Art Lead, Concept Art - Legends Of Runeterra

Job Description

As a Concept Artist at Riot you will bring characters and creatures to life. Drawing inspiration from as little as a napkin sketch or as much as a full-blown narrative concept, you will generate ideas and craft designs that are resonant, compelling and iconic. As a problem solver, first and foremost, you will help come up with visual solutions for game concepts.

As the Art Lead, Concept Art, reporting to the Senior Manager, Art Direction for the Legends of Runeterra team, your concept art craft expertise, leadership, and eye for illustration will help deliver deep engagement and rich fantasy worlds to our players. By closely collaborating with a team of dedicated concept artists, illustrators, writers, animators and game developers, you will help define each character's unique place in our universe. You will deepen the artists' capacity for quality, mediate and resolve craft disagreements and misalignments, and prioritize the craft team's health. You will build trust with the artists on the team and support their career growth while improving craft workflows. You will partner with the Delivery Lead and Illustration Lead to drive effective external contractor management, feedback flows, and the timely delivery of high quality illustration. You will work with producers, art leadership, and partner teams to ensure final card art effectively promotes and aligns with various champions and the world of Runeterra. You will maintain your own craft skills, inspire creativity, and keep a high quality bar by personally helping to produce character and occasional environment concept art.

Responsibilities:
• Partner with production and art leadership to develop high-level execution plans
• Oversee the quality of the team's concept work and set the bar for excellence, including hands-on craft contribution
• Set a clear vision, provide consistent feedback, and build trust with your team
• Work with your direct reports to establish career and specific craft objectives
• Manage career growth, compensation, and motivation of all direct reports
• Drive the development of style guides and process guides
• Manage and communicate progress with partner teams
• Work with recruiting to find great talent for the team and ensure good onboarding and offboarding
• Assist in external development across studio vendors and contract artists alongside the Art Lead and Delivery Lead
• Lead and improve team rituals to support high quality craft and individual growth
• Actively support other craft and art leads by communicating department initiatives, sharing best practices, elevating leadership at Riot, and contributing as a community member

Required Qualifications:
• 5+ years of professional industry experience working in concept art
• Ability to showcase, create, and iterate on character concept and environment concept art
• Strong proficiency in art fundamentals, visual storytelling, and color theory
• Professional expertise in illustration to effectively give feedback on high quality illustrations
• Advanced experience creating digital art assets in Adobe Photoshop
• Experience with creating clear concept call-out sheets

Desired Qualifications:
• Professional experience as an Art Lead, including experience training other artists
• Professional experience managing direct reports, working with an on-site team of creatives
• Experience working with external vendors, giving thorough direction and delivering timely, clear feedback
• AAA game development experience
• TCG familiarity, and the desire to play TCGs.
• Familiarity with League of Legends Characters, IP Universes, and lore

As a part of the application process, candidates will be expected to provide a portfolio of their concept art work.

For this role, you'll find success through craft expertise, a collaborative spirit, and decision-making that prioritizes the delight of players. We will be looking at your past studies, experience, and your personal relationship with games. If you embody player empathy and care about the experiences of players, this could be the role for you!
Our Perks:

Riot has a focus on work/life balance, shown by our open paid time off policy, in addition to other perks such as flexible work schedules. We offer medical, dental, and life insurance, parental leave for you, your spouse/domestic partner and children, and a 401k with company match. Check out our benefits pages for more information.

Riot Games fosters a player and workplace experience that values teamwork embodied by the Summoner's Code and Community Code. Our culture embraces differences as a strength, and our values are the guiding principles for how we approach work. We are committed to putting diversity and inclusion (D&I) at the center of everything we do, and promoting a fair and collaborative culture where Rioters treat one another with dignity and respect. We encourage you to read more about our value of thriving together and our ongoing work to build the most inclusive company in Gaming. It's our policy to provide equal employment opportunity for all applicants and members of Riot Games, Inc. Riot Games makes reasonable accommodations for handicapped and disabled Rioters and does not unlawfully discriminate on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, age, handicap, veteran status, marital status, criminal history, or any other category protected by applicable federal and state law, including the City of Los Angeles' Fair Chance Initiative for Hiring Ordinance relating to an applicant's criminal history.

Jobcode: Reference SBJ-rjwy01-13-59-218-147-42 in your application.