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Shading Tech Artist Jobs (NOW HIRING)

Swaybox Studios

Senior CG Lighting Artist

New Orleans, LA · Hybrid

$122K - $146K/yr

... collaborating on visual looks, tech, training, and workflow for faces and environments ... Understanding and experience with UV, texture, and shading is a plus. * Understanding of CG ...

Swaybox Studios

Senior CG Lighting Artist

New Orleans, LA · On-site

$122K - $146K/yr

... collaborating on visual looks, tech, training, and workflow for faces and environments ... Understanding and experience with UV, texture, and shading is a plus. * Understanding of CG ...

Naughty Dog

Senior Character Artist

Santa Monica, CA

$135K - $142K/yr

... and technology. Naughty Dog recently released The Last of Us Part II Remastered as well as a ... Highly skilled at sculpting, modeling, texturing, shading characters and assets for games * High ...

New

TRICK 3D

TECHNICAL ARTIST

Atlanta, GA · On-site

$120K - $144K/yr

TRICK 3D sits at the forefront of immersive content and technology innovation in VR, AR, MR and ... Understanding of shader node graph and physically-based shading and rendering workflows, especially ...

Trick 3d

TECHNICAL ARTIST

Atlanta, GA

$120K - $144K/yr

TRICK 3D sits at the forefront of immersive content and technology innovation in VR, AR, MR and ... Understanding of shader node graph and physically-based shading and rendering workflows, especially ...

KONAMI GAMING INC

Technical Artist III

Las Vegas, NV · On-site

$116K - $139K/yr

Proactively self-trains to remain at the forefront of Unity engine technology. * Analyzes Konami ... Knowledge of 3D fundamentals: modeling, texturing/shading, rigging, animation, lighting, rendering.

Konami Gaming, Inc

Technical Artist III

Las Vegas, NV · On-site

$85K - $110K/yr

Proactively self-trains to remain at the forefront of Unity engine technology. * Analyzes Konami ... Knowledge of 3D fundamentals: modeling, texturing/shading, rigging, animation, lighting, rendering.

Naughty Dog

Senior Character Artist

Santa Monica, CA · On-site

$69.09 - $86.35/hr

... and technology. Naughty Dog recently released The Last of Us Part II Remastered as well as a ... Highly skilled at sculpting, modeling, texturing, shading characters and assets for games * High ...

New

Canoo

3D Visualization Artist

Justin, TX · On-site

... technologies, award-winning designs, and a unique business model that spans all owners in the full ... Use Maya and Redshift Render for stills, animation, lighting, and shading * Data preparation of CAD ...

TheLab

CGI Lead

Manhattan, NY · On-site

The CGI Supervisor is responsible for the technical and artistic quality of all 3D computer ... Evaluate emerging technologies and recommend improvements to production capabilities. Creative ...

Posted today

TheLab

CGI Lead

Manhattan, NY · On-site

$20.75 - $28.25/hr

The CGI Supervisor is responsible for the technical and artistic quality of all 3D computer ... Evaluate emerging technologies and recommend improvements to production capabilities. Creative ...

Posted today

Varsity Tutors

Drawing Tutor

OK · Remote

$18 - $40/hr

Deep knowledge of drawing fundamentals including line quality, shading and value, perspective (one ... Emphasizes seeing like an artist through careful observation and connects drawing to visual ...

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Shading Tech Artist information

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$30.5K

$129.5K

$152.5K

How much do shading tech artist jobs pay per year?

As of Aug 5, 2026, the average yearly pay for shading tech artist in the United States is $129,541.00, according to ZipRecruiter salary data. Most workers in this role earn between $127,000.00 and $152,000.00 per year, depending on experience, location, and employer.

What are some common challenges shading tech artists face when collaborating with other departments in a game development pipeline?

Shading Tech Artists often encounter challenges when bridging the gap between artistic vision and technical requirements. One common issue is ensuring that custom shaders perform efficiently across different platforms while still meeting the desired visual aesthetic. Collaboration with artists, programmers, and lighting specialists requires clear communication to balance creative ambitions with real-time performance constraints. Additionally, adapting to frequent changes in art direction or engine updates can require quick iteration and problem-solving skills.

What are the key skills and qualifications needed to thrive as a shading tech artist, and why are they important?

