Senior Lighting Artist

WE ARE GAMEMAKERS

Who we are:

We are a diverse team of developers driven by a passion for our art, united by our core values and inspired by a culture of inclusivity to build amazing games that thrill players everywhere. We pursue growth and innovation in an environment of safety and trust. Our culture is built on the belief that the more varied voices in our collective will strengthen our team and our games.  We are looking for our next teammate who will raise our bar and make us better.

What we need:

A passionate and talented Senior Lighting Artist possessing solid artistic skills, including a thorough understanding of color theory, composition, lighting, shadows and exposure system. You have experience with a 3D CG rendering package (e.g Maya/Max Mental Ray, etc.), demonstrating a solid understanding of rendering and physical lighting system and how it is simulated in a real-time CG.

Responsibilities:

• Create the exterior and interior lighting within the world with time of day in mind
• Create light projection textures/cubemap from offline software (3DsMax/Maya/Photoshop)
• Participate in look-development around key materials/shaders to ensure lighting delivers against visual reference
• Place, tweak and script light sources within the environment and tweak shaders/material and textures to improve the perception of the lighting
• Post processing and time of day system adjustment
• Prototype the use of lighting technology to reach the visual targets define by the art direction
• You’ll work with the Art director and rendering programmers to define and sell in request for new tech features, optimization and improved editor workflow
• Work with Environment, Design and Effects teams to polish, troubleshoot and deliver breathtaking level and gameplay experiences

 Who you are:

You understand the influence of a shadow or reflection. You know the warmth evoked by a ray of sunlight. You are obsessed by the impact adding lighting to game environments has to create atmosphere, tone, depth and a touch of realism in the game. Your careful choices and placement will emphasize drama, narrative, and also clarify gameplay elements and location.  You will leverage your artistic sense of aesthetics to create lighting in environments that bring the Art Director’s vision to life, as well as your technical knowledge to make sure that the lighting runs within budget of the game runtime performance.

• 5-7 years proven industry experience in Games or Film in generating final lighting/rendering
• Deep understanding of CG lighting technology, both real-time and offline rendering
• Thorough understanding of direct/indirect lighting, color space, color theory, exposure, HDR lighting, global illumination and physical based shading
• Being pro-active in contributing ideas/elements to the gameplay or emphasize narrative component in the game using lighting as the toolset
• Able to produce quality lighting setup and solve performance challenge within the runtime constraints
• Excellent problem-solving skills and the ability to adapt in using proprietary tools/engine
• Thorough knowledge of the game development process
• Skilled in the use of Maya/Max and Photoshop
• Good understanding of cinematography and the use of camera system technology in CG environment
• Experience with real-time lighting large game worlds a plus
• Experience in using deferred lighting within Unreal a plus

The pay range for this position in California at the start of employment is expected to be between $90,000 and $135,000 per year. However, base pay offered is based on market location and may vary further depending on individualized factors for job candidates, such as job-related knowledge, skills, experience, and other objective business considerations. Subject to those same considerations, the total compensation package for this position may also include other elements, including a bonus and/or equity awards, in addition to a full range of medical, financial, and/or other benefits. Details of participation in these benefit plans will be provided if an employee receives an offer of employment. If hired, employee will be in an 'at-will position' and the company reserves the right to modify base salary (as well as any other discretionary payment or compensation or benefit program) at any time, including for reasons related to individual performance, company or individual department/team performance, and market factors.

SECURITY NOTICE -  We have recently been made aware of increasing occurrences of bad actors posing as company HR personnel to gain information from "potential candidates", in the form of job interviews and offers. These scams can be quite sophisticated and appear legitimate.

Please note that 2K Games and its studios never uses instant messaging apps or personal email accounts to contact prospective employees or conduct interviews and when emailing, only use 2K.com and thirtyfirstunion.com accounts.

If you believe you have been a victim of such a scam, you may fill out a complaint form at https://complaint.ic3.gov/ and https://reportfraud.ftc.gov/ detailing as much as possible. We are taking these matters very seriously and apologize for any inconvenience.

Join our mission: Bring fun, inspiration and awe to our lives and to our community:
https://thirtyfirstunion.com/values

31st Union prides itself on the diversity of its team members, partners, and communities.  For this reason, we remain committed to providing equal employment opportunity in all aspects of the employment relationship, from recruitment and hiring through compensation, benefits, discipline and termination.  This means that employment at 31st Union depends on your substantive ability, objective qualifications and work ethic – not on your age, race (including traits historically associated with race, including, but not limited to, hair texture and protective hairstyles), height, weight, religion, creed, color, national origin, ancestry, sex, sexual orientation, gender (including gender identity and expression), alienage or citizenship status, transgender, military or veteran status, physical or mental disability (actual or perceived), medical condition, AIDS/HIV, denial of family and medical care leave, genetic information, predisposition or carrier status, pregnancy status, childbirth, breastfeeding (or related medical conditions), marital status or registered domestic partner status, political activity or affiliation, status as a victim of domestic violence, sexual assault or stalking, arrest record, or taking or requesting statutorily protected leaves, or any other classification protected by federal, state, or local laws.

As an equal opportunity employer, we are also committed to ensuring that qualified individuals with disabilities are provided reasonable accommodation(s) to participate in the job application and/or interview process, to perform their essential job functions, and to receive other benefits and privileges of employment.  Please contact us if you need to request a reasonable accommodation.

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