Senior Pipeline Engineer - Studio (UK)

Halon Entertainment is the premier visualization and technology company, dedicated to the art of storytelling in film, games, and advertisements. We are seeking a talented Senior Pipeline Engineer to join our dynamic pipeline team and contribute to the development, architecture, and implementation of cutting-edge production pipelines for VFX, animation, and virtual production. You will play a key role in creating innovative features for our existing tools and developing new ones as required. You will actively contribute to and uphold Halon's established policies. Your expertise will be instrumental in ensuring smooth, scalable, and efficient workflows across all production disciplines, encompassing modelling, rigging, animation, and rendering, while seamlessly integrating render farm management systems such as Deadline.

Requirements

• Must be legally authorized to work from Scotland.
• Minimum of 5-7 years of experience in pipeline development within the VFX, animation, or a related industry.
• In-depth knowledge of animation, modelling, rigging, and rendering pipelines.
• Strong proficiency in Python programming.
• Familiarity in Unreal Engine systems: Blueprints, Animation Blueprints, the UE Python API.
• Proven expertise with DCC software such as Maya, Houdini, Blender, and Substance Painter.
• Experience with version control systems like Perforce or Git.
• A solid understanding of SOLID principles and software engineering best practices to create maintainable and scalable systems.
• A demonstrated ability to troubleshoot and resolve pipeline issues promptly within a fast-paced production environment.
• Excellent collaborative and communication skills, with a proven track record of effectively working alongside artists and engineers to ensure technical requirements are met.
• Experience with AYON or similar open-source pipeline frameworks (or in-house systems) is considered a significant advantage.
• Experience with cloud-based infrastructure and rendering workflows is a bonus.
• Experience in building and maintaining CI/CD pipelines for production processes is a plus.

Duties and Responsibilities:

• Work in our custom flavor of AYON by developing new addons and reviewing the work of the rest of the pipeline team.
• Maximize artistic output across the studio by identifying and automating tasks to enhance efficiency.
• Develop and implement new features within our current pipeline tools.
• Proactively identify and resolve bugs, implementing robust unit tests to prevent future recurrences.
• Design and develop new tools tailored to the specific needs of the Halon pipeline.
• Create bespoke integrations with various Digital Content Creation (DCC) software.
• Collaborate effectively with artists, technical directors, and fellow engineers to pinpoint workflow bottlenecks, troubleshoot challenges, and devise solutions that align with production requirements.
• Provide expert technical guidance and develop tools for DCC software such as Unreal Engine, Maya, Houdini, Blender, and Substance Painter, ensuring seamless integration with the production pipeline.
• Work closely with render management tools to optimize and maintain the studio's rendering pipeline, prioritizing high efficiency and scalability.
• Ensure smooth pipeline operation within cloud-based workflows, effectively managing tasks such as asset synchronization and rendering on cloud platforms.
• Maintain robust version control practices across the pipeline, utilizing systems such as Perforce or Git to safeguard data integrity and facilitate efficient collaboration.
• Contribute to the implementation of CI/CD pipelines for production workflows, automating deployment and testing where feasible.
• Create and maintain comprehensive technical documentation to ensure all tools and workflows are user-friendly and easily maintained by both technical and non-technical team members.
• Stay abreast of the latest industry trends and technological advancements, applying them to continually enhance the pipeline and workflows.