Background Painter Animation Jobs (NOW HIRING)

Job Summary:

Swaybox Studios is currently seeking a Senior CG Generalist (Modeler) to join our dynamic VFX team in bringing visually stunning work to life. This role is central to maintaining the stylistic aesthetic of the film, ensuring the final output meets the high artistic standards of the studio. It requires technical expertise, artistic sensibility, and a collaborative mindset.

The Senior CG Generalist (Modeler) will focus on the full CG creation of our assets with a strong emphasis on modeling. This person will play a hands-on role in breathing life into our CG assets and resolving creative challenges. While also collaborating with the VFX Supervisor, Unreal Supervisor, MoMo Supervisor and Art Director to ensure technical and creative goals are met, while also offering input to the TD team on ways to streamline and improve the production pipeline. This is a perfect position for a VFX artist who is passionate about the cinematic quality that can be achieved with CG and hybrid visual storytelling.

Key Responsibilities:

• Create and refine high-quality digital models for sets, props, and vehicles based on provided references, concept art, and/or directorial feedback.
• Communicate effectively with supervisors and production to ensure models meet both creative and technical requirements for layout, lookdev, and lighting.
• Demonstrate a strong understanding of surface characteristics to create, adjust, and assist in matching the style of our fabricated assets.
• Manage and optimize UV mapping for clean and efficient texture workflows.
• When needed, create custom textures and materials utilizing various techniques including: hand painting, photo-sourcing, projection mapping, scans, and photogrammetry.
• Research and collect visual reference materials to inform surface detail and realism.
• Maintain organized texture libraries and adhere to studio naming conventions and pipeline standards, where necessary.
• Replicate texture, lookdev, and lighting from live action plates onto our environments, vehicles, and props with an emphasis on fine details, texture nuances, and the overall aesthetic of our film.
• Implement both static (baked) and dynamic lighting solutions using Unreal Engine.
• Collaborate with VFX Supervisor, CG Supervisor, MoMo Supervisor, and TDs to identify areas of improvement in the pipeline, including tool and workflow development.
• Excel in a fast-paced environment, where priorities can shift quickly, demonstrating exceptional organization, flexibility, and the ability to maintain output quality amid evolving creative direction.
• Work closely with the art and production teams to maintain visual consistency across environments.

Required Qualifications:

• 5+ years of experience in high-end live action VFX films, animation, or television, specifically as a set or environment modeler.
• Strong proficiency in Maya, ZBrush, Blender or any standard modeling software.
• Highly skilled in hard surface and soft surface modeling as well as UV work.
• Proficient in UV, texture, and shading/lookdev within the following programs: Substance Painter, Substance Designer, Mari, Photoshop, or Maya.
• Proven experience working with physically based rendering (PBR) and stylized art pipelines within the following programs: Unreal Engine, Maya, and/or Houdini.
• Ability to model both stylized and realistic environments with attention to storytelling detail.
• In-depth knowledge of texture mapping techniques, layout, lookdev, and lighting.
• Solid understanding of scale, composition, and modular design for props and environments.
• Deep understanding of visual language- texture, color, dimension, perspective, shade, motion blur, depth of field, proportion, spatial awareness, etc.
• Strong problem-solving skills, attention to detail, and the ability to adapt quickly to unique or proprietary workflows.
• An artistic mindset and willingness to receive and implement constructive feedback.

Preferred Qualifications:

• Familiarity with Rhinoceros (Rhino) 3D is advantageous.
• Understanding of rigging and animation is a plus.
• Familiarity with Unreal Engine or other similar rendering tools.
• Background in architecture, industrial design, or scenic/set design.
• Basic knowledge of compositing in Nuke to create and refine slap comps for presentation.
• Familiarity with tracking software such as Shotgrid (Flow Production Tracking) and version control software such as Perforce.