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Unity Lighting Artist Jobs (NOW HIRING)

ACTIVISION PUBLISHING, INC.

WI · On-site

$100 - $125/hr

Senior Lighting Artist - Raven - Middleton, WI Raven Software is seeking a highly capable ... Expert experience with game development engines and lighting tools (Unreal, Unity, or equivalent ...

ACTIVISION PUBLISHING, INC.

WI · On-site

$125 - $150/hr

Lead Lighting Artist - Raven - Middleton, WI Job Opportunities: LinkedIn: Raven Software is seeking ... Expert experience with game development engines and lighting tools (Unreal, Unity, or equivalent ...

Raven Software

WI · On-site

$125 - $150/hr

Lead Lighting Artist - Raven - Middleton, WI Requisition ID:R028052 Your Mission Raven Software is ... Expert experience with game development engines and lighting tools (Unreal, Unity, or equivalent ...

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Unity Lighting Artist information

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$37K

$123.1K

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How much do unity lighting artist jobs pay per year?

As of Sep 8, 2026, the average yearly pay for unity lighting artist in the United States is $123,136.00, according to ZipRecruiter salary data. Most workers in this role earn between $79,000.00 and $170,500.00 per year, depending on experience, location, and employer.

What is a Unity Lighting Artist?

Unity Lighting Artists are professionals who specialize in creating and optimizing lighting within the Unity game engine. They design lighting setups that enhance the visual atmosphere, mood, and realism of game environments or interactive experiences. Their work involves placing light sources, adjusting shadows, and fine-tuning light settings to achieve the desired look while maintaining performance. Unity Lighting Artists collaborate closely with other artists, designers, and developers to ensure that the lighting supports gameplay and storytelling. They also troubleshoot lighting issues and implement techniques such as baked, real-time, and mixed lighting.

What are the key skills and qualifications needed to thrive as a Unity Lighting Artist, and why are they important?

To thrive as a Unity Lighting Artist, you need a solid understanding of lighting principles, color theory, and real-time rendering, typically supported by experience with Unity and a background in art, design, or a related field. Proficiency with Unity's lighting tools, shaders, and post-processing effects, as well as knowledge of optimization techniques, is essential. Strong collaboration, attention to detail, and creative problem-solving set exceptional lighting artists apart. These skills ensure visually compelling, performant environments that enhance gameplay and overall user experience.

What are some common challenges Unity Lighting Artists face when optimizing lighting for real-time performance?

Unity Lighting Artists often need to balance visual quality with real-time performance, which can be challenging when working on complex scenes. Optimizing lighting involves managing the number of real-time lights, baking global illumination efficiently, and minimizing performance costs from shadows and post-processing effects. Collaboration with level designers and programmers is crucial to ensure that lighting enhances gameplay without causing frame rate drops. Regular profiling and iteration are key parts of the workflow to meet both artistic and technical goals.

What is the difference between Unity Lighting Artist vs Environment Artist?

AspectUnity Lighting ArtistEnvironment Artist
Primary FocusLighting setup, light placement, and mood creation within UnityDesigning and creating detailed 3D environments and backgrounds
Skills & ToolsUnity engine, lighting techniques, shader knowledge3D modeling, texturing, environment design software
Work EnvironmentGame studios, real-time rendering projectsGame studios, film, visualization projects

While both roles contribute to the visual quality of a project, Unity Lighting Artists specialize in lighting within the Unity engine to enhance mood and realism, whereas Environment Artists focus on creating detailed environments and assets. Understanding these differences helps employers and job seekers target the right skills and roles in the industry.

What are popular job titles related to Unity Lighting Artist jobs?

For Unity Lighting Artist jobs, the most frequently searched job titles are:

Infographic showing various Unity Lighting Artist job openings in the United States as of September 2026, with employment types broken down into 1% As Needed, 81% Full Time, 15% Part Time, 1% Temporary, 1% Contract, and 1% Nights. Highlights an 95% Physical, 1% Hybrid, and 4% Remote job distribution, with an average salary of $123,136 per year, or $59.2 per hour.

ILM USA hiring Lighting Artist, 2026

San Francisco, CA • On-site

Festybay
See more jobs at Festybayexternal

$100 - $125/hr

Other

Medical, Dental, Vision

Posted 7 days ago

Job description

Industrial Light & Magic (ILM) is seeking a highly talented, technically proficient Lighting Artist who reflects the innovative spirit, creative excellence, and passion for great storytelling that defines ILM.

