Santa Monica Studio · 17 hours ago
Sr Environment Artist (Contract)
LA Metro Area
Full-time, Contract
Onsite
Senior Level
$116K/yr - $174K/yr
5+ years expSanta Monica Studio, part of Sony Interactive Entertainment, is looking for a Senior Environment Artist for the development of a new unannounced title. The role involves collaborating with various team members to create high-quality environments and level assets while maintaining artistic direction throughout the game development cycle.
Digital Entertainment
Responsibilities
A high-level contributor to the development of the artistic techniques and processes utilized to create environments within the studio - must be able to develop a comprehensive knowledge of the entire art production pipeline and all engine tools and systems associated with the creation of art assets and level layout
Content creation, including 3D modeling/sculpting, 2D texture map painting, material setup/UV layout, and LOD creation according to defined quality standards, artistic styles, conceptual designs, development pipelines, technical parameters, and production goals
Maintain the artistic direction and vision through all phases of the game development cycle from pre-production through final product release - this entails ensuring environment/level assets are of the highest artistic quality and upholding the integrity of the game's design and artistic vision of the game
Skilled in level art workflow, including assembly, set dressing, lighting, and asset composition across levels
Maintain a strong knowledge of the game’s design to support communication and enable early identification of issues, as well as help drive participation in discussions
Take ownership of a specific region of the game environment and facilitate requests or info needs regarding any aspect of this environment/level art creation process as needed
Mentoring artist who assists you in creating environments - this includes on-boarding new artists, giving timely feedback, and directing work duties
Fully capable of resolving an assortment of moderately complex artistic development issues for both artists as well as other team members
Scope and prioritize areas of ownership - collaborate with production to develop task list that meet overall project goals
Clearly communicate updates and properly escalate concerns to the appropriate team member(s) and manager(s)
Actively improves skill set and abilities by keeping aware of industry trends and techniques, evaluating competitive products, learning new software packages, and traditional art methods
Qualification
Required
5+ years industry experience or related experience
Two or more published titles are considered a strength
Possess strong time management and prioritization skills - entails collaborating with Production group to develop task lists to ensure assignments are progressing in alignment with schedules, milestones and overall project goals
Strong traditional fine art skills, training, and production experience (illustration, painting, organic forms, color theory, perspective, 2D & 3D design)
Proficient in the use of Maya, (or other 3D modeling packages) Zbrush, Substance Designer, and Substance Painter
Familiarity with video game product development including, but not limited to, workflow, tools, lighting, high and low poly modeling, texture painting, particle systems, UV layout, in-game animation, material setup, layout, SFX and engine parameters/optimizations
Excellent communication, organizational, time management, mentoring, and interpersonal skills
Works under minimal direction to determine and develop approach to solutions
B.A. in fine arts or relevant curriculum or equivalent skillset
Preferred
Houdini experience
Previous leadership experience in games
Benefits
Medical
Dental
Vision
Company
Santa Monica Studio
Santa Monica Studio (SMS) is the PlayStation® video game development team owned by Sony Computer Entertainment (SCE). It is a sub-organization of Sony.
201-500 employees
Funding
Current Stage
Growth StageRecent News
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