To thrive as a Shading Tech Artist, you need a strong understanding of 3D rendering, shader programming, and material creation, often supported by a degree in computer graphics or a related field. Proficiency with tools such as Maya, Houdini, Substance Designer, and real-time engines like Unreal Engine or Unity is commonly required. Attention to detail, creativity, and effective communication are essential soft skills for collaborating with artists and developers. These skills ensure visually compelling, optimized assets that meet both artistic and technical requirements in game and film production.

What is a shading tech artist?

A Shading Tech Artist is a professional in the visual effects, animation, or gaming industry who specializes in creating and implementing shaders and materials for 3D models. Their role bridges the gap between art and technology by developing visually compelling textures and surface qualities using technical tools and scripting. Shading Tech Artists work closely with both artists and programmers to ensure that the materials look realistic or stylistically appropriate while being optimized for real-time rendering or final output. They often utilize shader languages and material editors within software like Unreal Engine, Unity, or proprietary engines.
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Infographic showing various Shading Tech Artist job openings in the United States as of July 2026, with employment types broken down into 78% Full Time, 18% Part Time, 1% Temporary, and 3% Contract. Highlights an 97% Physical, and 3% Remote job distribution, with an average salary of $129,541 per year, or $62.3 per hour.

Senior CG Lighting Artist

Swaybox Studios

New Orleans, LA • Hybrid

$122K - $146K/yr

Other

Re-posted 23 days ago

Job description

Job Summary:

Swaybox Studios is seeking a creatively driven and technically adept Senior CG Lighting Artist to integrate CG facial performances into our cross-department workflows. This role is central to maintaining the emotional fidelity and character consistency of our hybrid puppetry performances, ensuring the final output meets the high artistic standards of the studio.

The Senior CG Lighting Artist will focus mainly on facial performance replacement with a handoff to the compositing team. This person will play a hands-on role in bringing our characters to life, improving workflows, resolving creative challenges, and collaborating with Supervisors and Technical Directors to evolve tools that enhance production efficiency. This is a perfect position for a VFX artist who understands the subtle art of expression, setting a mood, character performance, and hybrid storytelling.

Key Responsibilities:

  • Implement best practices in our face replacement pipeline, ensuring poses and expressions are seamlessly matched to animation and puppet facial performances.
  • Replicate and adjust lighting from live action plates onto our characters with an emphasis on fine details, performance nuances, and the overall aesthetic of our film.
  • Establish and maintain the tone, and mood across sequences, while also adhering to any pre-lighting or color keys that have been established in pre-vis.
  • Work closely with outsource vendors and other CG and comp artists, collaborating on visual looks, tech, training, and workflow for faces and environments.
  • Collaborate with VFX Supervisor, MoMo Art Supervisor, and TDs to identify areas of improvement in the pipeline, including tool and workflow development.
  • Maintain output quality and momentum in a fast-paced environment.
  • Preserve cohesive character consistency across facial replacements and ensure smooth integration of our internal puppet performances, animation, and live action plates.
  • Communicate effectively with production and creative leads to align visual performance with narrative goals.

Required Qualifications:

  • 5+ years experience in high-end, live action VFX films, with a strong emphasis on beauty lighting.
  • Expert knowledge and proficiency of Houdini and rendering in Arnold.
  • Basic knowledge of compositing in Nuke to create and refine slap comps for presentation and handoff to the compositing team.
  • Deep understanding of visual language- color, scale, perspective, proportion, spatial awareness, motion blur, depth of field, etc
  • Comprehensive knowledge of physically based rendering and optimizations, using Arnold or similar engines.
  • Understanding of photography, exposure, color grading, lens and camera behavior, and HDR workflows.
  • Strong eye for cinematic and real-world lighting, color grading, and shot continuity.
  • Robust 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, whether that's with draw-overs, over the shoulder adjustments, or team meetings.

Preferred Qualifications:

  • Understanding and experience with UV, texture, and shading is a plus.
  • Understanding of CG modelling and rigging workflows.
  • Basic knowledge of texture mapping techniques.
  • Experience with Unreal is advantageous.
  • Knowledge of Maya and Arnold rendering.
  • Experience with ZBrush and other 3D software is advantageous.
  • Familiarity with scripting or tool development (e.g. Python, MEL, etc.) to support pipeline enhancements.
  • Background in traditional art.
  • Prior experience in both stylized and realistic texture and shading creation of digital faces is great to have.
  • Familiarity with hybrid workflows that span traditional VFX and digital puppetry.

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