Content Optimization Technical Director

Job Description

The Lucasfilm Advanced Development Group (ADG) is looking for Technical Directors to join our content pipeline team. As a Content Optimization Technical Director at the ADG, you will be responsible for setting standards and best practices for asset creation and material authoring resulting in the highest quality content running at target framerates on target hardware. You will also have a role as product owner for our next generation content pipeline tooling and workflows that will empower the creation of Disney's Metaverse.

Responsibilities:
• Plans and enacts the best practices for real-time content authoring given specific hardware targets
• Plans and aids real-time productions in providing asset budgets and level of detail (LOD) targets specific to target hardware
• Designs, implements and maintains methods of performance profiling for productions, clearly documenting diagnostics and proposed solutions back to production
• Designs, implements and maintains tooling and systems to empower content creators and expose performance metrics of real-time scenes and environments on target hardware
• Contributes to strategy to determine potential automation in our content pipeline that encourages and enforces defined standards, without compromising visual fidelity
• Contributes to product ownership for the Content Pipeline Team's next generation content creation tools and system, ensuring that tooling and processes meet production standards
• Contributes to input and direction for proprietary performance profiling instrumentation and test frameworks
• Maintain software products released to production
• Provide support for end-users and assist with technical issues, system use and raise any usability or bugs with the Content Pipeline team to resolve
• Partner with the ADG DevOps and other ILM technology departments build scalable and robust systems for all ILMxLAB, Virtual Production and Virtual Art Department productions
• Creates and maintains clear and concise documentation outlining the use of products and solutions in production
• Participate in special projects as needed

Basic Qualifications:
• 5-8 years relevant experience
• Experience developing software and shipping to a production environment be it games, immersive experiences, film, commercials or television/episodical
• Strong grasp of real-time content creation pipelines and the impact of well authored assets on runtime performance
• Strong grasp of real-time rendering engines like Unreal Engine or Unity
• Good knowledge of real-time rendering pipelines and be able to troubleshoot and diagnose performance bottlenecks
• Good knowledge or awareness of computer graphics interchange formats like USD, FBX, MaterialX, Alembic, etc
• Good familiarity with one or more production Digital Content Creation (DCC) tools like Unreal Engine, Maya, 3DS Max, Substance, Houdini, Blender, etc
• Good knowledge of source control management systems like Git, Perforce, SVN, etc
• Good knowledge of tool development either using C++ or visual scripting tools like Unreal's Blueprints
• Knowledge of software engineering best practices, engineering trends, emerging products and the role of the pipeline engineering team in VFX, feature Animation or AAA games production
• Knowledge of developing software in Linux or Windows environments
• Self-motivated individual with excellent problem solving skills.
• Flexibility to handle a variety of tasks.
• A passion for real-time graphics and its potential for VR, AR and immersive entertainment
• A passion for creating efficient and stable workflows that allow artists to focus on content creation
• Excellent communication skills, able to work as part of a team
• Ability and willingness to communicate cross-discipline and provide innovative solutions to production pipeline problems

Required Education
• Bachelor's degree in, or professional equivalent to, Computer Science or related technical field or equivalent professional experience

About Lucasfilm:

Lucasfilm is a global leader in film, television and digital entertainment production. In addition to its motion-picture and television production, the company's activities include visual effects, audio post-production and cutting-edge digital animation, interactive entertainment software, and the management of the global merchandising activities for its entertainment properties including the legendary STAR WARS and INDIANA JONES franchises. Lucasfilm Ltd. is headquartered in northern California.

Jobcode: Reference SBJ-g46y8y-3-145-166-7-42 in your application.