Overview

ABOUT IMAGE ENGINE
Based in Vancouver BC, we are a world-class visual effects studio led by a team of creative and passionate individuals who are committed to furthering the art of visual storytelling, and helping our exceptionally talented crew to push the boundaries of artistic and technical achievement.

Well known for our Academy Award Nominated work on Neill Blomkamp’s District 9, we have gone on to create numerous incredible creatures, epic environments and extraordinary digital effects for a broad range of feature films including; Zero Dark Thirty, Jurassic World, Game of Thrones, and Independence Day Resurgence.

We can do this because we place awesome new tools in the hands of our artists. R&D is central to our philosophy of driving creativity through innovation, with a focus on continually evolving our robust production pipelines and pioneering in the area of proprietary software development.

POSITION PURPOSE

The purpose of the Environment TD role is to create or recreate a fully photo-real digital environment with a team that works and operates within a scale-able visual effects pipeline, using tools and techniques to optimize and streamline the generated content. The Environment TD will have a thorough knowledge of Matte Painting techniques, 2.5D projection mapping workflow and 3D. They will work closely with the pipeline department and CG Supervisors to update and refine the environment/city generation pipeline.

DUTIES & RESPONSIBILITIES
Work daily with the Environment supervisor, matte painters, environment/assets team and other supervisors to identify and implement existing and new features
Report back to the Environment Supervisor with any issues or concerns from findings
Translate concept art into photo-realistic environments
Assemble models, digital matte paintings, textures, projections and lights into a CG scene for rendering
Trouble shoot artist tool issues; develop effective solutions in collaboration w/pipeline team.
Support Production team; attend production meetings as need for information and requirements gathering
Write Technical Briefs and provide supporting documentation within the scope of Environment/City generation
Improve our efficiency by testing new tools and workflows that are released to the industry
Identify early areas of improvement; escalates issues as needed
Troubleshoot technical issues with the CG scene and optimising the renders to work within the resources available
Work with a shot Compositor to assemble renders and projections in a compositing application
Work to develop the look of a shot, assets or sequence with the Visual Effects and CG Supervisors
Identify the best approach for matching the quality of the plate photography
Work in partnership with other departments to ensure that shots are delivered to the highest possible standard

EDUCATION AND EXPERIENCE

5+ years’ of Environment TD experience with high end film
Demonstrated proficiency in defining and creating photo-real elements
Experience with rendering large datasets
Strong knowledge of Photoshop, Nuke and Maya
Experience modeling, UV layout and texturing skills
Strong artistic skills in digital matte painting combining plate augmentation and hand painting in Photoshop
Experience in photography and being able to use photographic content from different media appropriately in set re-creation (stills, HDRI etc)
Good understanding of VFX generalist workflows, specifically: Modelling (architecture & environments), texture creation, lighting and rendering
Experience delivering complete milestones/tasks under tight deadlines
Experience with a wide range of specialist software used to create digital environments

SKILLS AND ABILITIES

Ability to help with bidding; determine the timeframe and scope required for each project
Ability to troubleshoot and deal with competing priorities and projects
Ability to adapt quickly to new technologies and applications
Ability to teach new techniques and apply new approaches to push assets to the next level
Great eye for detail, initiative, and excellent organizational skills
Strong leadership skills
Strong written and verbal communication skills
Excellent time management and communication skills
Team player and able to work independently with minimal supervision
Strong troubleshooting/problem solving ability.