Assistant Technical Director (ATD)

Posted:
9/10/2024, 6:59:07 AM

Location(s):
Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada ⋅ British Columbia, Canada

Experience Level(s):
Senior

Field(s):
Software Engineering

Sony Pictures Imageworks is located on the unceded traditional territory of the Musqueam, Squamish, and Tsleil-Waututh First Nations. We are committed to respecting traditional lands, and working with communities towards reconciliation.

Sony Pictures Imageworks Canada Inc.
725 Granville Street, 5th Floor
Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada, V7K 1Y4

Project based, Full Time

Language in work environment - English

Benefits per company policy: include healthcare, tuition reimbursement, RRSP's, Sick and Vacation leave, standard increases as applicable

Sony Imageworks Vancouver is seeking an Assistant Technical Director (ATD)! 

Job Description

The Assistant Technical Director (ATD) is a service-oriented role that requires collaboration with VFX and CG Supervisors. The ATD will be responsible for the development and maintenance of the visual effects pipeline and asset/project management system, as well as application tools and utilities. As a member of a team, in this role, the ATD will be working closely with both productions and development teams and should have a helpful, patient, and encouraging personality. To excel in this position, candidates should have a background in film, digital lighting and compositing, proficiency in 2D/3D software, proficient software developer, and strong problem-solving skills. Experience with ray-tracing render engines and shader development is preferred but not crucial.

Duties

  • Develop and maintain scripts, tools and utilities for 3D and 2D artists.
  • Work in and understand the SPI's proprietary pipeline and software APIs.
  • Create, package, document and release tools for production use.
  • Creating plugins for applications, stand alone tools for automation targeted at artist efficiency.
  • Help author production specific training materials for new hires
  • Assist artists with rendering, pipeline and look of picture technical issues in the production pipeline.
  • Coordinate and assist the Render Efficiency Team and production teams to distribute and implement render optimizations in production.
  • Act as a first point of contact for production-related inquiries and assist in resolving technical issues in a timely manner.
  • Identify workflow inefficiencies and work with artists and other pipeline teams to build scripts, tools and/or systems to improve these inefficiencies. These developments vary from render efficiency, to workflow or pipeline and can include the look of picture.

Qualifications

  • Strong interest in Film, Lighting and/or Compositing. Experience or curiosity about render and shader development is a plus.
  • Good Knowledge of at least one or more of the following 2D/3D software packages such as Maya, Katana, Houdini, Clarisse, and Nuke
  • Programming experience, preferably in Python, Lua, C++, Open GL. 
  • Experience with GUI development using PySide or PyQt5. 
  • Excellent problem-solving and interpersonal skills
  • Bash/cshell/Linux knowledge
  • Experience in code-sharing, revision control such as Git, SVN. 
  • Experience with Arnold or any other ray tracing-based renderers such as Vray, Mantra, Renderman or Mental Ray.
  • Knowledge and experience using raytracing render engines and shader development is preferred but not essential.
  • Undergraduate or Graduate degree in Computing Science or equivalent experience a plus.

The anticipated base salary for this position is $26.44 to $36.32/hr. Benefits are per company policy: which include healthcare, tuition reimbursement, RRSP's, Sick and Vacation leave, standard increases as applicable. The actual base salary offered will depend on a variety of factors, including without limitation, the qualifications of the individual applicant for the position, years of relevant experience, level of education attained, certifications or other professional licenses held, and if applicable, the location of the position.

Please note that you must be able to provide a demo reel that illustrates your relevant artistic and technical experience that also includes the nuances for this specific role.

We value unique perspectives, and want diverse, unique talent to work with us.  We encourage candidates from all identities to apply

*Sony Pictures Entertainment is an equal opportunity employer. We evaluate qualified applicants without regard to race, colour, religion, sex, national origin, disability, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, or other protected characteristics.