Associate Pipeline Technical Director

Description

The Associate Pipeline TD is responsible for developing and maintaining software tools, providing front-line support to artists, and general troubleshooting of the CG pipeline in a fast-paced, feature film visual effects production environment. The primary focus is ensuring artist efficiency. Receives day-to-day direction and priorities from show CG Supervisor; reports to R&D supervisor for technical and career guidance.

• Develop pipeline and asset management tools to meet immediate, show-directed production demands, ensuring facility-wide consistency as directed by show and technical supervisors. Help maintain a wide array of existing workflows and scripts.
  
• Provide front-line production support across a wide range of disciplines, troubleshoot assets and shots, and help artists with general problem-solving. Monitor email requests, package up problems and redirect to appropriate engineering team.
  
• Test and validate tools and techniques in production. Work closely with engineering teams in testing, and releasing new and modified software systems.
  
• Act as an on-call resource for show production staff.
  
• Collaborate effectively with artists, production supervisors, and technical staff across ILM studios in San Francisco, Vancouver, Singapore, and London.
  
• When not crewed to shows, serve on software teams working on projects that improve the efficiency of asset setup, caching, and shot-data handoff between artists across the entire pipeline.
  
• Take direction from show supervisors to determine day-to-day and hour-to-hour priorities.
  
• Work primarily on workflow tools, requiring introductory understanding of the larger pipeline.
  
• Provide front-line support and gather information about artist problems and obstacles; resolve user errors; connect artists with deeper problems to appropriate technical support.
  
• Develop basic knowledge of software, systems, and standards and conventions used in production.
  
• Update documentation for the pipeline and tools to reflect any changes that are made.

• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent in Computer Science or a related technical field.
  
• Demonstrated experience developing and maintaining tools for use in a computer graphics environment.
  

• Proficiency in Linux.
  
• Strong Python scripting required.
  
• Ability to communicate cross-discipline and provide innovative solutions to pipeline issues.
  
• Detail oriented and strong self-sufficient trouble shooter.
  

• Introductory knowledge of visual effects or feature animation pipeline
  
• 2D/3D CG software applications: Maya, Mari, Houdini, Katana, Nuke, RenderMan, etc.
  
• Experience with production database systems
  
• Experience with C, C++
  
• Experience with Windows development and applications such as 3ds max a plus.