Art Director Guildford, England
Job description
Job Description
Kinesthetic Games is seeking for a passionate, multi talented and cross disciplined Senior/Lead Artist with a knack for management and excellent communication skills to join our team! As an Art Director at Kinesthetic you will be the one setting the visual identity for the studio’s projects, either through direct implementation or through guiding more junior staff and outsourcing agents to meet the quality standards that you will be outlining for the vision. You will be collaborating frequently with design to identify the visual elements in the game and be in charge of their lifecycle all the way from conception to finished, game ready asset. You will also be collaborating with more technical staff to set technical standards for assets and ensure implementation meets the technical requirements. As Lead of a very small in house team working in a startup minded environment, you will need to be equally happy with hands on implementation tasks ranging all the way from basic concepting, to 3d modelling of organic/prop assets, to vfx and technical art tasks like material and shader tweaking as well as higher level management and direction of internal and external art content creation staff. You’ll be the type of person that craves multitasking and dabbling with a variety of exciting tasks rather than pigeonholing yourself in a single, strictly defined role. Familiarity with industry standard engines like Unity and Unreal and their various “gotchas” in terms of making assets look their absolute best and run efficiently in the engine is a big bonus.
Desired Skills & Experience
- Has shipped at least one game as an Art Director / Art Lead demonstrating a high visual bar
- 3-5 years prior game industry experience
- Experienced in high poly modelling (Z-brush)
- Experienced in low poly game optimised modelling (Maya, 3DS, XSI)
- Experienced in texturing
- Experienced in shader tweaking and technical art
- Experienced in managing teams of artists
- Classic drawing/concepting skills a bonus
- B.A. or equivalent degree
- Past experience with industry standard engines (Unreal/Unity) is a big bonus.
Responsibilities
- Collaborating with Producer and Project Director to assemble a quality art team
- Leading and motivating the art team to realize overall goals and deliver a successful project on time
- Assisting the Producer in the creation and overall management of the art schedule and resource plans
- Creating critical game ready art content as well as style guide assets to be used by outsourcers
- Tracking and approving completed art assets from outsourcers or junior artists
- Collaborating with Lead Programmer to brainstorm technical ideas and solutions
- Creating and updating the Art Bible, ensuring that the art team’s style remains consistent.
- Responsible for establishing the art production pipeline and enforcing the process throughout the project cycle
- Working with Producer to adjust project goals and design revisions on the fly as necessary to adapt to changing situations to meet established schedules
- Identifying potential problems in the art pipeline and working with the Producer(s) to prevent them
- Supporting the Producer to keep studio executive staff, the publisher and/or marketing staff up to speed on product status and vision through the preparation and presentation of appropriate project materials (e.g., milestone updates, demos, etc)
- Mentoring and serving as a technical and creative resource for the team, assisting in the resolution of complex problems, and helping them grow in their roles
Skills
- Understands game production design process and methodology
- Demonstrates an understanding of storytelling, craftsmanship and continuity
- Effective communication with peers, art staff and senior management
- Multiplatform experience (console/mobile/PC)
- Ability to balance impacts of deadlines and resources with style and quality requirements of a title’s art direction
- Demonstrated ability to solve complex problems efficiently
- Ability to maintain pacing in situations of intense schedules
- Strong time management skills with a proven ability to focus on priorities juggle multiple tasks and meet deadlines
- Ability to work cooperatively on a team spanning artists, programmers and designers, and to compromise when necessary to achieve overall best results
- Ability to communicate effectively with executive level staff on a broad range of topics: technical, business, and creative
Company Information
Kinesthetic Games is a young start up where experience, talent and skill are surpassed only by our passion for creating awesome things. We’re a small group of motivated industry vets (ex-Lionhead) looking to make our mark on the world and we want you to join us! As a start up we crave responsibility and ownership and the variety that comes from not pigeonholing ourselves in strictly defined roles and sinking our teeth into all sorts of crazy challenges! Our mission is to maintain an environment where team goals and personal expression are valued and fostered equally. We are a friendly bunch who are strong believers in excellent work/life balance and the “work hard, play hard” philosophy. We offer competitive pay and benefits like annual and project based bonuses. Kinesthetic Games is situated in one of the UK’s most vibrant games development hubs: the historic town of Guildford, Surrey. With its rural countryside and picturesque town centre, a 35 minute ride to central London and its active gamedev community due to the large number of studios operating in the area, Guildford is an ideal base for games developers looking for career opportunities in the UK
Additional Information
Type: Contract/Permanent Option
Location: On Site/Remote Option
Experience: Mid-Senior level
Functions: Art/Creative
Industries: Computer Games
Job ID: 6820820
