Description
Summary of
Job:
Models and/or dresses sets and props for computer animated films. Works
closely with technical leads and art directors to create fully realized
environments. Blends technical and
creative expertise to create and enhance the aesthetic of the film.
General Duties and Responsibilities:
- Works with the technical leads to fulfill the production designer’s
vision of a film.
- Creates architectural and organic looking models and environments,
using both manual and procedural techniques.
- Reviews and revises work with the Production Designer, Technical Leads
and Director.
- Creates clean and efficient assets and supports downstream
departments.
- Produces clear and concise documentation as necessary.
Background, Knowledge, Skills and
Abilities Required at Minimum:
- A strong understanding of composition, form, physical motion, weight,
balance and texture is required.
- Experience in efficiently modeling Organic and
Architectural forms.
- Ablility to create primary, secondary and tertiary
assets, with appropriately modeled complexity for each.
- Experience with high-end modeling and animation systems such as Maya,
Modo, XSI, Houdini or 3DStudioMax is required.
- Experience in film, video games, architecture or other graphics production
experience is strongly preferred.
- Good written and verbal communication skills are required.
- Must be able to work alone or collaboratively, often with multiple
tasks and under deadline pressure.
- Must be able to follow art direction but also demonstrate initiative.
For Modeling Positions:
- Modelers will be required to rig set elements, such
as simple bends and lattice deformations.
- Skill and experience in Maya, ZBrush, 3D-Coat and
Mudbox is a strong plus.
- Knowledge of shading is a plus, especially UVs,
topological dependencies and understanding of displacement.
- Knowledge of Houdini is a plus.
For Set Dressing Positions:
- Skill in the construction of various environments, both architectural
and organic.
- Ability to refine a shot’s composition by adjusting the set’s elements
to camera.
- Strong compositional skills and an awareness of how to support story
though set design.
- Ability to follow art direction and independently solve creative
problems.
- Ability to collaborate with modeling and shading to create efficient
sets.
- Required to support needs of downstream departments: Camera,
Animation, and Lighting.
- Required to shepherd the complexity of a set by appropriately
culling assets and adjusting level of detail per-shot.
Additional Skills and Abilities:
- Skills in both areas - modeling and set dressing - are a strong plus.
- Skill and experience in one or more other areas of CG production:
layout, shading, lighting, FX, and/or rendering is a plus.
- Programming skills in a scripting language (e.g. Mel or Python) are a
plus.
- Education in Art, Architecture, Computer Science or Photography is
preferred.