Environment Lead

Sony Pictures Imageworks is located on the unceded traditional territory of the Musqueam, Squamish, and Tsleil-Waututh First Nations. We are committed to respecting traditional lands, and working with communities towards reconciliation.

Sony Pictures Imageworks Canada Inc.

725 Granville Street, 5th Floor

Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, V7K 1Y4

Project based, Full Time

Language in work environment - English

Benefits per company policy: include healthcare, tuition reimbursement, RRSP's, Sick and Vacation leave, standard increases as applicable

Sony Pictures Imageworks is looking for a stellar Lead Environment Artist to join our growing Environments team at our Vancouver studio!

As a Lead Environment Artist, you will use a flexible Houdini-centric generalist workflow to create highly detailed 3D environments for a diverse range of high-end VFX and Animated projects.

Responsibilities:

• Collaborate with the Environments Supervisor to achieve the creative vision of the client and the technical requirements of the Show.
• Work with environment artists and TDs to create complete, render-ready 3D environment assets for downstream consumption by lighting teams.
• Work with matte painters to create rendered 2.5d backgrounds/set extensions for downstream consumption by compositing teams.
• Participate directly in the creation of environment assets and matte paintings, establishing and modeling standard processes as you do so.
• Participate actively in team and show reviews; fill in for the Environment Supervisor in internal and client creative reviews when needed. Ensure feedback from reviews is appropriately addressed.
• Assist the Environment Supervisor in assessing crew needs for the team.
• Assist the Environments Supervisor in bidding out asset creation and shot costs, assessing the cost implications of client requests, and working out solutions.
• Contribute to the ongoing development and testing of Environments tools, pipelines and workflows for both your show and the studio as a whole.
• Participate in post-show reviews, and help develop & integrate solutions to the problems identified in them.
• Help communicate the creative and technical expectations for the team, and support the Environment Supervisor in seeing them through via consistent constructive feedback, recognition, and accountability.
• Model and champion a culture of professional excellence based on trust, candour and respect.
• Help encourage and motivate the team.
• Actively support the professional growth of all members of the Environments department by supporting mentoring, training and other initiatives.
• Build an inclusive and safe work environment by carefully handling sensitive information, encouraging everyone to have a voice, and addressing bias when it occurs.
• Develop collegial partnerships with peer artists to find solutions and compromises for technical and creative challenges.
• Provide regular updates to the Environments Supervisor on the progress, health, and direction of the team.

Qualifications:

• Bachelor's degree or higher in Art, Illustration, Architecture, Design, Computer Graphics, or equivalent.
• 6+ years of proven experience in vfx or animated feature films.
• Excellent understanding of fundamental visual principles, including perspective, composition, form, value, and colour.
• Skill and experience in a broad mix of the following areas is desired:

• Traditional drawing, painting, design and/or sculpture
• Concept design
• Modeling & UVing (esp. hard surface, landscape & foliage)
• Texture painting and mapping
• Look development and shading
• Dressing & scattering of 3d environments
• Lighting, rendering
• Compositing
• Photogrammetry and/or Neural Radiance Field capture and processing
• Linux experience
• Python scripting
• Expertise in the use of Houdini as an environment generalist is essential.
• Familiarity with VEX & HScript needed
• Familiarity with Python a bonus
• Experience with a broad mix of other applications is also desired:
• Nuke
• Katana
• Photoshop
• Arnold
• Speedtree
• Maya, Max, Modo or similar
• Gaea, Terragen, World Machine or similar
• City Engine
• ZBrush, Mudbox or similar
• Substance Designer
• Substance Painter or Mari
• Shotgrid or similar

Preferred Skills:

• Prior experience on both Animated and live action VFX projects.
• Experience with USD-based pipelines
• Experience with Unreal Engine
• Experience with Virtual Production workflows
• Experience with location/on-set photography and data capture for environments
• Highly organized, able to efficiently manage your own workload and that of your team.
• A proactive problem-solver, addressing roadblocks efficiently as they occur.
• An excellent communicator, able to interpret creative notes and convey them to artists with sensitivity and clarity.
• A natural teacher, always looking to help and mentor others.
• A willingness to detail processes and practices, and contribute to the creation and delivery of training materials.
• Unwilling to rest on your laurels, always learning new skills and techniques.
• A natural collaborator, proactively contacting artists to find solutions.
• Calm under pressure, helping maintain the morale and momentum of your team.

Please note that you must be able to provide a demo reel that illustrates your relevant artistic and technical experience that also includes the nuances for this specific role.

We value unique perspectives, and want diverse, unique talent to work with us. We encourage candidates from all identities to apply.

The anticipated base salary for this position is $50.34 to $64.95/hr. Benefits are per company policy: which include healthcare, tuition reimbursement, RRSP's, Sick and Vacation leave, standard increases as applicable. The actual base salary offered will depend on a variety of factors, including without limitation, the qualifications of the individual applicant for the position, years of relevant experience, level of education attained, certifications or other professional licenses held, and if applicable, the location of the position.

Sony Pictures Entertainment is an equal opportunity employer. We evaluate qualified applicants without regard to race, colour, religion, sex, national origin, disability, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, or other protected characteristics.