Environment Technical Artist
Naughty Dog
Santa Monica, CA, USA
Job type: Permanent
Job Description
Summary:
At Naughty Dog, Environment Technical Artists are critical in developing visual features and driving the look of the game. Candidates are half-artist and half-programmer, with enough programming and math experience to write clean code, but with an artist’s eye for visual polish.
Responsibilities:
- Develop the team’s shader tech. Implement high-level features (example: cloth, wetness, mud packages). Also maintain low-level shader code organization and optimization
- Develop high-level lighting and post processing features (example: film grain, health effects, underwater rendering)
- Write well-architected code that can be built upon for years to come
- Work with the engineering team on the development of low-level rendering features
- Work with the Art Director to identify project-specific rendering needs and to develop an implementation plan
- Support the content team in debugging issues with tools, assets, or framerate
- Work between all art departments (environment, characters, VFX, etc.) on shared technology
- Create art assets that require high technical skill or specialist knowledge (example: a sniper scope lens, post processing tuning)
- Additional tech-art-related responsibilities are available if you have the passion and experience!
Skills & Requirements
Requirements & Skills:
- Strong experience with HLSL or GLSL shading languages. Intermediate experience with C++
- Ability to write robust code, both from a functional and architectural standpoint
- Strong artistic background and content development skills (can be texturing, lighting, vfx, or any other area where you have experience, but a strong artistic eye is a necessity!)
- Excellent problem-solving skills and the ability to work with minimal supervision
- Familiarity with content creation and game development pipelines
- Good oral and written skills
- 5+ years of production experience in VFX or video games
Bonus Skills:
- Experience in Maya/Python programming
- Experience in other content creation software, as a user or tools developer; Houdini, Substance Designer, Substance Painter, etc.
As part of the Naughty Dog application process, candidates should expect to be given a technical interview and may be asked to complete an art test.
Additional Information
- Relocation assistance is offered
How to Apply
To apply, please visit our website: Environment Technical Artist
The Recruiting Process
We feel it is important to let you know how the recruiting process works here at Naughty Dog. Here is what you can expect from us:
- Upon submission, you will receive an automated message stating your resume has been received and will be reviewed thoroughly by our recruiting team
- Due to the high volume of applications received, it is not possible to respond directly to each candidate
- If you are selected, you will be contacted for an initial phone screen or test
- The next step is a second phone or Skype interview, or an invite to come out and meet us at the studio
- In the event that we choose not to move forward at any point in the recruiting process, we will let you know
- If your qualifications do not match the criteria of a current position, your resume will be kept on file for future consideration
Thank you for your interest in Naughty Dog.
About the Company
Naughty Dog is the developer of some of the most critically acclaimed and top-selling video games on PlayStation platforms, having created the classic Crash Bandicoot and Jak and Daxter series, as well as modern franchises Uncharted and The Last of Us. We have become recognized as industry leaders for our storytelling, graphics and cinematic quality in our games.
Naughty Dog is also home to Sony World Wide Studios’ ICE Team, a central technology group that focuses on creating core graphics technologies for Sony’s worldwide first-party published titles, including low-level game engine components, graphics processing pipelines, supporting tools, and graphics profiling and debugging tools.
Since Naughty Dog is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Sony Interactive Entertainment, we also have many perks that comes from being in the Sony family – movie screenings on the Sony Pictures lots and discounts on electronics, music, movies and PlayStation hardware and software. Of course, you just can’t beat our location. Naughty Dog is based near the ocean – and beaches – in Santa Monica, California, where beautiful weather and fair temperatures grace us year-round.