At Electric Square Leamington, we pride ourselves on making games full of character. The world is fun and silly and sad and infuriating and banal and beautiful and ugly and all of those things have a place in our games. Across the Electric Square group, our three studios, many projects, 150 people (and studio dogs (and cats)) we offer you a comfortable and comforting studio culture that we hope can make you feel empowered and inspired.

Electric Square hungers for difference — we celebrate it, we support it, and we thrive on it for the benefit of our employees, our products, and our community. Electric Square is proud to be an equal opportunity workplace. We provide a comprehensive benefits package and an award-winning environment to work in, rating 4.8 out of 5 stars for employee satisfaction on glassdoor.com! And we are not idle - we always strive to do better by our employees.

We are currently looking for a wonderful Lead Character Artist to join our Leamington based team - but we are fully supportive of remote working and happy to enable whatever blend of home and office best empowers you and your work.

What Does A Lead Character Artist Do At Electric Square?

Champions the development of characters for a given game.
Works closely with the Art Lead to establish the aesthetic for the project.
Benchmarks the character design, working with the character artists, design, code and animation team on all aspects of gameplay.
Coordinates the character development pipeline and owns the production plan.
Creates AAA characters from concept art and/or other references, modelling, texturing, and shaders.
Oversees and supports the external management and integration of outsourced content.
Problem solves and consistently presents sound solutions to technical issues related to the creation of a real-time game.
Proactively assists in defining best practices against an industry benchmark.
In the most wholesome way imaginable, loves what they do, and we can tell. (This isn’t a codeword for crunch. The day is over. Go home. So to speak...)

Requirements

Things We’d Love To See From You:

An exceptional portfolio that demonstrates a breadth of ability and traditional drawing skills.
Experience leading a team or department in previous game team.
Solid understanding of content creation and texturing tools, 2D/3D art packages: Photoshop, Maya/Max, Substance Painter/Designer, Z-Brush and Unity3d
Ability and understanding of production techniques such as high-low poly baking, modular asset creation, physically based rendering, Knowledge of Unity 3d particles, environment animation, sculpting, prototype, texture, and light beautiful and immersive stylised worlds.
Ideally a First in Fine Art, Computer Animation, Digital Media Design or relevant degree.
A good sense of composition and eye for detail, colour and lighting
A generalist creative and technical skillset that reaches beyond the remit of character art.
Demonstrable time management, organisational and communication skills.
Enthusiastic team player, positive and outgoing personality.
A passion for pushing visual quality and production techniques, video games, art and a commitment to personal development.
A creative thinker with strong problem-solving skills
A love of creating unforgettable, utterly loveable gaming experiences for the audience!

If you are wondering if you should apply or not, we sincerely hope that you do! You may wish to read that sentence again. Good luck!

Benefits

When you join Electric Square, you can expect to enjoy a unique culture. Whether it’s participating and relaxing with one of our wellness benefits or discussing the latest games over lunch cooked at one of Leamington Spa’s incredible eateries. The Studio knows that it’s the best people that make the best games and this is what Electric Square invests in. Below you will find all the benefits and perks you can enjoy as an Electric Square team member.

Holidays - 25 days’ annual leave entitlement including studio closure over the Christmas period plus all UK bank holidays
Bonus Anniversary Holidays - An additional day of annual leave for each year’s anniversary working at Electric Square, up to a maximum of 30 days of annual leave entitlement.
Generous Team Project Bonuses
Company Pension Scheme – Employer contribution matching award winning pension scheme provided by NEST under the UK governments automatic enrolment scheme.
Private Medical Insurance Scheme – Full private medical cover provided by AXA PPP Private Healthcare.
Group Income Protection
Health and Well-being Allowance – £50 per month to spend on your choice of a range of healthy activities, ranging from going to the gym, rock climbing, yoga and a lovely massage. It's on us!
Group Life Insurance
Private Dental Insurance Scheme – Full private dental cover provided under our Dental plan company scheme.
Cycle to Work Scheme – Salary sacrifice cycle purchase scheme with tax savings through Evans Cycles.
Tech Scheme - Over 5000 products available from to buy over 12 or 24 month payment terms, saving up to 12% on National Insurance.
Electra's Beer & Wine Fridge – Free beers, ales and wine and even the odd gin and tonic! Grab a beer at our end of week Show and Tell sessions and see what everybody else in the company has been up to!
Free soft drinks to keep you refreshed throughout the day. Remember your sugar intake, though, folks!
Free Electric Square Monthly Friday Team Lunch – Monthly Friday lunches have become a way of life here at ES. It’s a wonderful way to sit and enjoy a bit of food and drink together as a team outside of the day to day at the studio.
Eye-care Vouchers – Free eye tests.
Train Travel Season Ticket Loan – Interest free company loan to spread the cost of an annual season ticket.
Personal Trainer Sessions – Free gym sessions with our own Electric Square personal trainer.
Fast Growing Studio – We're only getting bigger, so there's plenty of room for career advancement.
Industry Conferences Budget – Many of our employees benefit every year from attending conferences such as GDC in San Francisco, Siggraph, E3, Unite, Unreal Fest Europe and more.
Free locally roasted Coffee & Speciality Teas
Free Cereal Bar – Extensive granola, muesli and breakfast cereal selections.
Extensive Video Game & Book Library – Borrow a game, a book or even a whole console!
Free Awesome Swag – Amazingly designed Electric Square T-shirts and merch, with the now iconic Electra emblazoned on the front. New ranges out every season.
Dogs with Jobs – Electric Square is a dog friendly employer. Bring doggo into the studio to meet and hang out with the rest of the team any time!
Exhibitions & Days Out – If there is an event happening of interest to us, we’ll happily spread the word, pick up the bill and see if any Electrons are up for going – we’re keen to get you everyone out seeing what’s going on.
Project Wrap Parties, Cinema Nights & Team Social Events – We work hard together so it’s good to let off steam and spend some time together.