Technical Artist

Cloud Imperium is looking for a talented and accomplished Technical Artist to develop process, tools, and pipelines that will enable the creation of the persistent universe for Star Citizen, a record-shattering, crowd-funded title that combines classic space sim gameplay with amazing visuals.

Responsibilities:

• Work closely with the artists and team leads to carry out the aesthetic vision of Star Citizen
• Help shape and evolve art pipelines, including proprietary tools, software, plug-ins, and game technology
• Work with external artists to develop high fidelity game assets that function within the game engine
• Collaborate with game designers, artists, and engineers to ensure that technical art vision is serving the project needs
• Review art assets against technical guidelines prior to integration
• Identify potential and recurring workflow problems and collaborate with other developers to find viable solutions
• Create and maintain documentation for tools, conventions, and procedures
• Provide technical support to the art team
• Police the implementation of the modular tier system within the game engine
• Work with production to break down large objectives into discrete tasks for both in-house and out-of-house resources, and provide detailed implementation specifications
• Verify technical aspects of contractor and in-house deliverables and whether they conform to the dictated specifications
• Other such duties and responsibilities assigned by Cloud Imperium reasonably consistent with employee’s skills and experience

Requirements:

• Minimum of three years’ experience in game development serving in a technical art role
• Demonstrated initiative and relentless motivation to tackle complex technical challenges
• Experienced with creating assets within art pipelines including rigging, sculpting, shader development, lighting, and visual effects
• Proficient in at least one development language such as Mel, Python, C#, or C++
• Ability to step through and learn an existing codebase while adhering to an established code style
• Comprehensive knowledge of at least one major 3D software package such as Max or Maya
• Self-motivated, good communication skills, and a great team-player
• Proven problem-solving skills, along with the ability to rapidly prototype
• Strong verbal and written communication skills
• One or more shipped AAA titles in a technical role
• A passion for space simulations or Science Fiction games
• International travel may be required

Pluses:

• Mastery in one or more technical skills including FX/particle animation, lighting, rigging, tools scripting, or shader development
• Skilled in one or more related disciplines – concept, animation, visual effects, or modeling
• Understanding of UI/UX principles applied to tools development
• Experience in the film industry in a technical role

This position is offered at our Los Angeles Studio by Cloud Imperium Games LLC.

If you feel you have something to offer this role, even if you don’t think you qualify for all the above, you should still apply – we are an inclusive employer and if you have potential, talent and a great work ethic, we want to hear from you.