In this role (Lighting Artist), you will combine your strong aesthetic eye with technical real-time rendering capabilities to bring out the absolute best in our immersive environments and characters. Working closely with the Department Supervisor of Lighting, Art Directors, and cross-discipline development teams, you will design, implement, and optimize real-time lighting setups and pipelines. The ideal candidate is an expert in balancing the cinematic beauty of a scene with the strict performance limitations of interactive, real-time engines and VR headsets.

Detail Specification

Job Title Lighting Artist (Interactive/Immersive)

Studio / Facility Industrial Light & Magic (ILM)

Location San Francisco, California, United States

Hiring Range $103,812 – $132,930 USD / Year

Primary Tech Stack Unreal Engine / Unity, PBR Shaders, Maya

Core Platforms Virtual Reality (VR), Augmented Reality (AR), Immersive Cinema

About Industrial Light & Magic (ILM)

Founded in 1975 by George Lucas, Industrial Light & Magic (ILM) is the premier visual effects facility in the world, setting the gold standard for cinematic storytelling and digital innovation for over three decades.

ILM’s Interactive Team advances this legacy of innovation by developing original, award-winning immersive experiences across virtual reality (VR), augmented reality (AR), and location-based entertainment platforms.

Blending best-in-class visuals, state-of-the-art spatial audio, and cinematic narrative, our team has delivered groundbreaking, award-winning projects such as What If…? – An Immersive Story, Vader Immortal: A Star Wars VR Series, and the Oscar-winning CARNE y ARENA. We continue to push the frontiers of real-time interactive technology and redefine how global audiences engage with stories.

1. Aesthetic Lighting Design & Implementation
  • Scene Composition: Collaborate with Art Directors, Lighting Leads, and concept artwork to build mood-evoking, cinematic lighting setups for complex environments, hero characters, and interactive game assets.
  • Real-Time Workflows: Leverage a deep understanding of lightmap baking, dynamic real-time lighting tools, image-based specular lighting (IBL), indirect light probes, and post-process volumes.
  • Dynamic Sequencing: Partner with Level Designers to animate dynamic lighting, time-of-day changes, or cinematic lighting transitions using level blueprints or engine sequencer tools.
2. Cross-Department Optimization & Polishing
  • Performance Synchronization: Work alongside environment, character, and VFX artists to ensure material shaders, textures, and geometry are fully optimized to meet both aesthetic targets and strict frame-rate benchmarks.
  • Material Authoring: Develop, organize, and maintain clean, efficient, and physically-based materials using real-time node editors (e.g., Unreal Engine material editor).
  • Bug Triage & Polish: Proactively identify, track, and fix rendering or lighting bugs inside an active production pipeline, bringing the final interactive project to an elite level of polish and optimization.
Requirements & QualificationsCore Craft Profile
  • Professional Footprint: 5+ years of production experience as a Lighting Artist or Lighting Technical Director (TD) within AAA game development, feature animation, or high-end visual effects (VFX).
  • Artistic Foundations: Strong aesthetic command over color theory, cinematic staging, shadow composition, and real-world atmospheric behavior.
  • Engine Proficiency: Hands-on production experience with Unreal Engine, Unity, or an equivalent modern real-time game engine, covering both dynamic and baked lighting pipelines.
  • Shader & PBR Knowledge: In-depth understanding of Physically Based Rendering (PBR) pipelines, real-time shader implementations, subsurface scattering shaders, and the specific rendering limitations inherent to VR platforms.
  • Production Ecosystem: Fluency working in Windows environments alongside industry-standard workload and version control management tools (e.g., JIRA, Perforce).
Bonus Points For:
  • A strong background in traditional fine arts, professional photography, or cinematic film studies.
  • Proficiency using GPU/CPU profiling tools to diagnose and resolve performance bottlenecks related to lighting and rendering.
  • Familiarity with foundational 3D/VFX content creation applications: Maya, Substance Designer/Painter, Houdini, ZBrush, Mari, 3D Studio Max, Photoshop, or Nuke.
Compensation, Benefits & Work Structure

San Francisco Base Hiring Range: $103,812 to $132,930 USD per year

Note: Actual base pay offered is determined by internal equity, geographic region, job-related knowledge, skills, and overall production experience.

Total Rewards Package: In addition to base pay, a bonus and/or long-term incentive units may be included. Employees have access to a full range of medical, dental, vision, and financial benefits provided by The Walt Disney Company.

How to Apply

If you are eager to shape the future of immersive entertainment under the banner of ILM, please submit your application through the official Lucasfilm / Disney Careers Portal.

Submission Requirement: A comprehensive portfolio or showreel link—accompanied by a detailed text breakdown explaining your exact technical and artistic contributions to each section or shot is strictly required for consideration.

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