Job Description
Title: Senior Tools and Pipelines Technical Artist
Location: United States – Remote/Flexible
Crystal Dynamics is constantly seeking the best gaming talent worldwide to add to our 30-plus year legacy of AAAA game development creating new and iconic franchises. We are committed to making great games with great people and having an awesome time living the dream while doing it.
Benefits for our full-time positions include, but are not limited to, a competitive regional salary, 100% employer-paid medical, dental, and vision insurance options, professional development reimbursement perk, flexible hybrid on-site/off-site work opportunities, 12 company paid holidays, additional 10 paid days in December when the studio is closed for holiday break, and the ability to accrue weeks of personal paid time-off.
Join us and shape the future of an amazing studio culture committed to creating award-winning franchises like Tomb Raider, Marvel’s Avengers, the next Perfect Dark, and more!
Position Summary
Come be a Part of the Future of Tomb Raider! Crystal Dynamics is seeking a Senior Tools & Pipelines Technical Artist who is passionate about supporting the Art team with intuitive tools and content pipelines while building a solid foundation for future development. An ideal candidate is exceptionally technically capable but also has a strong understanding of effective UI/UX from a content creator’s perspective. This individual should be able to work autonomously and self-manage their time effectively on a day-to-day basis, with all the requisite technical art skills, tools, and relevant work experience.
Essential Duties & Responsibilities
- Architect tools and pipelines to support the needs of the project’s content creation team
- Contribute to, maintain, and set standards for a large codebase of core Python API’s / libraries
- Support 3rd party DCC applications, including writing tools and custom plug-ins, managing content between applications, and investigating, integrating, and managing new applications
- Build artist-oriented user interfaces for tools based on UI / UX principles to create art centric toolsets, focusing on increasing productivity, aiding workflow, and reducing human error
- Mentor less experienced members of the Technical Art team and identify opportunities for them to grow their abilities
- Provide day-to-day technical guidance on tool and pipeline initiatives, including code and design document reviews
- Establish efficient content workflows, processes, and best practices through writing documentation and technical design documents that are understandable to a wide audience
- Assist in educating art staff from a technical, workflow and efficiency standpoint. Help artists troubleshoot pipeline issues and collect feedback for future improvements
Competencies, Skills & Knowledge
- Expert technical knowledge of Python, Maya, and tool / pipeline development for games
- Highly self-motivated and able to confidently design, implement, and optimize tools and pipelines for content creators, working closely with leadership to define roadmaps, provide guidance on priorities, and anticipate future roadblocks
- Aware of current industry trends and able to recommend adoption of relevant technical or artistic approaches or improvements to process
- Clear understanding of all aspects of content creation needs, different workflows and how they impact each other, and multiple DCC packages and how they fit into content pipelines
- Writes clear, maintainable, portable, and efficient code, setting a standard for the team
- Exceptional problem-solving and organizational ability and with minimal guidance
- Positive and respectful attitude, strong work ethic, and able to work both independently and as part of a highly collaborative team including in a remote environment
- Excellent verbal and written communication skills with both technical and non-technical audiences, including productive feedback and brainstorming, creation / contribution to technical design documents, code documentation, and user documentation. Able to effectively communicate and escalate emergent issues to leadership
Essential Requirements
- Minimum 5 years of experience in the game development (or relevant) industry developing AAA console titles with at least one shipped title
- Experience working as technical artist on multiple game titles throughout their life cycle
- Demonstrated expert skillset in Python, Maya, and UI/UX design
- Familiarity with C++/C#, Javascript, MEL, ShotGrid, and USD (Universal Scene Description)
- Experience developing tools for Substance Designer/Painter, Houdini, and Photoshop
Optional Portfolio
- A demo reel (approximately two minutes) showcasing best work from professional and personal projects
- A breakdown of work done for each project presented in the demo reel, including a description of the original problem, an overview of the solution as well as technical details, explanation of contributions you were directly responsible for, and thoughts on shortcomings and possible future improvements
- Source code, if you are able to share it! Ideally, provide a link to your github account
- Examples of artistic work painting, drawing, photography, textures, models, effects, etc.
The pay range for this role includes the base salary, not including bonus and the generous benefits package that Crystal Dynamics provides all full-time employees. Individual compensation is determined by work location within our approved states, as well as additional factors, including job related skills, experience, and relevant education. Your recruiter will be able to share more information about total compensation.
Pay Range
$110,000—$128,000 USD
Not sure if you are qualified? We hope that you will still choose to apply so we may review your application!