Senior Technical Artist

Job Description

Why PlayStation?

About Valkyrie

Valkyrie Entertainment is a video game development studio based in Seattle. Since 2002, we have worked with world-class game developers and publishers and we are a proud member of PlayStation Studios.

At our studio, you will have the opportunity to work with an experienced and diverse team while contributing to a wide variety of projects and styles.
Our studio is located in the heart of downtown Seattle with Pike Place Market, Seattle Art Museum, Seattle Waterfront, several theaters, Metro transit system, and many culinary delights all within just a few blocks walking distance.

Job Description

As a Technical Artist, you will be the bridge between the art and engineering teams. You possess the multi-disciplinary knowledge necessary to help determine and support the needs of the teams and projects studio-wide. You will work with all departments to ensure art content and features are smoothly and efficiently integrated into the game, while respecting the artistic vision and technical constraints of the project.

Daily Tasks and Responsibilities
• Support and empower artists and engineers in the efficient creation and implementation of high-quality art assets
• Solve challenging technical issues in the game development pipeline
• Identify and implement art-pipeline optimizations and tooling
• Create art assets that require high technical skill or specialist knowledge (VFX, Shaders, Post-processing, etc.)
• Research and develop technical tools for a project
• Researching the latest advances in graphics technology and implementation of rendering techniques
• Assisting in asset performance and validation
• Evaluating software and tools to facilitate game art production
• Working within the limits of the game engine, curating file sizes, polygon counts and loading speeds
• Implement optimizations and monitor the performance of the game
• Improve and maintain graphics features and the graphics pipeline for all projects studio-wide
• Create and maintain technical documentation

Qualifications
• 3+ years professional experience as a technical artist or equivalent role
• Solid understanding of art and animation pipelines
• Strong understanding of game systems and the game development process
• Strong knowledge of scripting languages (Python, MEL, VEX, Perl, etc)
• Creative mindset and ability to overcome technical challenges
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills
• Self-motivated and proactive
• Experience in the full pipeline of digital art content creation (high and low-poly modeling, unwrapping, baking, texturing, level art, etc.)
• Proficient as a user and tools developer for art content creation tools (Autodesk Maya, 3DS Max, Houdini, etc.)
• Experience developing custom tools for Digital Content Creation tools (Maya, Max, etc.)
• Strong foundational artistic skills (proportion, color, composition)
• Professional experience with game editors and engines (UE4, Unity, etc.) on shipped titles
• Passion for videogames and extensive knowledge of different game genres across all platforms

Bonus Qualifications
• Experience with Unreal Engine 5
• Experience with shader development in 3D content creation packages and game engines.
• Experience in physics simulations
• Experience with rigging and animation
• Rendering and post-effects experience

Please refer to our Candidate Privacy Notice for more information about how we process your personal information, and your data protection rights.

At SIE, we consider several factors when setting each role's base pay range, including the competitive benchmarking data for the market and geographic location.

Please note that the base pay range may vary in line with our hybrid working policy and individual base pay will be determined based on job-related factors which may include knowledge, skills, experience, and location.

In addition, this role is eligible for SIE's top-tier benefits package that includes medical, dental, vision, matching 401(k), paid time off, wellness program and coveted employee discounts for Sony products. This role also may be eligible for a bonus package. Click here to learn more.

This is a flexible role that can be remote, with varying pay ranges based on geographic location. For example, if you are based out of Seattle, the estimated base pay range for this role is listed below.

$110,500 - $165,700 USD

Equal Opportunity Statement:

Sony is an Equal Opportunity Employer. All persons will receive consideration for employment without regard to gender (including gender identity, gender expression and gender reassignment), race (including colour, nationality, ethnic or national origin), religion or belief, marital or civil partnership status, disability, age, sexual orientation, pregnancy or maternity, trade union membership or membership in any other legally protected category.

We strive to create an inclusive environment, empower employees and embrace diversity. We encourage everyone to respond.

PlayStation is a Fair Chance employer and qualified applicants with arrest and conviction records will be considered for employment.

Jobcode: Reference SBJ-re0m27-3-15-174-76-42 in your application.