The following describes the full spectrum of expectations for a technical artist. It is however, understood that some technical artists may have a primary focus encompassing specifically, art, animation, tools or shaders.

DIRECTLY REPORTING TO: Art Manager, Animation Manager or Animation Lead (where applicable).

DUTIES:

• ART
• Continual evaluation of art creation pipelines to asses it's effectiveness in the projects given development environment. Working with senior art and technical representatives as well as central technology team to ensure adherence to company based procedures and best practice.
• The creation of tools and scripts as well as the design and implementation of processes that improve all applicable areas of the art pipeline in all relevant content creation applications of the project. This can include writing scripts in Python, MEL or Z-Scripts and may extend to full tool creation within an applications API or in some windows based environments.
• The creation of pixel and vertex shaders by either writing them in HLSL, Cg or MetaSL or by using in house shader graph creation applications.
• The design and implementation of new procedures to improve the techniques and pipelines of all areas of development including, lighting, surfacing (shaders and materials), post processing and special effects.
• To effectively document and communicate pipeline and technology updates to relevant parties including management and central tech team.
• Create and iteratively develop game assets from inception to final review on the target hardware within the game engine using appropriate tools (BlitzTech Tools).

• ANIMATION
• To design, create and implement the character rigs for the project. Working closely with character artists and animators to create a rigging system that provides good deformation, allows effective data transfer between applicable animation systems and meets all the requirements of the characters design.
• The creation of tools and scripts as well as the design and implementation of processes that improve all applicable areas of the animation pipeline in all relevant content creation applications of the project. This can include writing scripts in Python, MEL or .xml and may extend to full tool creation within an applications API or in some windows based environments.
• The design and implementation of new techniques and procedures within the games animation systems such as animation and state machine graphs, animation optimisation and debugging tools.

ESSENTIALS:

• ART
• An in-depth knowledge of applicable content creation applications such as Maya, Photoshop and Zbrush.
• A good knowledge of game development tools and pipelines in such environments as Unreal Engine, CryEngine, Gamebryo or BlitzTech.
• A full and explicit understanding of techniques to accurately simulate surfaces in game. This includes texture, lighting, shader and material parameter adjustments. This also includes the correct application and any appropriate optimisations required within the BlitzTech approved tool chain and pipeline whilst keeping the highest possible fidelity in game.
• A good overall understanding of the post processing pipeline and the potential hit on fill and frame rates.

• ANIMATION
• An in-depth knowledge of applicable content creation applications such as Maya, Motionbuilder, and FaceFX.
• A high level of understanding of animation techniques including rigging, skinning, motion capture, data transfer, retargeting, lip-sync and facial animation.
• A good overall understanding of game animation systems such as animation blending, procedural content, animation graphs and game state editing.

BENEFICIAL QUALITIES:

• Ability to apply good lighting principles to all artistic output within the artistic bounds of the project art style.
• Familiarity with .NET application design.

REGULAR ESSENTIALS:

Artists must possess a good grounding in artistic skills and exhibit the ability to make good artistic judgements coupled with robust tool skills and an all round ability to autonomously create high quality game art assets.

• Traditional Art Skills

• Appreciation and ability to make good artistic judgements on form, colour and composition.

• An understanding of the basic principles of lighting.
• A basic working knowledge and general understanding of human anatomy.
• Good natural artistic ability and flair.

• Ability to develop and communicate ideas and concepts in a visual manner - both digitally and using traditional media.

• Self Management and Organisation

• Ability to work to a brief, adopt working practices and work within the stated bounds including art style, technical specifications, scheduling and overall spirit of any given project.
• Ability to identify production issues and communicate them appropriately.

• Teamwork and Communication

• Keep managers and any dependent team members informed about the progress of work including any potential conflicts or bottlenecks.
• Ability and willingness to fit into and contribute to a creative team environment

• Professional attitude and work ethic

• Ability to accept and work under the art direction of a project Art Manager.
• Will be thorough in their approach to problem solving and able to function independently as and when required
• Needs to be comfortable working to deadlines
• Attention to detail is essential and all tasks must be carried out to the highest standard
• A willingness and ability to learn and progress is essential
• A consistent professional approach to naming, filing, backing up and archiving of all work in accordance with company and team policy.
• Proficient skills in identifying a need for and sourcing appropriate visual reference material.

FORMAL QUALIFICATIONS:

In terms of formal qualifications, it is agreed that levels of attainment should not be set. Respective art and/or animation skills are paramount when considering any applicant, however, foreign applicants requiring work permits or visas would need due consideration. At Blitz Games Studios we adopt an approach that relevant higher qualifications are ‘preferred' as opposed to ‘required' for UK/European and other ‘work legal' applicants, however to be considered for this role demonstrable skills and ability in the role requirements will be expected and sought.

TRAINING:

Although the jobholder will be trained on the job, they will be expected to develop their artistic appreciation and tool skills using their own initiative and in their own time. As well as organised training sessions via the Blitz Academy, we encourage staff to broaden their skills further by giving them the opportunity to attend external courses as appropriate.

Attractive salary, benefits and a great career opportunity.