Principal Technical Artist in Brighton

Studio Gobo is an established AAA games studio, part of the Keywords family. Our team has worked on multiple world class projects for companies such as Guerrilla Games, Arkane, Warner Bros, Ubisoft, Disney and Tencent. Projects include Lego Horizon Adventures, Redfall, Hogwarts Legacy, For Honor, Marvel Super Heroes: Guardians of the Galaxy and Star Wars: Rise Against the Empire playsets for Disney Infinity.

Studio Gobo is looking for a Principal Technical Artist to join the team on a new AAA Character Action game. As Principal Technical Artist you are expected to hold a wealth of knowledge in dealing with the technical issues around content creation for video games. You have a proven track record of resolving the most complex and broad‑reaching challenges in relationship to content construction and take an active role in developing and maintaining pipelines, while also supporting the team to deliver cutting‑edge visuals.

At Studio Gobo, we’re proud to be an equal opportunity workplace. We offer a comprehensive benefits package and an award‑winning environment that support your growth and well‑being. We've been recognized seven times by GamesIndustry.Biz as one of the Best Mid‑Sized Game Studios to work for in the U.K.

Responsibilities

• Oversees game performance, defines technical limits, tracks and communicates performance statistics and ensures the relevant teams adhere to these targets.
• Extensive knowledge of game engines like Unreal and previous experience working with proprietary engines including creation of new tools to support content creation or pipeline development.
• Works with art and tech art leadership with regards to planning and implementing solutions that support content creation and enhance visual quality with performance in mind.
• Proactively raise technical concerns, performance bottlenecks and defines strategies and mitigations.
• Offer day to day technical support to the content creators on the team.
• Extensive knowledge of DCC software like Max, Maya, Houdini, Blender, Substance.
• The building and management of tools and pipelines, including aiding content through from DCC packages into the game engine.
• Comfortable with developing tools and workflow enhancements using scripting languages like Python or C# and GUI libraries like PySide.
• Able to effectively share their experience and expertise to mentor more junior team members.
• Understands emerging trends and technologies within videogames and make strategic recommendations as to how they may benefit or impact the project, organization or the technical art team.
• A solid understanding of rendering pipelines and physically based rendering.

Requirements

• Shipped one or more AAA games as a Principal Technical Artist.
• Shipped a project using Unreal Engine 5 and has a solid understanding of identifying performance bottlenecks.
• Expert understanding of modern game content creation processes, including specifically authoring content that is Nanite and Lumen compliant and to budget constraints.
• Expert understanding of deploying and profiling of content in builds. Experience with Unreal Insights, PIX/RenderDoc.
• Experience with Shader/material optimisation and methods to reduce cost, especially in relation to Nanite, Lumen and Virtual Shadow Maps.
• Knowledge working with foliage, defining authoring guidelines and constructing pipelines in Unreal Engine 5 a plus.
• Excellent communication, interpersonal and organisational skills.
• A passion for video games.

Benefits

• Holidays – 22 days’ annual leave entitlement, plus 3 days’ studio closure over the Christmas period, giving a total of 25 days paid annual leave plus all 8 UK bank holidays.
• Bonus Anniversary Holidays – An additional day of annual leave for each year’s anniversary working at Studio Gobo, to a maximum of 5 extra days!
• Generous Annual Bonuses.
• Visa & Relocation Package – For qualified employees, we will pay for the visa costs for you and your family. We will also provide you with a relocation allowance.
• Company Pension Scheme – Employer contribution matching award‑winning pension scheme provided by NEST under the UK governments automatic enrolment scheme.
• Employee Share Purchase Plan (ESPP) – ESPP is an easy way for staff to get involved in entry level company ownership or make a small profit on savings.
• Private Medical Insurance Scheme – Full private medical cover provided by BUPA Private Healthcare.
• Group Life Insurance.
• Private Dental Insurance Scheme – Full private dental cover provided under our Dental plan company scheme.
• Group Income Protection.
• EAP – Employee Assistance Program that assists employees with personal problems and/or work‑related problems that may impact your work, health, mental and emotional wellbeing.
• Volunteer Time Off ‘Studio Gobo in the Community’ – Spend one day per year on full pay volunteering for the non‑profit organisation of your choice.
• Cycle & Tech Scheme – Receive up to £3000 worth of goodies as part of this salary sacrifice scheme.
• Eye‑care Vouchers – Free eye tests.
• Train Travel Season Ticket Loan – Interest‑free company loan to spread the cost of an annual season ticket.
• Health and Wellbeing Allowance - £50 per month to spend on your choice of a range of healthy activities.
• Fast Growing Studio – Plenty of room for career advancement.
• Industry Conferences Budget – A generous annual studio conferences budget. Many of our employees benefit from attending conferences such as GDC, E3 or SIGGRAPH, THU, Develop etc every year.

Perks

• Inspire & Motive Programme – Offering training opportunities, inspiring workshops and industry conferences.
• Free locally roasted Coffee & Speciality Teas.
• Gobo Cereal Bar – Extensive granola, muesli and breakfast cereal selections.
• Full Chef's Kitchen & Equipment – Free use of our large full‑sized chef’s kitchen ideal for whipping up a quick snack or a culinary feast.
• World Famous Free Lunches – Every Friday our studio enjoys a studio lunch together. Cooked in‑house by our very own chef with meat, vegan and gluten free options available every week.
• Fresh Fruit & Healthy Snacks – Provided every day, with a suggestion board for new treats!
• Pastries, Cakes & Doughnuts – For the odd naughty pleasure.
• Soft Drinks Fridge – A large range of free chilled soft drinks.
• Gobo Beer & Wine Fridge – Free beers, ales and wine and even the odd gin and tonic! Grab a beer at our end of week Show and Tell sessions and see what everybody else in the company has been up to!
• In‑house Social Clubs – There are lots of ways to socialise with your colleagues here! From day one you’re invited to join in clubs for D&D fans, board games, bouldering, drawing nights, yoga, cooking club – the list goes on and there is always space open for new members!
• Extensive Video Game & Book Library – Borrow a game, a book or even a whole console.
• Spacious Industrial Chic Studio Space – Many visitors comment on what an amazing studio space we have. We’ve invested a lot of time, thought and money into our studio. And we get to work in this space every day. Our working environment makes an incredible difference in our mood and productivity.
• Dogs with Jobs – Studio Gobo is a dog‑friendly employer. Bring doggo into the studio to meet and hang out with the rest of the team any time!
• Project Wrap Parties, Cinema Nights & Team Nights Out – We work hard together so it’s good to let off steam and spend some time together seeing what the wonderful city of Brighton & Hove has to offer.
• Monthly Studio Social Nights – Once per month the studio plays host to the biggest party in Brighton & Hove (probably). The drinks fridge is open for all. Invite a loved one to join us for food, drinks and anything in an array of board games, Smash Bros tournaments, 10‑person Overwatch multiplayer bouts, Beer Pong or even a bit of karaoke.
• Summer Festival – Every year on a hot summer’s afternoon, we all leave work early to enjoy the sun with company organised pop‑up diner, cocktail shack, bouncy castle, face painting and other fun amenities. The whole family is invited to spend the day coming to socialise with us, on us :)

Keywords Studios is dedicated to following a well‑established Equal Opportunities Policy. We endeavour to create a workplace which provides for equal opportunities for all employees and potential employees.