Swaybox Studios ยท 2 months ago
Unreal Technical Director
New Orleans, LA
Full-time
Onsite
Senior Level
5+ years expSwaybox Studios is rewriting the rulebook of visual storytelling, collaborating with major studios on innovative projects. They are seeking an experienced Unreal Technical Director to develop and maintain tools that optimize real-time workflows across VFX and Animation departments, ensuring a smooth production pipeline.
Media Production
Responsibilities
Develop, maintain, integrate, and optimize custom tools, scripts, blueprints, and workflows within Unreal Engine to support our teams and uphold best practices within the VFX pipeline
Implement and support naming conventions in file and asset names that sync with our current pipeline structure and folders
Troubleshoot and debug technical issues related to assets, shaders, level sequences, pipeline integration, rendering, performance, and other aspects of Unreal; providing timely support and solutions
Create and retain detailed technical documentation, including training sessions, tool descriptions, and user guides to ensure clean and smooth adoption across the team
Collaborate with Supervisors and artists to understand production needs and develop real-time solutions that streamline workflows throughout the film VFX process
Balance development tasks with production needs, prioritizing urgent issues, while delivering long-term pipeline improvements and upgrades
Assist IT and pipeline developers in setting up and maintaining Perforce with our internal team and vendors
Qualification
Required
5+ years of experience as a Technical Director, Pipeline TD, or similar role in a high-end VFX, Animation, or hybrid production environment
Strong proficiency in Python, Blueprints, and C++ scripting within Unreal Engine
Extensive experience with Unreal Engine (5+ preferred), including customizing and developing tools for artists, optimizing workflows, and solving complex technical challenges
Solid understanding of film VFX workflows, and render needs of departments including animation, layout, lighting, look development, FX, and compositing
Excellent problem-solving and troubleshooting skills with a proven track record of resolving production issues quickly and efficiently
Strong communication skills with the ability to clearly convey technical concepts and collaborate with cross-disciplinary teams
Experience working in a fast-paced production environment, balancing development demands with real-time production needs
Ability to develop and maintain scalable, robust, and intuitive tools that support complex, film-quality workflows
Strong knowledge of real-time, cinematic rendering techniques, including Path Tracing, Lumen, Nanite, and virtualized assets
Experience with other industry-standard tools and pipelines such as ShotGrid/Flow, Maya, and Houdini
Strong background in processing and converting 3D scans, photogrammetry, or Gaussian splatting data into Unreal Engine 5
Preferred
Knowledge of motion capture, virtual production, or real-time compositing workflows
Familiarity with Nuke and UnrealReader
Basic understanding of character rigging, animation retargeting, and live-link integrations within Unreal
Experience collaborating with Epic Games or other vendors on support tickets, feature requests, or beta testing
Knowledge of distributed rendering, cloud pipelines, or hybrid offline/real-time workflows
Company
Swaybox Studios
Swaybox Studios is bringing the magic of practical puppetry to the big screen in ways never before seen.
51-200 employees
Funding
Current Stage
Growth StageCompany data provided by crunchbase