistent 3D assets and environments that work within the technical and memory constraints of the game
• Ensure all assets created by the Art team conform to the style and technical guidelines established for the project
• Cultivate a positive team dynamic by exhibiting a professional attitude and demonstrating a good balance between creativity with practical flexibility
• Inspire, motivate, and mentor other artists in best practices, processes, and procedures for production
• Participate in interviews for potential new hires when necessary
• Assist with managing quality, style and artwork developed by outsourcing partners
• Perform other ad-hoc responsibilities as requested

What you will bring with you:

• 5+ years’ experience of working on AAA console and/or PC titles with at least 2 shipped games as a Lead Artist
• Expert modeling, texturing, and UV mapping ability
• Portfolio which demonstrates a strong understanding of form, composition, color, and lighting
• Proven ability to work within the technical and memory constraints of a game
• Comprehensive knowledge of major 3D package (3ds Max, Maya, XSI), Photoshop, and Z-brush or Mudbox
• Expert knowledge of game editors such as CryEngine, Unreal, Unity, etc.
• Positive attitude and ability to give and receive constructive feedback
• Excellent communication (both written and verbal), time-management and organizational skills.
• Strong ability to work across multiple disciplines to gather feedback and address cross-functional issues
• Skilled at analyzing competitive products for their strengths and weaknesses
• Proven track record of working under pressure and thrive in fast-paced work environment while maintaining high quality results
• Knowledge of technical aspects of asset creation such as texture formats, key frame animation, 3D model formats and object hierarchies
• Extremely self-motivated and always looking to improve
• Possess versatility to work in different art styles quickly depending on project
• Infectious passion for making games

What we considered as pluses!

• Experience developing or creating script (Python, MEL, C++)
• Knowledge of physical based rendering techniques (texture creation, lighting, and shaders)
• Experience developing art for MMO style games
• Experience of engaging/managing third party service providers
• Understanding of the basic principles of animation
• Experience working in an Agile/Scrum development environment

We thank you for your interests in this position. Due to the amount of applications, only those selected for an interview will be contacted.